Autocar's real-world used car heroes

We show you the 10 not so obvious choices, maybe even better than them.

James Ruppert

by James Ruppert

17 May 2018

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You can’t always get what you want, but sometimes you certainly can get what you need. I think that Jagger/Richards were referring to the used car market, where if you think creatively, you can get a better value buy.

Essentially you might want an electric car with a Tesla badge, but realistically, all you need is battery Renault. So here are the real world buys which are not the obvious choices, quite often they are much better than that.
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Electric: Renault Zoe

At the moment the best way to regard used electric motors is in the short term and for equally short journeys. Yes there’s a Leaf, but how dull is that? A funky, chic Zoe is much better and great value too. You will get a ton of electrical kit with it air con, rear power windows, Bluetooth, rain sensor wipers and really everything you need, except road tax.

Example: 2013 £4995 30K miles Dynamique
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Town/Small: Suzuki Swift

There is the cult of the MINI, which remains, overpriced and rather common, so it pays to look around at other perky offering where there is just one simple choice. Three or five doors. Only you know what suits your lifestyle best. Recent ones have Sat Nav and DAB radio, which is nice. Not nearly enough have an offset body stripe, which is far better than a chequered roof.

Example: 2015 £7,500 30K miles 4 door Sport
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Sports: Toyota GT86/ Subaru BRZ

You could save up for a supercar, but why bother when something much more useable, fun and practical. It is just a question of which flavour you want. The Subaru one is not so numerous, whereas the Toyota is around is rather larger numbers although prices are similar although the differences are quite subtle.

Hard to go wrong, though avoid the very sub £10K category damage repaired cars.

Example: 2013 £12,400 GT86/BRZ 40K miles
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Small family: Mazda 3

Not sure if anyone can picture one of these in their head and that’s mainly because it isn’t a Focus. Here’s a sporty package that does the shopping and commute without any complaint. Because it's a Mazda, reliability is not even a consideration.

The hot MPS is quite long in the tooth now and a Sport is 100bhp down, but (£5500) for a 2011 if you are only going shopping.

Example: 2010 2.3 MPS 60,000 £9995
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SUV Look: Mitsubishi ASX

Sports Ubiquity Vehicles more like. Everyone wants one, however they don’t need the four-wheel drive gubbins to weigh them down, just the ability to look down on others and the ASX is a very subtle way of doing it. So we’ll go with the diesel 1.8 in 2WD please. A Cleartec 3 will have alloy wheels, cruise and electric windows. Mitzi badge means reliability is very much assured.

Example: 2012 1.8 TD Cleartec 40,000 miles £7295
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Family: Vauxhall Insignia

A great big good-looking family car with lots and lots of kit, that would have to be an Insignia. They will also take colossal mileages without question. If you are prepared to take a six-figure mileage hit then you will pay just a few grand. The ecoFLEX will deliver over 70mpg, so it is hard to see any diesel downside.

Example: 2014 2.0 CDTi ecoFLEX Tech Line 50,000 miles £8495
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Luxury: Jaguar XJ (2013)

By becoming more distinctive, the XJ is a lot less of a bounder than it used to be. First choice barges remain the Germans, so these slow sellers are great value and have never looked better. Recent, just out of warranty cars will have main dealer histories and the 3.0 diesel will do 46 mpg overall. What a package.

Example: 2013 3.0 Diesel Luxury 75,000 miles £15,990
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Estate: Volvo V60

If you need an excuse not to buy a people carrier here it is. Long saloons with a hatch are still a thing and the V Class Volvos are the best of the breed. In Business spec it has a ton of fixtures and fittings including a long list of safety kit. So a great place to put the family and it will do over 60mpg.

Example: 2013 2.0 TD D3 Business Edition 90,000 miles £7450
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4 x 4: SsangYong Rexton

Those who want to do the SUV pose will be getting into debt with a Range Rover, others up for hard work have an alternative Land Cruiser for much less. The Rexton has loads of kit, but most importantly it will tow Tabatha’s horsebox and seat 7. Even better, it will have unexpired manufacturer warranty for complete peace of mind. Be snooty, but that will be your loss.

Example: 2014 2.0 EX 30,000 miles £12,995
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Hybrid - Honda Insight

Trying to find an environmentally friendly set of wheels is very problematic these days, unless you accept that the Japanese had it sort of sussed some time ago with the petrol hybrid. The highly dreary Insight, not the funky old one, is the answer. Forgettable, but it delivers over 60mpg without any diesel baggage. Easy to live with and drive, plenty of room and a funky digital dash.

Example: 2013 1.3 HS 34,000 miles £9500

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