Three-car garage: used Volvo XC90, MINI Cooper S and Hyundai Ioniq 5 for £45k
Here’s your chance to snag the best cars of 2014, 2015 and 2021
If you aren’t sure what new car to buy next, then the Auto Express New Car Awards are a good place to start. This year’s winner, the Nissan Leaf, is a tremendous all-rounder with excellent real-world range, enough practicality for most families, a high-quality cabin and a very keen price tag.
Having a broad range of attributes is key to securing the coveted Auto Express Car of the Year title, and our previous winners are also a great way to draw up a shortlist if you want to buy used.
We’ve gone over the past decade or so to see what three-car garage we could fill with previous Cars of the Year. This selection covers pretty much every automotive need, from a characterful hot hatch to a concept-like EV and a premium family SUV.
MINI Cooper S - £6,999
When we named the third-generation MINI Car of the Year back in 2014, we said, “It’s a small car that’s big on talent.” We also commented on how much we loved the way it drives, the quality, the efficiency and the big-car tech, plus the fact it was built in Britain.
As a used buy, the MINI remains super-appealing whether you go for the three or five-door hatch or the convertible – and here we’ve opted for the Cooper S hot hatch, which you can get for a shade under £7,000. From its title-winning year, this 2014 model comes with a sensible 77,000 miles on the clock and it’s lavishly equipped with a sunroof, heated front seats and all the sporty styling additions that come courtesy of it being the Cooper S.
It’s a joy to drive as well. The 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine is responsive and its 192bhp is more than enough for the lightweight MINI to feel properly rapid. The manual gearbox is satisfying to operate and the car’s dynamics are classic MINI, with darty steering, plenty of grip and handling you can adjust on the throttle.
Don’t fancy this specific MINI Cooper S? There are plenty more examples on the Auto Express, just click below…
Volvo XC90 - £20,050
Our top award went from the dinky MINI Cooper one year to the massive Volvo XC90 the next. The Swedish luxury SUV really impressed us when it was launched, especially with its design. At the time, we remarked on the “cool Thor’s Hammer daytime running lights and the bluff but bold front end”.
A testament to the XC90’s timeless looks is the fact this generation is still on sale more than 10 years later. With only minor visual tweaks, Volvo’s flagship model still looks just as good as it did when it was named as our Car of the Year.
This example we found is from 2015 and in range-topping Inscription trim. It’s only done 66,000 miles too, which is nothing for its smooth, refined 2.0-litre diesel, which has 225bhp - “perfectly adequate”, as we described it at the time. It’s surprisingly good on economy too with a combined figure of 48.7mpg.
With an elegant and simplistic design inside, even an XC90 of this age feels like it’s barely aged, plus all the leather surfaces and metal trim should feel just as premium as on a brand-new XC90.
If you’ve missed this Volvo XC90 deal then fear not as there’re several XC90's available through our Buy A Car service below…
Hyundai Ioniq 5 - £17,400
What an incredible game-changer the Ioniq 5 was for Hyundai back in 2021. The then-new E-GMP architecture allowed the hatch to compete with the very best electric cars in terms of range and charging. Few EV could cover 300 miles on a single charge and fewer still could charge at 233kW - which would allow for a 10 to 80 per cent top-up in 18 minutes.
Then there’s the styling, which was closely inspired by the Concept 45. The years have certainly not dulled the incredibly sharp lines of this 2021 Ioniq 5 and it’s the same story inside where it mixes easy usability with a bold, minimalist layout.
With just 23,000 miles on the clock, this Ioniq 5 looks like a great deal and this mid-spec Premium trim level gives you heating on the seats and steering wheel, a 10.3kW on-board charger, twin 12.3-inch screens, a wireless smartphone charger and 19-inch alloy wheels.
If this Hyundai Ioniq 5 was snatched up too quickly for you, click below to discover more Ioniq 5's through the Auto Express Buy a Car service…
Did you know you can sell your car through Auto Express? We’ll help you get a great price and find a great deal on a new car, too.
