Lack of estate cars in UAE

[Barry]

It just occurred to me that I haven't seen any estate cars in my time in UAE. Where I come from, they're everywhere. They're practical and fast. 

So any reason as to why they're not popular here?

[desertdude]

When I was younger there seem to be quite a few on the roads here, mostly carrying children in the back! Now they are replaced by SUVs. I don't see any use for station wagons as they are known here. Not many in North or South America too. I guess in Europe it makes sense as fuel is pricey and most country lanes and village road SUV unfriendly.  

[Rahimdad]

Although they have estate here, popularly being used by Emirates Airline Limos service for Business and First Class passengers they use the Volvo. Similarly, some taxi and other companies using the estate. As Desertdude pointed out most people prefer an SUV, i Guess mostly due to bling bling in Dubai. Another reason could be that the estate here do not fetch a fair resale value and you loose out big time. Simple example, Toyota Corolla used to have the saloon version and the estate version here before, when you go to resell it the estate would fetch half the price of the saloon and in most cases I believe that is justified due to wear and tear is more on a estate than a normal saloon. Which brings me to my next point why the estate would not be so popular in Dubai, The estates are similarly built to their saloon counter parts, which means suspension and other parts are similar to the saloon however you would buy an estate to carry some payload/ Which means the suspension and other parts end up with more wear and tear and the cost would be higher to maintain the estate compared to a van or SUV which has better suspension parts to bear the weight. Looking at the modern estate the definition and shapes are ever changing, like a Toyota Avanza, Innova, etc. so that not only can they be used to carry stuff, but have the 7 seat configuration.

Just my point of view, hope this gives you a better idea and looking forward to more contributions from everyone.

[Rahimdad]

My dad used to own a Nissan 180B station wagon in the early 1980;s, it was later renamed as the Bluebird and the station wagon was slowly faced out in the mid 80's.

My uncle during the same period used to own a Nissan 280C station wagon which was later renamed as the Cedric. Those were more heavier and sturdier and they continued production till late 80's early 90's but were eventually faced out also.

Edited November 8, 2016 by Rahimdad
Removed pictires

[Rahimdad]

Can't post pictures here

Edited November 8, 2016 by Rahimdad
Deleted

[Barry]

Some good points very well made. 

I never would have considered the Avanza or Inova as an estate, more of a MPV the the lines of the Renault Scenic or Espace. 

Speaking of Nissan, check out some of the JDM estates such as the Stagea GTRs. Basically a Skyline Estate. Family drift bus 😍I remember loads of Bluebirds on the road when I was a kid. They never seemed to cope well with the Irish weather and salt on the roads and most of them seemed to be rotten after 3 years. The last one I saw was in a scrapyard about 2 years ago having not seen one for maybe 15 years and it wasn't in healthy shape. 

I don't know about the SUV bling bling thing, maybe it's just a matter of taste but I think something like RS4 or C63 estate looks way more classy than a Patrol. 

[desertdude]

Its about taste, European sensibilities dont translate well here. Just like Europeans poo poo American Muscle. For example I could not think of a single reason why I would ever ever want to buy a station wagon no matter how "sporty" it is unless I was a salesman who supplied large quantities of stuff or moved large cargo on a routine basis. Even then I would get a LR3/4 instead of some sporty wagon. 

P.S : Cars like Innova or Avanza are 99.9% bought by companies to transport staff or hotels and tour companies to shuttle guests around. 
 

[Barry]

Just when I said there's no estates....

 

[Rahimdad]

@BarryVery few and far. Which keeps your question still valid

[manums]

I have seen some old toyota corrola's and camry's in estate version here and there. They are very less in number though. Here everyone looking for big SUV's. That must be the reason why they discontinued estates from the market.