First time driver Family car

Lemonlemon

Hello,

I would like some recommendations, please.

-My budget is £1000 but I can stretch to 1500/2000.
-Must be automatic
-Ideally economical to run, ie cheap to insure, run, tax etc
-Need space for 3 young children and a pram in the boot.
-5 doors is a necessity for moving car seats between this and husband’s car.

So far I have looked at
Honda Jazz, Civic, Corsa, Astra, Ford C Max, Citroen C3.
Husband has pointed me to bigger cars like Ford Mondeo and a Mazda.

I’ve had my license for only a year and haven’t driven much due to poor health so my confidence isn’t great. I’m hoping to use this car to get to and from work, school runs/local trips with the kids etc. This would be a second family car and we would use my husband’s car for trips further afield.
Hopefully I will be in a better position (confidence and financially) to sell the car on and buy a bigger/better car after a year or so.

lexington013

The Honda Civic 2.2 CDTI is a. Great car, not may autos I think though.
The 1.8 vtech petrol might be a better bet for you.

AdrianC

Buy locally, and buy on condition ahead of make/model. Having said that, I think your husband's right about going for a larger car. Apart from simpler loading and more space, smaller autos tend to be more complex transmissions - robotised manuals, CVTs, and the like, rather than good ol' bomb-proof "proper" autos. At that end of the market, an ageing, fragile, complex box is likely to be what kills the car.

That end of the market is full of sharks and sheds - buy privately, because then you're getting a better car for the money, since you aren't paying somebody's business costs and wages on top of the value of the car.

jimbo6977

Something like the original Top Gear "reasonably priced car", the Suzuki Liana, but the estate/hatchback version rather than the saloon.

The difficulty is in finding a decent example of anything at that price range. Check the online MoT history on any car you might be considering.

knightstyle

Toyota Auris?

Scrapit

Ford focus?

MX5huggy

Skoda Octavia Estate

owen_money

Lemonlemon wrote: »

Hello,


-Need space for 3 young children and a pram in the boot.

As nice as it sounds I wouldnt recommend putting children in the boot

custardy

Friend got a 2007 Citroen Picasso automatic for £1.5K the other day.
I know some will baulk at a french car but for carting kids about and practicality its a good fit.

Bonniepurple

I have an aged C3 automatic and I love it. The boot’s deep, so you can fit loads in - just so long as you can lift it in. I can fit an adult, a 10 yo and a 12 yo into the back. Obviously my 2 aren’t in car seats, so I suspect the middle would be a real struggle with car seats.

Other cars - Ford Focus, okay, Fusion no (they had a weird gearbox which does not seem to have aged well!), Nissan Micra. Bear in mind petrol is now more popular but the VED still favours diesel- my C3 (petrol) is £250/year, my Dad’s diesel Fabia is £30/year.

illusionek

I got Auris and can recommend. Just make sure you get proper automatic and not semi as I did.