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Ford Fiesta - best first cars for new drivers

The Ford Fiesta is Britain's best-selling car, and makes the perfect first set of wheels

Ford Fiesta Trend - front tracking

The Ford Fiesta is the best-selling car in the country and has been for a long time - and naturally it's still a fine choice for anybody looking to buy or even finance their first car. 

Not only is it easy to drive, and great fun, too, the Fiesta scores well with its raft of safety tech. This includes the clever MyKey system, which allows parents to restrict the maximum speed of the car, the stereo volume when their children are behind the wheel and set a seatbelt reminder. It also features seven airbags and ESP, plus optional autobrake.

Young drivers will be wowed by the technology the interior offers, including SYNC voice activation, while Titanium models upwards get air-conditioning. The Fiesta's larger dimensions mean they can also carry friends in comfort, and the three-door comes with a 292-litre boot, that expands to 1,093-litres with the seats down.

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Diesel models return the lowest fuel consumption, but the cheaper 1.0-litre, 99bhp EcoBoost petrol versions return up to 50.4mpg and only drop to 48.7mpg for the 138bhp version. Go for a lower-powered Fiesta, and it’ll sit in a competitive insurance group, too, while the huge Ford dealer network makes it easy to keep up with the service intervals and get any problems resolved.

Top 10 best first cars for new drivers 2021

  1. Volkswagen up!/Skoda Citigo/SEAT Mii
  2. Kia Picanto
  3. Ford Fiesta
  4. SEAT Ibiza
  5. Hyundai i10
  6. Volkswagen Polo
  7. Toyota Aygo/Peugeot 108/Citroen C1
  8. Skoda Fabia
  9. Dacia Sandero
  10. Vauxhall Corsa
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