They might be the smallest, cheapest cars going, but that doesn’t have to mean city cars are nasty. In fact, in recent years, a slew of upmarket, fashionable, stylish and simply great-value models has seen to it that buyers of cars like these no longer get a bum deal.
And now that such models are making their way onto the secondhand market, it isn’t just new car buyers that are reaping the benefits. No longer does buying a used city car have to mean living with flimsy plastics, lethargic engines or cramped conditions. And to prove the point, here are the 10 best city cars you can buy for less than £5000.
9. Fiat 500
The root of the Fiat 500’s enormous success is, of course, its styling. Both inside and out, it’s about the most fashionable small car money can buy. But also in its favour is its nimble chassis, which is great around town, and a range of perky engines. The price for all that style, though, is, well, the price, which is high, and that means you won’t get as good a 500 for your £5000 as you would some of the other cars here. There’s also a lumpy ride to factor in, plus we’d avoid the Twinair engine, as it’s rather noisy.
8. Renault Twingo
A cheap-feeling interior prevents the Renault Twingo from scoring any more highly here, but if you can live with that, you’ll benefit from a car with an otherwise comfortable cagin, a great ride and handling balance and perky, efficient engines. What’s more, the Twingo looks like great value at the moment, with low prices meaning it’s possible to find a remarkably recent, low-mileage example for your money.
7. Citroën C1
Contemporary styling combined with nimble handling have made the Citroën C1 a popular city car. True, it’s rather cramped in the rear, especially in three-door form, and the engine can get rather noisy. But on the plus side, prices are low, so £5000 gets you a nearly new C1 with very few miles, while nifty design means the interior, while built from cheap-ish plastics, still looks and feels pretty funky.
6. Peugeot 107
The Peugeot 107 is essentially the same car as the Citroën C1, albeit with a few cosmetic differences, but the 107 nudges ahead here by dint of the fact that it’s more ubiquitous, giving you a greater choice. Despite this, prices are every bit as cheap as the C1’s, and you get an identical blend of enjoyable handling and perky styling, although with the same caveats as far as interior space and engine and wind noise are concerned.
5. Toyota Aygo
The Toyota Aygo is based around the same design as the Citroën C1 and Peugeot 107, but it has one big advantage over those two: a longer warranty. Toyota’s five-year guarantee means you’ll have a couple of years extra left to run than you would with its siblings – and once again, you get the same cheeky styling, neat cabin and perky handling, albeit at the expense of interior space and noise.
4. Hyundai i10
Its tall roof leaves it looking a little ungainly, but as a result, the Hyundai i10 has a fantastically spacious interior – one of the best around, in fact. It’s decent value, too, and has the benefit of the balance of a five-year manufacturer warranty, which brings a healthy bit of extra peace of mind. What’s more, out on the road, the i10 is great to drive, with a winning blend of ride and handling, and the interior is easy to find your way around, even if it is a little dour.
3. Skoda Citigo
It’s a very fine line between second and third places in our ranking, but we’ve given the lower spot to the Skoda Citigo. It’s one of the best small cars on the market today, with a big-car feel that means even buyers of larger cars will be happy to downsize. It’s almost identical to the pricier Volkswagen Up, it’s great to drive and it offers plenty of space for passengers; in fact, the only reason it doesn’t finish higher is that its stablemate, the Seat Mii, is currently looking like fractionally better value at this price point.
2. Seat Mii
The Seat Mii is so closely related to the Skoda Citigo as to be in effect the same car, and it only beats its sibling because it looks like fractionally better value right now, with slightly better-equipped or newer examples tending to go for similar cash. It’s also cheaper than the Volkswagen Up, to which, again, it’s closely related, even though it’s just as much fun to drive and shares much of the same big-car feel.
1. Volkswagen Up
Yes, it’s more costly than the closely related Seat Mii and Skoda Citigo – but theVolkswagen Up has the benefit of a different, more upmarket dashboard constructed from higher-quality plastics, and that in our view makes it worth the small extra cost – assuming you can stretch to it. What’s more, the Up is more distinctive than either of its brethren and shares with them a fantastic combination of ride quality and driver enjoyment, not to mention plenty of internal space.
And the city cars to avoid…
Suzuki Alto
The Suzuki Alto is surprisingly expensive for what it is, yet it suffers from a poor-quality interior, a tiny boot, an unsettled ride and ponderous handling.
Ford Ka
Behind the second-generation Ford Ka's cute looks lies a car that’s poorly equipped, noisy and rather expensive, even though it feels cheaply made. Best to steer clear.
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