Clueless (shockingly) in Cars! Help me to buy a car!

[SaritaBella]

No males or knowledgable women around to ask besides you ladies!
I have a budget of around £6K, looking for something that will accommodate me and young DC (car seat) but I still want it to be a bit stylish rather than just a boring family car! My dream car is Nissan qashqai but this is for the future 😀 Always liked Audi, VW but seems not for my budget or rather aged.
Need Ulez complyint. Looked into hatchbacks but would prefer 5 door. Just passed my drivers license so nowhere near to drive a saloon 😀
Sniffed around various websites but don't even know what's good/bad.
Is it better a bit older but go for known brands? Understand this is individual but just need a guide on what to focus on.
AIBU to ask what you'd recommend??🤔 Help, really clueless here!

Another Honda jazz fan. Really reliable. 8 years old and nothing other than regular serving. Previous one was the same.

Loads of space inside for a small car.

I paid £8k for 3yo sport model.

Loving all the info on this thread. I'm in a similar situation to you Op and so clueless when it comes to cars. Need a child friendly car. Posters have been super helpful. Cheers everyone 🥰

My father is in the trade and has always said it's pot luck when buying second hand because a lot depends on how the previous owners have looked after it. He's sourced me a few ex mobility cars from auction because they are serviced regularly and generally have low mileage/wear and tear. Another thing he's taught me to be mindful of is how easy it is to source parts when things go wrong, the more common the car eg fiesta or corsa, the easier and cheaper it is.

Completely agree with @ILoveShula

*Get yourself a Fiesta or a Corsa.
Get one with Full Service History (FSH)
Check for rust, signs of wear and tear, have a test drive.
Take a knowledgeable friend with you. A penis is not knowledge.

5-doors will make your life a lot easier if you have a baby*

Just for info (not relevant to OP)
Think about your driving habits. Not just where you drive, but how you drive.
For me it's very important to have a strong family car. Loads of road trips and highways. Need something to get me out of a jam situation. Hence we have an M BMW 3 series.
And previously most my cars have been sporty ones. Even with the small ones (colt) I went for the bigger motor and some sport upgrades if possible.
And in case of collision I need something that has good protection. The bigger models have more crush space in them obv., but even some smaller ones have good design (colt again).

But for grocery shopping and school run the 0.9l Smart is the best option. But I'm not sure I'd be happy putting a small kid/baby in it.

Also consider how long you want to keep it.
My example. Started with a Polski Fiat (eastern europe mouse car. Shitty as hell). Perfect for learning. Hand down from family, had it for 2 years. Then upgraded to Suzuki swift, but knew it will be interim until I save up. Sold after 1 year. Then got a 6 year old Galant (mitsubishi). This was my first keeper. Had it for 3 years. Then came another interim -colt- for a year. Then a keeper for 3 years (another colt :).
Then interim ones for 1-2 years. Fast forward to know(ish).
6 years ago we wanted to buy an interim car, for no more than 3k. We knew it will be a compromise. Ended up with a 7 yr old manual Golf. It was actually quite good, but small.*
Got the bmw as a family car that we'll keep for about 5-7 years. It's been with us for 4 and we started looking around, it'll be another few years before we change.
I bought my Smart 4 years ago brand new with the intention to only get rid of it when it will fall apart. 10+ years hopefully.
With interim cars look around how and when they fall in value. Apart from 1 car I have never had significant losses when selling.
(the one was an outlier american Mitsubishi Eclipse which had to go under value because of family reasons and because it was a US make and parts were horribly expensive. I am still heartbroken though. Best car ever. Won a lot of street races with it :) Tuned up to almost 500hp.).

*Funny sidenote: we had 3k for a car, ended up having huge arguments with husband and I pulled the plug on the whole car buying thing on a Friday. Had enough of arguments. 3 hours later saw a guy cleaning his Golf and started chatting in the underground parking of the building we lived in. He was selling it. We had a car by 8pm. It was not on any website, dealer. He just decided to sell it that day.

Even though you don't have experience, trust your gut.
Listen for out of place noises, try to feel for off vibrations when you drive. If you are buying a manual, try out all gears and see if it's a smooth transition or not. If not smooth, has a "trick" to it - don't buy it.
Automatic - keep an eye on "tugs" when it changes gears. That's the first telltale sign that it will have an issue soon-ish.
Wheels - my advice: don't buy upgraded wheels. Eg 19" on a normally 17 inch. It will be costly to replace.
If you are new to driving I'd go for normal -non alloy- wheels. Alloys are easy to dent and will need to be re-adjusted a lot if you get the curbs.

You mention ULEZ compliant. This suggests living in London somewhere. I think you should consider being car free, even if it means the odd taxi or minicab, and things such as home delivery for groceries.

If you really want to have a car, the point about maintenance and servicing costs made earlier is one to consider.