Hi,
My wife and I share a 2006 Mini, I drive this from Bromley to Dorking during the week for work and my Wife commutes into London on the train.
The Mini has been fantastic apart from needing a replacement clutch at 34k and BMW refusing to pay for it. Other than that a joy to own and good fun on country lanes.
However my wife is now pregnant with our first child and I need to turn one Mini, into two cars. The original plan is my wife would have a family car like a focus and I would have a suitable runaround just to do my daily commute. But I drive around 70miles a day I want some degree of reliability but also enjoyment and comfort as I spend a couple of hours a day driving.
Our budget is small though and I only want to spend about 4-5 grand on the family car and 1-2 maybe 3 on my car.
Economy is not a major concern, anything above 30mpg for my car is fine and as my wife will only do short 2-3 mile runs apart from little trips at weekends will never achieve high MPG, safety is more important with ISOFIX a must.
So – What should I buy?
Thanks
Rob Hughes, UK
Answer
Hi Rob,
For £3,000 you don’t have to settle for some fun, you can have a hoon of a lot of fun! What about a 2001 Alfa Romeo 147? Sharp looks, sharp handling and some reliability... Or bullet proof reliability, sharp handling and blunt looks with a year 2000 Subaru Impreza (with 80,000 miles on the clock).
If neither of those hit your sweet spot, what about a year 2001 Chrysler PT Cruiser. The enjoyment comes from looking at it each day and wondering what the designers were smoking.
The family car needs to be 2004 or later to have ISOFIX. MPVs are an obvious choice. Here are your options:
Year Make Model Variant Miles Low £ Fair £
2006 Citroën Xsara Picasso I 16v LX 1.6 5 P Manual 22372 4670 5495
2005 Kia Sedona V6 Executive 2.5 5 P Auto 34517 3859 4541
2005 Ford Focus C-Max FF LX 1.8 5 P Manual 28303 4544 5346
*source Used Car Expert magazine
The Sedona is perhaps too big for your needs, but amazing value. The Ford will feel better made, but as you can see, you can get a 2006 Citroen for the same money (it may even have a bit of warranty left).
Happy people-moving,
Matt
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