trufflehunt wrote:If you're looking at 107's, C1's and others in the 60+ mpg group, you'll pay for that.
I think also why their prices stay up is that they're quite reliable.
Was the 107 / C1 / Aygo not the car that some driving schools banned the use of because of poor visibility due to the MASSIVE pillar between the rear quarterlight windows and the rear windscreen? I think they're hideous little things anyways, but that's just my opinion. They're all designed as "city cars"; shopping trolleys, and not particularly great for getting out on the motorway.
I'd rather pick something that isn't too uneconomical around town, but still has enough poke and road-holding ability to not suck when driving between cities on our nation's glorious non-potholed road network.
The 206 is a nice looking little car, and the 207 isn't too bad either (the 206 was defintely prettier, like the 406 was compared to the 407). Mostly a city car but a decent all-rounder as well. Don't go for anything smaller than a 1.4 petrol on these. Unfortunately insurance can be high on these. My lad wound up going for a 1.8 Toyota Celica Mk.7 rather than a 206CC 1.6 because the insurance costs were stupidly much higher for the Peugeot (which is intended as a small family car) than they were for the Toyota (which is intended as a sports car). As insurance quotes vary wildly from person to person and from area to area, you may find this is not the case for Daughter_Welly. The 206CC is a neat choice too, for the folding metal hardtop - just make sure it works properly before buying.
Mk 1 Focus 1.6 is an awesome little beast, but a bit older than the Twingo you're looking at (between 1998 and 2005), and not too bad for insurance. Fun handling and not very thirsty either. Can be had for under £1k but watch for rust. The 1.6 has surprising amounts of poke (100 HP) with the power mostly lower down the rev range, so it can be quick to accelerate at lower speeds, but can struggle a bit when overtaking on the dual carriageway. The 1.8 and 2.0 engines were stronger, but heavier, which made the handling worse. The Mk 2 Focuses were more boring to look at, but a bit less prone to rusting.
Actually the Celica Gen.7 is pretty awesome in most regards too, if the insurance doesn't flat-out block that from happening. They were produced as late as 2006, and there were two 1.8 petrol engine choices (VVT-i, which is 140 HP, and VVTL-i, which is 190 HP). The boot is a hatchback, and very spacious; it's surprisingly practical. The rear seats are spacious enough for actual adult human beings to sit in - less space than there is in the 406 Coupe but a lot more space than you'd get in a Jaguar XK). Not bad on fuel, easy to drive and park, and there were plenty of them made and exported, so there are always spares kicking about in scrappers if you need them. And they're fun to drive, and very striking to look at (though it's a bit of a marmite look - you love it or you hate it). I've driven Brian's one a bit and I feel a bit conspicuous in it compared to the 406 Coupe, but it is a different class of car altogether.
The quest continues but very disheartening.
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run's for cover 
