Roomster replacement - Karoq / Octavia / something else

[Mr Statto]

Reluctantly it's probably about time we looked into moving on from our 2008 Roomster - it's done a great job and if they'd built a replacement I probably wouldn't need to be asking this question, but since they haven't... 

 

We'd always assumed we'd be trading up to the Yeti, but looking at the likely prices for the Karoq has made me wonder whether we'd do just as well looking elsewhere. The Octavia Estate would be an obvious alternative, but the Vauxhall Insignia tourer has also caught my eye as better equipped & a similar price to the Octavia. 

 

So the question is, what would you recommend? We'd be wanting a manual petrol, economy more important than performance, likely budget around the £18-19k mark. Is there anything other than the 3 above we should adjust? All suggestions gratefully received

[SurreyJohn]

There is nothing directly comparable on the market

 

If you want room to carry big items like a fridge, then the suvs are unsuitable as the floors are high and tailgate curves.   You will need to look at the van with windows (probably Citroen or Peugeot)

 

If carrying capacity is not your key, is it a local use car or a long distance cruiser you need.  Does it need to be short to park it easily (I assume not as you suggested some long estate cars)

 

If you are getting rid of a 2008 car, there are some crazy scrappage deals this month (some carry on to 31 Dec). Might bring some others within your budget

 

Octavia estate is a possibility, if you like Karoq, look at Suzuki Vitara turbo. The Toyota auris hybrid has good economy.   Another economical possibility is something like a Kia Nero.   Mazda 6 tourer is worth a look.  Choice will depend on your priorities, (gadgets, economy, space requirements etc)

 

If you had asked about replacing the roomster with a small car, easy to park, how about a Smart Forfour ( and there is scrappage on that, if you have old diesel), plenty of gadgets on prime premium spec (heated leather seats, sunroofs, climate, navigation etc)

[bobspark]

Yes nothing seems to match the small footprint and large carrying capacity.Even some bigger cars don't have the carrying capacity of the Roomster.The Roomsters size means it's easy to park,especially at my new local hospital indoor car park which has very tight bends to traverse.Anyway can't get rid of mine yet, got 3 years of oil change stock in the garage ,unless the anything happens re the anti diesel lobby prices it off the road?

Also interesting to see examples of scrappage cars placed outside my local dealers ,advertising the fact.They all look good cars certainly not rusty bangers!