What's the best practical family car for £5000?
We have recently had a baby and have a dog which means we have outgrown our Ford Fiesta. We are looking for something under £5k with room for car seat, buggy, luggage and dog but don't want anything too big as we live in the city and have to park in some tight spots. Wish list - reliable, cheap to run, - mpg, insurance, tax, repair etc. Ideally parking sensors too. Also needs to be petrol as we live near a ULEZ zone. Not bothered about style or mod cons but if it had bluetooth and DAB I'd be chuffed.
We went to see a Skoda Fabia estate but the interior possibly felt a bit too small. With the car seat in the back you have to have the front passenger seat scooched up and struggling with that in the fiesta. Not totally ruled it out though as it seems to tick a lot of boxes. Have also been considering the Ford C-MAX or Vauxhall Zafira (even though we don't need 7 seats - I know they fold really easily and it's quite a nice option to have).
Is there anything out there that we haven't considered that might work for us?
We went to see a Skoda Fabia estate but the interior possibly felt a bit too small. With the car seat in the back you have to have the front passenger seat scooched up and struggling with that in the fiesta. Not totally ruled it out though as it seems to tick a lot of boxes. Have also been considering the Ford C-MAX or Vauxhall Zafira (even though we don't need 7 seats - I know they fold really easily and it's quite a nice option to have).
Is there anything out there that we haven't considered that might work for us?
Asked on 31 May 2023 by Becky Brunning
Answered by
David Ross
The longer the list of requirements, the smaller the shortlist of potential vehicles, so unfortunately there are not a huge number of cars that will meet all these criteria. The Ford C-MAX and Vauxhall Zafira are quite a bit larger than your Fiesta, but you could consider their smaller stablemates in the form of the Ford B-MAX and Vauxhall Meriva.
Alternatively you could look at cars like the Dacia Duster and Citroen C3 Picasso, both of which are compact but practical and offer low running costs.
Alternatively you could look at cars like the Dacia Duster and Citroen C3 Picasso, both of which are compact but practical and offer low running costs.
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