Car choice: How to get style on a budget

Linda Southern’s Vauxhall Corsa has given up and now she has around £5,000 for a similar, but modern and stylish, equivalent

The ‘insufferably lovely’ Fiat 500 – and not so thirsty, at 58mpg

Car for the head

Small and stylish? Everyone has for the last decade or so gone for a Mini. Then came the Fiat 500 and finally the Audi A1. I would like to go for the Audi to be different, but at £5,000 there is not much choice at all. Better to stick with the insufferably lovely 500. The 1.2 engine is more than adequate and with the start/stop system (at the lights the engine switches off) the average fuel consumption is around 58mpg. A 2011 Pop model with two-tone paint and 42,000 miles is around £4,500.


 The Adam is just the thing for a dedicated follower of fashion

Car for the heart

I know that Linda loved her Corsa for many years and enjoyed bobbing around town in it. She does need lots of space, just four wheels and some quirky style and for that reason the Vauxhall Adam is the funky Corsa option. For a start it already has a pet name, plus buyers have hundreds of colour and specification combinations. They are fashionable little things and a 2013 1.4 VVT Jam in a fetching blue and a contrasting roof is just £4,995 with 35,000 miles under its alloy wheels. That would also include a dealer warranty.

If you would like James Ruppert to help with your car choice, email james@freecarmag.com. For more motoring views visit freecarmag.com