With petrol prices climbing, tolls growing sky high and constant detours and roadwork, city driving can be a nightmare. However, most car owners don’t want to give up the convenience of owning a vehicle. If you’re in the market for a good city car, you’ll generally be looking for a small vehicle that’s easy to park, handles well (to manoeuvre around pedestrians and cyclists), and of course has excellent fuel efficiency for all of the stop and start traffic that rule our city roads.
List of great City Cars
Honda City – guess what this car was designed for? The stylish Honda City certainly lives up to its name. With stylised features, including an iPod dock, the City boasts incredible innovation when it comes to space, including plenty of roominess in the boot. Meanwhile, the 1.5L 4 cylinder engine delivers some impressive revs for the mean city streets.
Mini Cooper D – the Mini is still one of the hottest cars around and also one of the most practical for urban dwellers. It looks hot and drives like a dream, thanks to its compact size. Meanwhile, the diesel run Mini Cooper D is coming to Australia this year and boasts an impressive 3.9L/100 km, making it Australia’s most fuel efficient diesel car on the market.
Honda Jazz – Hatchbacks are all the rage for urban drivers, as their versatility makes them perfect for a fast paced ever changing lifestyle, and they’re comparatively affordable. The Honda Jazz has been singled out by auto reviewers as being fun to drive with its 4 cylinder 1.5L engine and ingenious “Magic Seat” for extended storage space.
Buying a Used City Car
Because of their popularity, many city cars are actually great investments and retain much of their value on the used car market. The Honda Jazz for example, was the best car for retained value in the UK and its resale prices on our shores have also been strong.
If you’re looking to buy a used city car, shop around and make sure you’re getting value for money. Once you’ve found a car that has good urban potential, run a car check on the vehicle identification number (VIN) of that vehicle so you’ll know if the car carries any debt and if it’s got a clean car history. A vehicle that has been well maintained will retain its value better.
