Smallish (2 young DC), fun, family car recommendations please

[cherrylola]

I had s BMW mini before DC1 came along (loved it!) and kept it until he upgraded out of the baby car seat so we needed a 5 door car. I then got a Citroen C3 which has been fine, totally dull but fine, pretty economical and easy to park. Now due DC2 in December and know by the time this baby needs a larger car seat we won't manage with this car. DP doesn't drive so it is our only car. I paid £4K for the Citroen 18 months ago and don't have much budget for a new car, hoping I can get something suitable for under £5K. Must be cheap to run, tax and insure, big enough to fit us all in and a buggy and a few bags in the boot for weekends visiting family etc but small enough to handle the narrow urban road we live on (and small enough to easily park as I'm dreadful at that!). A bonus would be something a bit fun as I've desperately missed the fun factor of the mini

FYI, as it may make a difference to need of back seat space, we use extended rear facing car seats. Which to be fair is a squeeze in the C3, luckily I have tiny legs but we would never fit one behind DP

Ford focus?

Skoda Octavia

The Ford Focus just seems like the ultimate family car, my street is lined with them . I suppose that means they're a good size and probably economical and reliable but I'd love something with a bit of pazazz about it and the focus just doesn't do it for me!

You're not going to find much "pazazz" in a family hatchback. The best bet is a warm or hot hatch like the Focus ST, Focus RS (which you're not going to get in your budget), Mazda 3 MPS, Megane Renaultsport (not sure if there were 5 door versions), Civic Type S or Type R (the latter probably not 5 door).

Ok, well perhaps not pazzaz (I'm not sure I've ever used hat word before!) but something not quite as likely to make me doze off from utter boredom

You can get more flashy ford focuses (so?)

I get what you mean. Try a practical car in Orange or yellow or similar?

Or crossover cars like a Nissan Juke or Renault Captor.

Good luck - I'm trying to find a practical family car with a little fun on a budget - it's hard!

I've recently purchased a Peugeot 2008 and I love it. Plenty fun and still fairly compact; it just looks bigger as it's a crossover so it's a bit higher up.

I had a c3 and could fit 2 kids perfectly in the rear. Even managed to squeeze 3 in. Not exciting but did the job. Would still have it if dh hadn't written it off :-/