VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT ESTATE

Need something practical for a reasonable price? Dylan Lumpe has a sensible solution

- Dylan Lumpe

It may be almost a decade old now, but the current Volkswagen Passat Estate is still a top choice if you're after a classy wagon that's good to drive, comfortable to ride in, decently refined and huge inside. Launched in 2014, the Mk8 looks and feels totally modern but has been around for long enough to have become tempting value on the used market.

The petrol engines all have four cylinders and are badged TSI. They start with a 1.4-litre making 124bhp or 148bhp, rise to a 178bhp 1.8-litre and then culminate with a 2.0-litre packing 187bhp, 218bhp or 268bhp.

There's also a plug-in hybrid powertrain, badged GTE, which pairs a 1.4-litre turbo petrol engine with and an electric motor to produce a combined 215bhp. Expect an electriconly range of about 30 miles, or 40 miles in post-facelift cars.

Also as part of that 2019 update, the 1.4-litre petrol units were replaced by a new 148bhp 1.5-litre engine.

However, most Passat buyers choose a diesel engine (badged TDI), and again there are plenty of options here, each having four cylinders. They begin with a 118bhp 1.6-litre and move up to a 2.0-litre with 148bhp, 187bhp or, in twin-turbocharged form, 241bhp.