Not in litres as the manufacturers quote, but feet and inches, metres or yards.
It’s not water I want to transport after all. Need the dimensions as got to get something that the girlfriends harp will slide into. Ultimately need to know the width at narrowest poin (between arches?) and length from boot to average height driver
Obviously if it fits a harp, it will easily take bikes 😀
My budget will be £3-4k max. so no point measuring up your new 5 series or Audi as I just won’t afford that. I know it will fit in a van, but that is what I’m getting rid of.
Renault Laguna is meant to have one of the biggest boots for its class, with the Mondeo following close behind. I’ll try and remember to measure our Mondeo estate tomorrow.
Estates will be much better than hatches as the boot opening is wider and doesn’t have a lip.
Used to have an original model Focus (02 plate) – very little intrusion into the boot space. Don’t have it any more so can’t measure it. You could get a standard sized bath into it though (don’t ask!) with not much room to spare if that’s a guide. I’ll measure the bath if you want!
Current model Passat is bigger overall but has more wheelarches so a narrower “pinch” – will probably over budget but will measure it up if you want. The previous Passat has a better shape boot and might be in your budget.
To be honest, most stuff fails on the arches, the too small list includes 307, berlingo too short, octavia, can’t remember what else we’ve measured so far
An astra is reputedly the smallest estate it will fit in, but if I can find something more exciting – lovely.
Had an old mondeo and was a quality barge.
42″ x 72″ would be ideal, but can be a little smaller with wiggling.
Plus as I’ve mentioned before on here, 4 bikes fit in the boot with the rear seats up if you take wheels and pedals off and straps the mechs to the chainstays 🙂
We have had most of the estates, no doubt C5 huge but prob bet avoided, next are the Mercs, your money could buy a good one and they can be OK to run – we have had one good and one not so good, next biggest is Pug 406 nearly huge, very cheap HDI engines good, worth a look if you can put up with the image etc.. Volvo pretty big (only the realy old ones are really big) but still too expensive to run. Mazda 5 not bad alround, Mondeo big-ish good value, can be a hoot to drive best of this list for driving. We have owned or borrowed from work all of the above. Now with a Passat Ok for size, smallest in this list but great build and pretty cheap to run, and a Citroen Xantia yep an old heap which is 3rd largest here keeps going on and on (and cheaply), carrying bikes and kayaks every weekend and dogs all week. So if it was me a Ford or VW….. good luck
Just measured our laguna2 estate and the boot is 42 at it narrowist (which is the boot opening) and 69 ish to the back of the seats but that was a bit harder to tell as it is a pain to drop them with the child seats in as you have to take them out.
I’m not going out to measure it, it’s too cold, but my Mondeo boot is huuuuge. Swallowed 3 full suss bikes, plus kit, plus tools, and bike stand down to Morzine a couple of years back.
Old shape Passats are huge (better than the Focus), as are Mondeos. The new one’s aren’t so good. I didn’t want a car that big though.
My new shape Focus is plenty big enough for a ‘smaller estate’. Bikes in with wheels on easy. It’s 11 at night and it’s snowing though, so I ain’t measuring it.
I very nearly got a Megane Estate. They have by far and away the biggest boot of the Focus/Megane/Gold size estates.
Octavias – nice cars, but small boots with a sill on the lip and a massive step when the seats are folded down. No thanks.
I’ve got a new Passat and with the seats down it is huge, that said it can be a little tight around the opening for the boot, before that I used to have a Sharan and when the seats are either folded or taken out it was ****ing massive but then you are in people carrier territory.
I’ve got a W reg Volvo V70 2.4T , paid about £3500 for it and can put my Epic in sideways, wheels off and seat post still up without putting the seats down. I reckon i can get another 2 bikes on top of that too.
I’ve managed to get a 50″ TV in flat with the seats down and a 42″ TV in upright. It’ll swallow a harp no problem.
If you get a late model 850 or early model V70 they have a slightly bigger tailgate.
citroen xm, is the biggest of big estates
it is absolutely massive, my brother has one and it gobbles up everything
they are cheap aswell, fuel consumption isn’t the best, adequate for an estate though,
Cheers for the posts, will centre on the Mondeos and Volvos I think, not a fan of French cars. Was after the smallest estate that would take the harp as I’m fed up of barge driving.
Like the Mercs too, used to run the saloon as a staff car in last job, 5 up, loaded, going uphill and on the limiter in a diesel!
Olly – I already have a van, but want to go FASTER, that and the extra seats would be useful, no point being able to carry 30 bikes if you can only get 3 people in the cab
Another vote for the Mondeo Estate Mk3. I previously had the older mondeo and definately wanted a change, but reading up on the reports the MK3 got top marks for everything but 2nd hand value. So, hey ho, I got another. It’s been faultless. It’s a cheap car to maintain aswell, spares are not silly money.