Best estate cars with big boots

How long’s that piece of string again? It will depend on the car, of course, but in general most estates will allow you to pack in at least two big and two small suitcases with the rear seats in place; or two-to-three sets of golf clubs; or one large baby buggy plus some squashy bags. Bigger cars, such as the Skoda Superb Estate and Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate will do better than that — Mercedes even claims that the E-Class will hold a full-size washing machine without folding down the back seats. 

Easy — The Skoda Superb Estate. It’ll take 660 litres of whatever you need to carry up to the luggage cover, and if you fold down the back seats, you’ve got 1,690 litres of space to play with. IKEA won’t know what hit it…

All of them do — there’s not an estate car currently on sale that doesn’t have folding rear seats, but there is nuance. Not all rear seats will fold entirely flat, and if you’re loading really big, heavy items that can be a deal-breaker. Equally, all estate cars have seats that split and fold, allowing you to carry large items and at least one rear seat passenger, but the best ones have seats that split into three, rather than two, sections which gives you maximum possible versatility. If practicality is high on your list of priorities, make sure you try before you buy.