Best used city cars

Best used city car: Skoda Citigo

Price from: £3,000Our pick: Skoda Citigo 2013 (13) 1.0 (75) Elegance 5dr, 30,016 miles, £5,895

Size clearly does matter to city car buyers, and Skoda’s tidy Citigo is the best of the bunch. This enormously popular pint-sized runaround is our city car champion in the Used Car Awards once again this year. Not only that, but it won the city car gong at our New Car Awards in July for the fifth consecutive year, while owners have heaped praise on the car in our Driver Power survey ever since it went on sale.

• Best city cars to buy right now

They tell us that the secret of its success is simple: it’s a great-value all-rounder that’s reliable, well built, easy to drive and comfortable. Despite strong residuals, prices for the most basic early versions now start from around £3,000, so you can get a pretty decent car for not much cash. Excellent fuel economy and low emissions are a key feature of this little runabout as well, so running costs should be exceptionally easy on the wallet.

Like most city cars, the Citigo isn’t the last word in style, but lurking behind the practical bodywork is a surprisingly spacious four-seat cabin, a generous boot and a range of efficient petrol engines.

Yet it’s the driving experience that really sets the Citigo apart from its rivals. Compact dimensions and light controls create a composed and refined ride that’s as good out on the motorway as it is around town. The most frugal engine in the range is the entry-level 59bhp 1.0-litre three-cylinder, which promises economy of 63mpg and emissions of just 105g/km of CO2 in three-door guise.

The higher-spec Elegance five-door with the 74bhp 1.0-litre engine is our pick of the bunch, though. This more upmarket car adds air-conditioning, electric front windows, remote central locking, heated seats and a handy sat-nav system to the basic kit list.

Skoda Citigo: key details 

• • Driving: The Citigo is a lot of fun in corners, and it also copes surprisingly well with motorway driving. 
• • Interior: Go for an Elegance model, and you get air-con, sat-nav and electric windows on the kit list.

Skoda Citigo: expert view

Steve Fowler, Editor-in-chief: “It doesn’t always ring true that a New Car Award winner makes our used list, but it’s hard to look past the Citigo. It provides a level of maturity to the city car sector that we would’ve thought impossible years ago. It’s comfortable and reasonably spacious, yet has the charm that a small car needs.”

Commended: Kia Picanto Mk2

The facelifted Picanto has been around since 2011, so some of its seven-year warranty will still be in place. It’s an upmarket model with a big boot and it’s incredibly economical.

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