Best fast family cars – the best fun everyday drivers
A family car doesn’t need to be dull – some of our favourite performance models deliver the thrills of a purpose-built sports car
Car manufacturers are able to package more speed, more tech and more fun into family cars than ever before. There’s a huge variety of practical, multi-purpose driver’s cars on sale today that can show a clean pair of heels to some bespoke sports car machinery, and while modern performance SUVs have stolen a march on this area of the market, the last few years have also produced some of the best fast estate cars in recent memory.
The SUVs we have included on this list don’t just drive well for their size and weight; they’re compelling in their own right, delivering memorable driving experiences irrespective of the genre they compete in. With that said, equivalent fast estates will always have a higher ceiling of performance, dynamic ability and – for us – desirability, so they make up the majority of the entries here.
This is not an ordered list, rather a collection of brilliant-to-drive performance cars that place just as much emphasis on the way they drive as they do isofix points. All have some level of accommodation for a four-legged friend, too – just remember to let them out before a lap of the Nürburgring…
Best family cars 2024
- BMW M3 Touring
- Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio
- Mercedes-AMG CLA45 S Shooting Brake
- Porsche Cayenne GTS
- Audi RS4 Competition
- Jaguar F-Pace SVR
- Skoda Octavia vRS Estate
- Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo
- Audi RS6 Performance
BMW M3 Touring
The BMW M3 is more usable than ever in its current G80 incarnation, particularly now that it comes with xDrive four-wheel drive as standard. It’s bigger than its predecessor with wide-opening doors and a generous boot, but most significant is the fact that – for the first time – the M3 is available in a Touring bodystyle.
So configured, the M3 is just about the best fast estate you can buy, with a crazy turn of speed, immense capability in the bends and a level of engagement that’s a match for almost anything with four doors. The Touring gets extra bracing in the rear structure and a bespoke suspension calibration to achieve the kind of precision and finesse of the M3 saloon, which it does. It's been a long time coming, but the M3 Touring has been worth the wait and then some.
Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio
The Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio is on this list not just because it’s a more practical version of the brilliant Giulia, but because it has an exciting driving experience all of its own. This is underpinned by the Stelvio’s all-wheel-drive system, an element that fundamentally changes the way this car drives in comparison to the rear-drive Giulia.
The steering is quick and precise in the usual Alfa style, and the chassis balance almost makes it feel like a tall and Italian Nissan GT-R. It has a generous rear bias that gives this Alfa a high level of adjustability, especially in slippery conditions. And while the extra weight of the Stelvio is noticeable compared to its three-box relative, it’s not a deal breaker as the superb twin-turbocharged V6 still pulls with almost the same intensity.
> Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio review
Mercedes-AMG CLA45 S Shooting Brake
If Mitsubishi was to ever make a modern Lancer Evolution estate (there was one, briefly, in its IX generation) it may well have ended up a little something like AMG’s brilliant small four-wheel-drive estate. The CLA45 S Shooting Brake borrows its hardware from the A45 S, with a stunningly potent 415bhp four-pot engine at its heart.
The CLA45 S takes the A45 recipe and repackages it in a sleek low-rise estate, with even more aggressive looks and a relatively big boot. We make the correlation to the Lancer Evo because the CLA has a sophisticated all-wheel-drive system with the ability to apportion power both front to back and left and right, giving it massive all-weather ability and a level of adjustability you’d expect from a WRC refugee.
> Mercedes-AMG CLA45 S Shooting Brake
Porsche Cayenne GTS
In everything from its steering, balance and responsiveness, the Cayenne GTS is shot through with genuine Porsche DNA. It’s capable, polished and adjustable when the mood takes you, yet is adaptable enough to never be a hardship in day-to-day driving. The latest GTS gets a vocal 4-litre twin-turbocharged V8 with a nice, round 500ps (493bhp), and while it’s not as explosive as some of its rivals, it’s refreshing to drive a fast SUV that isn’t all about ripping up the road at the fastest rate possible.
As a family car, the latest Cayenne perhaps isn’t as sumptuous and luxurious as you’d expect inside, but the slightly clinical cabin is at least very well built, coming with Porsche’s latest suite of tech. This includes an optional infotainment screen ahead of the front passenger, with media streaming to keep them occupied on longer drives.
Audi RS4 Competition
The standard Audi RS4 is a fine high-performance family car, but it’s no M3 Touring-style thriller. So as it comes to the end of its life, Audi Sport has given the RS4 the Competition treatment, with lots of small hardware changes to give it more edge and excitement.
The changes include tweaks to the exhaust, gearbox mapping, wheels and tyres, but there’s one big addition that fundamentally changes how the Audi drives: new manually adjustable coilover suspension. This totally transforms how the RS4 rides and handles, giving it an expensive and plush feeling that only comes with expensive suspension hardware. It’s still not quite at the level of the M3 Touring, but the Competition is the best iteration of what has traditionally been one of our favourite usable performance cars.
Jaguar F-Pace SVR
The F-Pace SVR is a sweet blend of JLR’s venerable (and near-extinct) supercharged AJ-V8 engine and its most dynamic SUV chassis. All of its elements, from the engine and gearbox to the chassis balance and all-wheel-drive system, meld together to produce a genuinely brilliant car to drive. The snarling V8 backing track isn’t bad, either.
An update to the F-Pace back in 2020 bundled in a brand new interior, with class-leading digital interfaces and a huge uptick in material quality. As well as that, the exterior design was given a gentle update, and with aggressive bumpers, large wheels and SVR-specific design elements, it looks the part on the road too.
Skoda Octavia vRS Estate
We’re not sure there’s a more understated performance car on sale than the Skoda Octavia vRS Estate. Hiding beneath its hire car-spec exterior is an engine, gearbox and platform derived from the Golf GTI, with 261bhp being delivered to the front wheels in its latest facelifted guise.
To drive, the Skoda isn’t quite as sporty as it could be, but it has a wide range of ability thanks to optional 15-stage DCC dampers. In its softest setting the vRS settles into a relaxing stride, but there’s more control – and fun to be had – in its sportier modes. You can drive it like a big hot hatch, and on the inside, the Octavia is solidly built and comes with all the modern tech you could ask for.
Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo
In this list we’ve explored today’s best fast family cars, but the Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo might just be the best fast family car of tomorrow. The Taycan has already proven itself to be a superb, fast and luxurious EV, handling with more composure than just about any rival, and it’s faster, more capable and more usable than ever in its latest Gen 2 guise.
With four-wheel drive, 590bhp and up to 383 miles of range, the 4S Sport Turismo would be our pick for a fast electric family wagon. It’s not as spacious inside as its size would suggest, but the Taycan is extremely well judged for comfort and composure. Specify Porsche’s Active Ride suspension system and its long distance credentials go up a level, with an uncanny ability to swallow bumps and keep the body stable. It’s hard to think of a more rounded and deeply talented electric car.
Audi RS6 Performance
Audi’s RS6 has been the king of big, fast estates for some time, but with BMW now aiming for the piece of the action with its M3 and M5 Touring models, Audi Sport has been forced to up its game. With the latest RS6 Performance it’s done exactly that, giving the C8-generation car an uptick in power and dynamic ability with very impressive results.
The RS6 doesn’t have the finesse of a BMW M product, but its crushing, bruising character and performance are deeply appealing. In Performance spec its 4-litre V8 now generates a colossal 621bhp, and tweaks to the chassis have made harnessing that potential more rewarding than before. It digs in to find immense traction yet feels surprisingly agile for its size – it does things that frankly shouldn’t be possible for a 2090kg estate car.
