The best used fast estates to buy in 2026

Having first attempted, rather feebly, to build a Focus ST wagon with the first generation, Ford forgot about the idea for the second edition – but it was back with a point to prove for the third. Here was a fast estate just as fun to drive as the hot hatch it was constructed from, perhaps not brimming with finesse but very entertaining all the same, with the same generous slab of performance as well. And made a whole lot more accommodating by a huge boot on the back which, given the low bar set by Ford back then in terms of design, didn’t look bad at all. It’s little wonder so many Focus ST estates have been put to good use, because from family road trips to B-road blasts, it was an absolute hoot. This ST-3 scrubs up alright for 130,000 miles, there are several stamps present in the service history, and it’s £4,690. That doesn’t buy you much Ford these days, let alone a fast one… 

If the Focus was a little too uncouth for the family to take down to Cornwall for summer, there’s always the Skoda Octavia vRS to fall back on. Like a dependable hound, you always knew what to expect from a turbocharged Skoda estate over the years: ample performance, ample excitement, ample comfort. It was all just pleasantly enough, enjoyable when pushing on without being OTT, usefully fast without being inefficient, and boasting a very generous boot in an entirely normal footprint. The solution to the problem of moving lots of people and lots of stuff with the minimum of palaver is so often Skoda. Having made so many for so long, too, there are plenty of vRS bargains out there; this 10-year-old one has just ticked over 100,000 miles, but we couldn’t resist a red manual as (probably) the fastest one around. There’s always more to a vRS than meets the eye, and that’s why you’ll so often find them here. 

Speaking of fast wagon mainstays, this little collective obviously wouldn’t be complete without a Volvo of some kind. We just can’t be without them. While various Polestar-branded models have injected some life back into the genre recently, the ’90s really were peak Volvo load lugger. And they come little better than the R, arriving towards the end of the first V70’s life as a replacement for the much-loved 850 T5 and R. The formula was much the same, with a great wad of five-cylinder turbo power, the storage space of a cave and no shortage of squared-off style. So the reputation became just as legendary, to the extent that good V70s are now being imported from Japan for collectors. This is a UK car though, standard throughout and with an encouraging amount of recent work. The old school never looked quite so appealing.    

Whisper it, because this isn’t what you’re meant to say, but the wagon was the better iteration of the Golf R. The hatch was great, no doubt, but the GTI was just more enjoyable, lighter and keener and a bit more fun. There, said it. But for a fast estate, priorities change slightly, and with all-seasons, all-situation speed at the top of that list, the concept of a 4Motion-only, DSG-only Golf R longroof makes a lot of sense. It’s one of those rare automotive solutions that absolutely nails its required brief: fast, spacious, useful and fairly unassuming. And without the slightly iffy image that still plagues the hatches. This one has had a slightly spicier ECU tune applied for both engine and gearbox, but is untouched otherwise. Smarter than a new one, cooler than the hatch and as fast as many more exotic estates, a Golf R remains as persuasive a package as ever. 

Permit us a curveball among so many European heavyweights. Because this isn’t an XF with a shrieking supercharger under the bonnet or a crazy bodykit; it’s just a P300 from the most recent generation. Why is it here? Because lost in the recent furore surrounding Jaguar’s future, is the fact that the X, by the end, was a pretty great executive car. And arguably never more so than as an estate, still suave and stylish while boasting a lot more space than the saloon. They drove very well indeed, Pivi Pro usefully improved the interior experience, and the XF was consistently cheaper than the opposition. Ultimately, the F-Pace was deemed more appropriate for its place in the market, and easier for buyers to embrace, making the Sportbrake very seldom seen. But this one, a 2024 car with some manufacturer warranty left, showing just 16,000 miles, is a great-looking tribute to the past that Jaguar is so keen to distance itself from. A bargain, too. 

If not quite as flagrantly out there as the Jaguar, buying a Sport Turismo also dictates a particular mindset – specifically one that embraces what the Panamera wagon actually looks like. If you can make your peace with that (alongside the idea that this isn’t the most capacious estate, given the car’s physical size) then there is much to like. By its second generation, Porsche had figured out how to make the model handle like a dream, and arguably the GTS, with its unencumbered 4.0-litre V8, is the one to go for. The fact that this one has been tuned to 800hp might strike you as pointless, but it is also a reminder of what a rare bird the non-hybrid version actually is – definitely worth seeking out, if you have the budget. And the right kind of eyes. 

Having said all that, if your budget is indeed senior-sized, you must give very serious thought to buying a diesel. We say this because the D3 S, conjured in the last few years of proper Alpina, is one of the best fast estate cars ever made. Sure, they also did a petrol version that was very nice, but the oil burner, with 538lb ft of torque, is just too good a fit for all the usual chassis smarts. The model that resulted, is hugely superior even to the sum of its bespoke parts: hugely brisk, imperturbable, practical, economical, quiet, refined, assured – in essence, everything we typically look for when buying a fast wagon. Add in the fact that whatever BMW has planned for Alpina will not be quite the same, and you have an incontrovertible black-pump peach. 

If you really can’t bring yourself to embrace diesel, and simply must have a V8 or nothing (understandable, of course) then for only a little more than the Alpina costs – or potentially less if you shop around a bit – there is always the bi-turbocharged pleasure of the E63. Here’s a car that combined more than 600hp with not just size and pomp, but fairly cohesive styling, too. Back in the day, this was the model that unseated the old RS6 in our affections, and it’s easy to recall why: it drove with such astonishing bandwidth that almost any road highlighted Mercedes-AMG’s engineering diligence. Plus, of course, being an E-Class, you could haul a dining room table while doing Mach 4. This one looks lovely in silver with only modest miles accrued. 

Realistically, and for significantly less than six figures, the E63 is all the fast wagon you could ever need – but if you want to push so far beyond the conventional line that it is practically a dot in your rearview mirror, there are two options. The first is the M3 CS Touring, a car that presumably took BMW no time at all to decide was appropriate, after taking decades to finally approve the M-badged wagon that underpins it. The result is about as necessary as sunglasses in a sauna if you actually plan on using it as an estate car – but clearly the over-the-top, chin-jutting attitude is what appeals to anyone who fits inside such a big-spending niche. This one doesn’t even fit inside the £125k budget, yet it does look brilliant. Goes a bit, too. 

The second option is this, the GT – a car no less brazen about its implied specialness than the CS. Again, real world, the result is as much about exclusivity as it is performance gains, but don’t think you’re gaining nothing from the weight loss or the adjustable passive coilovers – the default compromise is very sweetly struck, making the RS6, already an Exocet of an estate car, a truly mighty prospect. Factor in the absurd accessibility of the V8, and you really do have to work hard at not hitting three figures just about everywhere. Or grinning like a brain-damaged test monkey when you do. Thankfully people will be too busy staring at the IMSA-inspired livery to notice. A ridiculous car – yet deservedly atop this wishlist.