Almost all estate cars gain some weight due to their increased size. Most, however, are largely unaffected, offering a similar driving experience to their saloon and hatchback counterparts, with near-identical acceleration and performance, fuel economy and CO2 emissions figures.
A fast estate is a somewhat rare find on the used car market, adding a slight premium to the price over the more common saloon and hatchback variants. For this extra cost, you get subtle sporty looks combined with big performance and practicality, making the fast estate something of an understated and unusual choice overall.
So why should you pick a fast estate car over the equivalent SUV? For starters, a fast estate will in most cases offer a more dynamic and sporty driving experience, with far less body roll than a taller SUV. A fast estate will also offer a near-identical or increased load space compared with an SUV, with most models also boasting slightly better fuel economy and lower CO2 emissions due to superior aerodynamics.
For a modest budget of £15,000, you have a varied choice of fast estate cars that can fulfil all of your daily requirements. All are similarly equipped to their SUV counterparts, offering substantial amounts of load space, all-around ability and excellent performance. There are many well known names in this area of the market, from the Ford Focus ST to more upmarket offerings such as the Audi A6 Avant and Jaguar XF Sportbrake.
