I have around 8k to buy a car. Any car geeks out there?

[Bryonyshcmyony]

Currently have a Citroën c3 which has done nearly 150k and is probably on its last legs.

I need a decent boot, something that can cope with rutted country lanes. Pref something with a high driving position. Also nothing too thirsty. But if its thirsty it also need to be able to pull a horse trailer (not essential!)

I'm a bit shit with cars so any advice welcome. Could possibly stretch to 10k. Don't want PCp as I'll almost certainly scratch whatever it is

AA man in rural area recommended Skoda Yeti, says v. Reliable and his mother has one. Also Kia/Toyota/Hyundai v reliable, last ages, boot size a bit small until you get to larger SUV types though.

Boot size is fine as long as I can put back seats down to make bigger to take a couple of bales of hay!!

I've just bought a Kia ceed - 7 year old, 33k on the clock, immaculate. £6000. Boot isn't great but seats fold to make good space. Mines a 1.4, might need more like 1.8 for towing? But would def recommend a look at one of these.

We just bought a Vauxhall antara for 6k. 4x4 but drives like a car. Big boot and with the seats down in the back it’s like a van! Very comfy, we love it

hyundai tucson 5-6 yrs old. Great car!

Skoda Yeti is a really good shout.

Skoda Roomster also worth a look. It’s a slightly peculiar-looking thing but very practical and a very big boot for the size of car.

I’d also look at: Toyota Urban Cruiser, Kia Venga, Kia Soul, Honda Civic, Hyundai ix20.

You could also look for one of those van-based MPV things. Citroen Berlingo, Peugeot Rifter, Fiat Doblo. They’re functional cars and designed to fit a lot of space into a relatively small footprint.

A lot on the secondhand market will be WAVs so if you don’t need that you might have to search a bit.

Following for ideas too.

What's a WAV? @bloodystupidjohnson

Once you’ve narrowed it down, there’s a website called honestjohn, it’s really good, unbiased reviews with no affiliation to any brand or company.
It will give you the mph, boot size and all facts and figures you’ll need for a thorough more informed comparison.

www.honestjohn.co.uk/

Shallow but I also don't want something that looks totally out of place amidst a sea of grey Discoverys (school car park!!)

@Marianicka

What's a WAV? *@bloodystupidjohnson*

Oh sorry, typing too quickly while shovelling cornflakes into my maw...

WAV = wheelchair-accessible vehicle

A lot of these van-based cars are converted for wheelchair users; the shape of them makes them very suitable for this kind of conversion.

Honda CRV covers everything you want. Boot like a tardis.

@Bryonyshcmyony

Shallow but I also don't want something that looks totally out of place amidst a sea of grey Discoverys (school car park!!)

Ah then maybe a Subaru. Check out the XV (small crossover), Levorg (medium-sized estate; dreadful name, terrific engine) or Outback (larger estate/crossover).

Subarus are brilliant cars. They sell by the bucketload in the States because they have such an excellent reliability and safety record. Think Japanese Volvo, but a touch more rugged.

Subarus are handily classless and completely avoid that competitive vehicle-ing that you can get with LRs, Audis, XC-whatevs and so on. A lot of the properly wealthy types I know drive them.

Loving the idea of a more rugged volvo

Dacia Duster?

Yep, I was going to say Dacia too. Also Berlingo or other van-derived cars.

I used to have a Berlingo. I did like it but ideally I want to move away to something a bit more sporty

I'm in almost exactly the same position- c3 picasso that's getting elderly, but I love the interior/boot space (but not the plastics!!)

I used to have a Mercedes, and loved the build, but it was too small and I think the BClass is still too small (though right design).

I've been looking at CMax (the bigger one with fold down third row), SMax, and berlingos (but yes, many 2nd hand, particularly petrol, which I need as we're city based, are wheelchair rather than seats in the back).

I previously had a Skoda, which was a decent car, but the roomster was too small last time I changed cars (and the yeti was only just launched, so too £££).