Hi Mary,

Your annual mileage and your city-driving habits mean you don’t need anything but a small, efficient petrol car, and nor do you need anything too big – probably not even as big as an Avensis. As you like Toyotas, you could look at its hybrid models, which would also work for your usage patterns, and you should be able to find the Yaris, Auris, Prius and C-HR all within your budget; the C-HR is a particular favourite of ours.

For Volkswagens, the obvious choices are TSI derivatives of the Polo and Golf, but if you like VWs, you ought to look at the equivalent Skodas (Fabia, Rapid, Scala and Octavia) and SEATs (Ibiza and Leon), as they are mechanically identical and can often offer better engines/more spec for the same money as a Polo or Golf. However, out recommendation would be a really nice model of Ford Fiesta, with the 1.0-litre EcoBoost petrol engine. This is a fantastic city car and one that should give you both years of happy motoring.