In partnership with Autotrader
Used test: Nissan Qashqai vs Seat Ateca vs Skoda Karoq costs
These family SUVs all sell in big numbers, so there are plenty of excellent used examples to choose from. But should you go for a Qashqai, an Ateca of a Karoq?...
Buying and owning
Costs, equipment, reliability, safety and security
At around £27,000, the Nissan Qashqai is the priciest of our three cars at two years old. There isn't much in it, mind you. Our Seat Ateca is worth around £26,000 and the Skoda Karoq comes in at around £25,000.
The Karoq should cost you the least in fuel, too. During our testing, it averaged 38.6mpg, beating the Qashqai's 36.9mpg and the Ateca's 36.7mpg.
On the other hand, the Qashqai should be the cheapest – by a small margin – to insure. It belongs to insurance group 17, meaning it should attract a cost of around £545. The Ateca and Karoq are in group 18, so each should set you back around £562.
You can buy a £460 service plan through Nissan, covering two services of the Qashqai. For the Ateca, a two-service plan through Seat will cost you £480. With Skoda, we were quoted £480 for two services of the Karoq.
Our contenders’ high-end trims mean there are plenty of toys on offer. We’ve mentioned already that they come with 19in wheels and multiple parking aids, but in each case the list is swelled by dual-zone climate control, power-folding door mirrors, keyless entry, heated front seats, electric tailgates and privacy glass.
The Ateca features leather seats, but the Qashqai is the best equipped overall, adding the electric front seats also mentioned earlier, a heated steering wheel, a heated windscreen, adaptive cruise control (also fitted to the Ateca) and a head-up display, which projects key information directly into the driver's line of sight on the windscreen.
Standard safety kit is equally generous in the Qashqai, which matches the Ateca in coming with blindspot monitors and lane-keeping assistance. All three get automatic emergency braking. The Qashqai received the maximum five-star safety rating from Euro NCAP. Both the Ateca and Karoq are rated as five-star cars, but they were tested under less stringent criteria than newer models.
In the latest What Car? Reliability Survey, the latest Qashqai was too new to feature, but if the previous version is any indication, reliability should be respectable, though not class leading. The 2014-2021 Nissan Qashqai, in petrol form, ranked 28th out of 39 cars.
The Karoq, also in petrol form, managed an impressive 12th, while the petrol Ateca came 25th. In the overall brand league table, Skoda ranked 13th, Seat 15th and Nissan 25th out of the 32 manufacturers included.
Best family SUVs 2024: our favourite SUVs for kids and cargo
Want practicality, class and an elevated driving position in a relatively compact and affordable package? These are the top 10 cars you should be looking at – and the ones that are best avoided
