Choosing a car to carry one’s family around is a major financial decision. It needs to be versatile, well-built and, crucially, affordable.
Furthermore, that vehicle has to be able to handle anything that families can throw at it and be economical too in order to save as much money as possible.
With that in mind, a group of automotive journalists from Autocar have put together a list of the best cars for family on sale in the UK.
What may surprise people is the car they chose was not an SUV, but an estate, with the winner coming in the form of the BMW 3 Series Touring, the estate version of the popular saloon car.
On why it was their winner, journalists Keith WR Jones and Sam Phillips said the 3 Series Touring proved a family car could be useful and fun to drive at the same time.
They explained: “The Touring estate version of the BMW 3 Series is the one to take if you’re adamant that family life and enjoying driving don’t have to be mutually exclusive.
“[T]he M340i is a standout performance estate that hits the family car brief while also being fun to drive. Meanwhile, the plug-in hybrid 330e will appeal to company car drivers and fleets alike. Its blend of performance and economy is still segment-leading.”
Despite coming first, the BMW wasn’t without its faults, with the car criticised for not having a diesel option, having a smaller boot than rivals, and being more expensive the more options were added.
Nevertheless, it came ahead of the car in second place, the Dacia Jogger. Dacia is known for producing premium cars and selling them at not-so-premium prices. The Jogger was praised for being “space-efficient” and showing few signs of actually being cheap.
Meanwhile, the reviewers said it lost marks for lacking “some driver assistance features”, as well as lacking refinement in its smaller engines and for its third row of seats being “awkward to access”.
Nevertheless, they concluded: “The Jogger is the ideal family all-rounder, with space for seven passengers and a robust interior that’s durable enough to handle your kids, their mates and all the paraphernalia that comes with them.”
Completing the podium in third was the venerable Volkswagen Golf hatchback. The Golf is over 50 years old now and the latest Mk8.5 version of it was noted for having improved technology.
Furthermore, the motoring publication said there were sportier and more luxurious variants available. Negatives included the fact that the boot was smaller than some of its rivals, that it was more expensive, and there were some concerns about the reliability of the technology.
They noted: “The latest, Mk8.5 model continues to offer family-sized motoring to suit a variety of budget and performance requirements, even in this SUV-dominated age.”
The top three family cars come as SUVs continue to dominate the best-selling cars list in the UK, but prove that one doesn’t necessarily need to have an SUV if they want a proficient family car.