Need to accommodate a bike in the boot so thinking of estate variants. Has to be automatic and run on petrol. Shortlist narrowed down to BMW 5-series, Mercedes E-Class or Volvo V70. Will be looking at examples around 10 years old.
I am not surprised that the Honda CR-v is not on the short list, CRv is short for Compact Recreational vehicle.
My 2008 crv is bigger than a normal car but it is not long enough when the rear seats are folded forward to fit a normal cycle without loosing and turning the handlebars sidways to get it to fit in.
I'm swayed towards the E class, my mechanic mentioned 'Mercs are driven by gentlemen, BMWs are thrashed by yobbos'. No opinion of the V70 so I'd still like to drive all three. And the Saab 9-3 seems a bit small, also the fact that underneath it is just a Vectra is a big no-no. I have one of those and desperately don't want to have one.