A good run around car for the school run, what would you choose?

[DarlingCoffee]

I’m hoping someone can help me as I’m looking for my first car at the grand age of 40! I have two primary aged children, and need it for the school run and office which is also local. I’ve been looking at a second hand mini convertible and beetle but would welcome any other suggestions? I have a budget of £5k, and wish to buy a second hand, manual car, easy to drive, reliable with not too many bells and whistles. Thank you for any advice you can impart!

I've got a fiesta . Plenty of space in back and v good for nipping around town and parking.

@CuddlesandShit mine is mint green I bloody love him

Just to say I had a Beetle and I bloody loved it and never had a single problem with it. It's got a Golf engine so no reason why it would be any less reliable. I had a 1.4 turbo and it was so much fun to drive. Was sad when I swapped it for a more sensible car.

I have a Hyundai i30. I like it. Good reliable car. Zero road tax, insurance is cheap and good on fuel. Back seat is also bigger than my previous ford Kuga! Also, been told be my nephew that its a sick car!

If you’re just doing local journeys, have you thought about an electric vehicle?

A 64/65 reg 24kwh leaf would set you back around £5k. They are brilliant to drive, super easy. Not to big to park but enough space to get loads in the boot.

They cost peanuts to run- depending on your electricity provider, you can get 70/80 miles for £1.50 if you charge overnight.

Obviously no tax and free of congestion charge too.

Ford focus should be the right size to allow room for growth. Petrol only, diesel a no for short runs. Don't buy anything with an Ecoboost engine ( they blow up) but otherwise a 10 year old focus will be fine and robust.

Electric car technology is nowhere near ready for second hand ones to be a good idea, the battery will be knackered. Give it another ten years.

I've got a Fiat 500 that I use for school run. I wondered if I would struggle with it being 2 door, but it's fine. It's a dream to park, perfect for squeezing into small spaces no one else can fit in, which is great as parking by the school is a nightmare.

I would test drive a few and get a feel for them. I had a Fiesta and hated it, but I know loads of people love them.

Honda Jazz or Skoda Fabia. Both small on the outside but space on the inside, decent boot space and reliable.

Dd has an Hyundai i10 and it's a cracking little car.

I bloody love my mini. However I've owned it 10 years and bought it new.

It's been reliable and servicing is inexpensive thanks to an excellent local independent garage.

I'm not sure I'd risk a cheap second hand one though - chances are you'll be forking out for a lot of repairs soon after purchasing.

I bought a corsa as my teens were learning to drive and it was the cheapest on the insurance.
I’ve had it 5 years now. It’s been a great little run around car.
Had no real problems with it and cheap on the petrol.
Been a great buy

You've had a lot of good suggestions on this thread, OP. Whatever you go for, check the price against the "WhatCar" guide as that will give you an idea of market value. We have always gone for second-hand cars and our rule of thumb is to pick a three-year-old car as that's when the bulk of the price depreciation takes place (20% in the first year, 15% the year after that).

The final tip is to check out the trim options in your chosen range as you can usually shop around for the next level for very little extra cash in the used-car market. I know you said you don't want many "bells and whistles", but the entry-level superminis can be very basic in terms of kit offered.

Agree that ime Minis are a money pit. Everyone I know with one has had a massive bill of at least 3k.

Ford focus or Fiesta if you are ok with a bit smaller
Vauxhall astra
Kia Ceed
Skoda Fabia

Not a Honda jazz because thieves steal the catalytic converters off them.

I have a fiesta and I love it! It's absolutely ideal for school run etc. It's a great first car too. I didnt pass my test until I was 35 so also a later learner like you!

I have a Hyundai i20 and I love it.

Hondas are definitely the best in my opinion that being said we have a Toyota aygo and although small it’s brilliant. Cheap economical and can be parked in tight spaces with ease! It also has parking Cameras air con and a touch screen mp3/radio x

It’s also 4 door and tax free !
I should work for them!

Electric cars aren’t yet ready for everyone’s needs (eg If you are driving hundreds of miles every day and can only afford an older vehicle with less range)...

But murbblurb’s assertion is complete bollocks. I can say that as someone who has owned a second hand electric vehicle for 18m.

Completely get if they’re not for you, but to clear things up for anyone else reading...

If you are just looking at local journeys, under 60/70 miles a day- which was my understanding of the OP - they are fabulous. Super cheap to run, easiest car ever to drive, cheap to maintain- much less to go wrong than an internal combustion engine.

Yes, all batteries degrade with time, just like laptops/mobiles etc. However, what this means is you get less miles on a full charge. The extent of degradation depends in part in how it has been looked after by its previous owner. The battery health is clearly displayed when you turn the car on, in the number of battery health bars on the display. For a more in depth assessment you can plug in a dongle and download an ap that reads the onboard computer and gives an exact %. My leaf is 6 years old and on approx 85%. I get approx 65/70 miles in winter 75/80 in summer. As it drops I’ll loose a bit of range. Even those people I know who have much older leaves/ones with super high mileage as ex taxies etc are still getting 50 miles in winter. So it then becomes a case of does this car meet my needs? Obviously that might not suit a lot of people, but if you’re doing say a 3 mile trip for school runs and a 5 mile trip to work, then throw in the odd super market run etc etc, you’ve still got bags of miles to spare. When you park it up, you plug it (either special charging station or just a regular 3 pin plug) in and away you go the next morning.

Oh and just to clarify, the miles possible I’m talking about there are for a 24kwh leaf- obviously newer, more expensive cars have much higher range, 250/300 miles depending on brand/model

Don't you need to be able to park your car near to an electricity point though? So only suitable for those who have a drive rather than for example on street parking or my dd who has an allocated space in the car park for her flat?

Skoda Citigo or Fabia
VW up! or Polo

We have a Skoda citigo as our runaround/local journeys car. The tax is £0 which is excellent and it's very fuel efficient. It is a small car though which makes it much easier to park but isn't one for big journeys with the full family plus dogs, bags etc.

Not a mini. They only have two seats in the back. If you have kids you will be doing play dates/clubs and good to have extra seats to fit in extra kids.

I had a VW Polo when kids were small and it was fab. Had a great boot as well so was good for weekends away, going to the tip, big supermarket shop etc.