Revealed: the best used cars in every segment

Best for: Estate cars

With a comfortable ride, neat handling and an upmarket cabin, the Mk7 BMW 3 Series Touring is one of the most polished and practical estate cars you can buy. 

This estate is powerful, classy and great to drive.

Matt Saunders, Road test editor

With a healthy budget of £15,000, you will soon find a car with low owners and a good maintenance record. There’s a real duality to the way the Touring's dynamic character, which neatly blends agility with solid ride comfort.

At a cruise, it's comfortable and efficient. On a cross-country road it offers more incisive handling than its European counterparts. 

The diesel 320d is a great all-rounder, but the 330e plug-in hybrid, which offers up to 37 miles of electric-only driving, is a solid alternative. The four-wheel-drive, six-cylinder diesel M340d and petrol M340i are both brilliant too, if you’re after more performance and handling prowess. 

Timing chain, DPF and EGR issues can afflict diesel models. The infotainment system is intuitive, but watch out for software glitches. 

Best for: SUV buyers

Skoda's first seven-seat SUV was a hit straight out of the box, and used it's a downright bargain.

The Kodiaq provides versatile, appealing, added-value motoring for the bigger family.

Matt Saunders, Road test editor

It does almost all of the important things well: practicality, usability, economy and drivability. And it also appeals for its quality, refinement and versatility. 

It can’t match German rivals for luxury appeal and dynamic sophistication, but you will struggle to find an SUV as rounded as the Kodiaq for as little as £7000.

There’s a broad range of engines and trims to choose from, and some can be had with four-wheel drive. The 1.4-litre petrol is efficient and good for short hops, while the 2.0-litre diesel is better for longer motorway schleps. 

The Kodiaq is a robust and well-built family SUV, hence there aren’t too many glaring issues. Suspension and electric issues (eg infotainment glitches) are more common. Make sure the DSG automatic gearbox is smooth and responsive if testing a high-mileage example. 

Best for: Off-roading

The Land Rover Defender is an impressively versatile 4x4 that makes heavy-duty off-roading look easy while also offering good on road comfort and decent handling.

The Defender has world-class capability. It's brilliant on and off road – at a price.

Matt Prior, Editor-at-large

While you can spend £35,000 on one, it's best to up your budget to around £50,000 to buy a 90 or 110 model with fewer miles under its belt. 

The 110 is more practical and our pick of the line-up. But if you’re a keen off-roader, the shorter wheelbase of the 90 makes it more versatile off the beaten track.

You can also get the vast 130 variant, but we would only suggest this if you need a huge boot and more seats. 

Avoid the early Ingenium engines if you can: a clogged DPF is common on diesels, as are turbocharger failures. Issues with the air suspension and software glitches are also widely reported. Find a later D250 or D350 six-cylinder diesel, as these are more reliable. 

Best for: Value

The current Toyota Corolla makes a brilliant family car. You can have a 1.2-litre turbo petrol or a petrol-electric hybrid system with either a 1.8-litre or a 2.0-litre engine. 

It's very pleasant, cheap to run, stress-free and even mildly entertaining if the mood takes you.

Illya Verpraet, Road Tester

You will easily get more than 50mpg from a hybrid model, and in all environments the Corolla is easy to drive, offering good handling balance and ride comfort.

The interior is comfortable and large switches and knobs make it a very easy car to operate on the move. 

You can have the Corolla in hatchback, saloon, estate and even commercial van form, with hatches the most widely availalble. Prices for older high-milers start from around £8500.

In the latest What Car? Reliability Survey, the Corolla came sixth out of 26 cars in the family car class, with an impressive overall rating of 96.4%. 

Best for: Electric car buyers

Practical, efficient and offering good everyday practicality, the Tesla Model 3 is still an impressive electric car.

There’s a real sense of agility and body roll is controlled well, so the Model 3 exhibits an alert keenness to its handling.

Matt Saunders, Road test editor

Older examples with clear signs of hard use start from less than £10,000, but for around £15,000 you can snap up a much cleaner example with fairer miles and a good history. 

Standard Range models are cheaper and ideal for shorter hops around town. Performance models offer whip-crack acceleration, the dual-motor powertrain making 449bhp for a 3.2sec sprint to 60mph. 

If range is key, the dual-motor Long Range model is the standout choice. In real world driving conditions it will easily manage 300 miles on a charge, if not more.

Plus you have full access to Tesla’s unrivalled Supercharger network, which makes boosting the battery on the move a seamless process. Check panel fit and finish before buying and be wary of infotainment and sensor glitches.

Best for: Luxury

Suave, lavishly appointed and supremely refined, the sixth-generation S-Class set the standard for luxury cars when it arrived in 2013.

The S-Class's hushed, cosseting ride is exemplary.

Matt Saunders, Road test editor

You would have paid well in excess of £75,000 for an S-Class when it was new, but today you can buy one for as little as £10,000.

While you can have the S-Class in short-wheelbase form, it's the longer version that you want, for its greater leg room in the back and sublime ride quality.

The S400d diesel is a solid choice, while the petrol models showcase the S-Class’s remarkable agility and AMG's V8-engined S63 and V12-engined S65 are nothing short of mind-blowing in terms of performance and dynamism. 

This S-Class’s reliability record is also strong. Airbag malfunctions and gearbox issues are well documented, though, and turbocharger oil leaks and engine oil leaks can occur if the cam chain tensioner fails. 

Best for: Performance

When it was new, the original M2 was the most affordable M car on sale, but today you can snap up this brawny, old-school baby M3 for the same money as a Mk7 Volkswagen Golf R.

The smallest M car is also the best. Rapid, brawny and very nearly brilliant.

Matt Prior, Editor-at-large

Powering the M2 is a 365bhp six-cylinder engine that can be paired with either an eight-speed automatic or a six-speed manual. The latter is the gearbox of choice, and while it's not the most tactile shift, for sheer engagement it suits the M2’s character. 

Fast, poised and agile, the M2 is brimming with driver appeal. Just watch for oil and coolant leaks.

If you want more incisive handling and a blue-blooded 404bhp straight six, the M2 Competition is the more polished M car.

Prices start from £25,000, but make sure you find a car with a full service history and check brake and tyre life.

Best for: Driver engagement

While the 1.5-litre version of the current MX-5 can cost as little as £8000, it's the more potent 2.0-litre version that you should plump for.

This is an outstanding and usable sports car.

Matt Prior, Editor-at-large

Early examples made only 158bhp, so we would opt for the upgraded 181bhp four-cylinder engine that arrived in late 2018. Such cars start from around £15,000, but it’s well worth the extra outlay.

All 2.0-litre models also benefit from stiffer dampers and a limited-slip differential. 

The MX-5’s main drawcards have always been agility, lightness and engagement and the Mk4 is no exception. Be it on track or a mountain road, its balanced chassis, punchy engine and scalpel-sharp manual box make it a fine sports car. 

Reliability is generally good. Early manuals can suffer from shiting problems and any grinding noises from the gearbox could suggest it’s on its way out. Make sure you check the roof for tears and take a good look underneath the car for any signs of corrosion.