Good small car for motorway

[anniec]

I learned to drive in a yaris and I loved to drive it. It's smooth and a really comfy ride.

 

I currently have a VW Polo and that also good and as I worked for a used car warranty company I tend to know a wee bit about what cars go wrong most often.

 

I would recommend something between a 1.2-1.4 and def diesel as others have said. I think the yaris fits this perfectly and it retains value quiet decently.

[RasmusBart]

Mini metro 1.3 mayfair.. get one on ebay for about £500 taxed and tested and cheap on parts. nippy easy to park and cheap on insurance.

[bendyman]

I've got an Audi A2, 1.4 TDI. Brilliant car, low tax, low mpg (50ish), and cheap insurance. I've had 5 cars over last 5 years and this is the one I shall be sticking with.

 

5 cars in 5 years oooh who,s a pretty boy then:cool:

[Terry Bull]

Diesels are very good as motorway cars, especially if you pick one with a six speed gearbox, my sister has a VW Polo Tdi 130 and at 70mph in sixth gear its doing just less than 2000rpm and I think its pretty cheap to tax. Although one downer with VW Tdi engines is that they require a costly (£300) cambelt change every 60,000, and if you are a high mileage driver that could come round pretty quickly.

[chocki]

Surely you mean high mpg?

 

Oh yes, just testing lol

[GrannyGranny]

Alot of diesels a your budget willhave done high miles and when they go wrong they can cost as much as the original price to fix especially a new turbo.

 

I would go for a mid size petrol.

 

Skoda Fabia

Rover 25/45

Nissan Almera

Seat Ibiza

 

All of these are available in 1.4L engine size and will be between 6-9 year old but have below average miles. You will be doing 1600 miles per month so buying a car with low miles initially will save hopefully save on repairs. They are cheap to insure being around Group 5.

[SophieClarke]

Toyota Yaris.

 

My partner's got one and it's fab. Really economical, nippy, does loads of motorway miles, it's reliable and it's cheap to insure.

 

 

I will second this. I've had a Toyota Yaris for nearly 5 years and it has been 100% reliable.

 

They are extremely low cost to maintain and I average around 300 miles from a tank of petrol.

 

They do not suffer from depreciation as mush as other makes of cars - this will probably be a downside if you are looking to purchase a second-users Yaris though.

[tab1]

Alot of diesels a your budget willhave done high miles and when they go wrong they can cost as much as the original price to fix especially a new turbo.

 

I would go for a mid size petrol.

 

Skoda Fabia

Rover 25/45

Nissan Almera

Seat Ibiza

 

All of these are available in 1.4L engine size and will be between 6-9 year old but have below average miles. You will be doing 1600 miles per month so buying a car with low miles initially will save hopefully save on repairs. They are cheap to insure being around Group 5.

I would second the Seat Ibiza option. Car of the year in 2003 and just about in budget now between £1500-£2000 for a 52 reg on a 1.2 engine. Low insurance and an excellent quiet drive for size of car at top legal speeds. I bought one for my daughter recently and can't recommend it highly enough after driving it down to Aylesbury and back.

[Longcol]

I was put off the idea of a small car on a motorway years ago when I was in my wifes Mini and my neck was on at the same height as the axle / bumper of an articulated lorry.

[epiphany]

I used to have an 02 Renault Clio diesel which I imagine you can pick up for that sort of money. I did a lot of motorway miles (london to Sheffield return every two weeks). It's not an exciting car by any means but it's got good economy and a gutsy 1.5 DCI engine, it never felt underpowered and never let me down. It was also surprisingly fun to drive on more twisty country lanes, so long as you kept the revs high.

 

+1 for Clio. Not sure about the newer models (pricey anyway) but I have a 56 1.2 and it's comfortable, has more than enough power, isn't thirsty and you don't feel your arse is an inch from the tarmac.