The top 30 used cars - bag a class leading car for less

They are available from around £2000 for cars from 2015, making a Logan the best-value car relative to its age on this list. Beware of issues with rust and the engine management system, and in rare cases cars with a sticky throttle. 

MAZDA MX-5

Mazda’s MX-5 is the Nintendo Wii of the car world: as accessible as it is fun, and so many have found homes that it’s absurdly cheap to buy on the used market.

Indeed, just £8000 now gets you into an early Mk4 MX-5, and you can take your pick of both the 1.5 and 2.0 -litre engines. Both are stellar. Reliability is very good on the whole, but watch out for grinding gears (the gearbox is a weak link) and for the early signs of chassis rust on older or higher-mileage cars.

ALPINE A110

Journalists from Adelaide to Zurich wax lyrical about the A110’s ability to dance down a road. They talk at great length about the handling poise and deftness and its distinguished, raspy engine note – and they’re not wrong. Adding to this appeal is that used ones now cost from around £34,000.

But what of its reliability? Some owners – including our own Steve Cropley – have had fuel pump problems, with the car displaying a warning light and running rough. A subsequent recall is addressing the issue. 

HYUNDAI i30 N

As fabulous as it is, examples of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N haven’t hit used forecourts yet. So we’re turning our attention to the Korean marque’s other full-fat hot hatchback, the 276bhp i30 N.

Its asphalt-flattening character is divisive, but a starting price of just under £18,000 for pre-facelift examples is much more convincing. They are largely reliable and there are plenty of them out there, so it shouldn’t be hard to find a good one. Just check very carefully for any signs of extra-hard track use and accident damage.

PORSCHE TAYCAN

Is this the performance car bargain of our time? Thanks to the low benefit-in-kind tax rates for EVs, loads of these ended up on company fleets around three years ago and have now flooded the used market.

That means £45,000 is enough to get you into a prestigious and prodigious electric luxury saloon that will leave most supercars for dead off the lights. Keep an eye out for air-con and infotainment issues, and use a home charger to maximise the value for money. 

CATERHAM SEVEN

We have loved the twee Seven for decades, but with kit prices now starting from a hardly pocket-money £29,490, it can be tough to commit to buying a new one. Thankfully, perfectly desirable older examples – which you won’t have to build yourself – are available for around half of that.

An array of engines were used over the years, but you will typically find a mix of Ford Crossflow, Rover K-series and Vauxhall-engined cars under the £15,000 mark. All are plenty sufficient. 

MASERATI MC20

In true Maserati fashion, this wonderful supercar is beginning to depreciate rather quickly. Two- to three-year-old coupés with a few thousand miles on the clock can be picked up for around £150,000, which is a healthy discount compared with Maserati’s £190,275 launch price.

It’s still not an insignificant amount, but it nets you one of the best all-round supercars available, with savage performance allied to a softness that lends itself well to Britain’s craggy roads. It helps that it’s a looker, too. 

TOYOTA COROLLA

There’s a good reason why Toyota has sold more than 44 million of these over 12 generations: they are economical and come with a stellar reliability record. Engines were all petrol and included a 112bhp 1.2-litre turbo, a 120bhp hybrid 1.8 and a 178bhp 2.0-litre hybrid, and all are as efficient as the Corolla’s exterior design.

Inside, you are greeted by a healthy dose of Japanese logic. You will need around £14,000 to bag a late-2018 or early-2019 example. 

ALFA ROMEO GIULIA

This is the car that flew in the face of the four-door one-upmanship practised by the usual suspects from Germany. When the Giulia arrived it had few shortcomings, making it a more than credible rival for the Merc C-Class, Audi A4 and BMW 3 Series, and it’s now available from around £10,000.

Reliability, however, isn’t so rosy. In sister title What Car?’s 2023 Reliability Survey, the Giulia was the second-least reliable executive car, with bugbears relating to the batteries, electrics and engine. 

CUPRA BORN

The sharply styled Born lends plenty of visual flair to what might otherwise be considered just another EV. It drives nicely too, feeling keen and precise and displaying a decent amount of throttle-adjustability.

It’s not exactly a driver’s car, but you would be happy with it on a day-to-day basis. Beware electrical glitches, but otherwise it’s a reliable thing. Entry-level V1 Borns cost from around £20,000, with plusher V2 editions only a couple of grand more.

ROLLS-ROYCE WRAITH

The Spectre may be the most expensive EV on sale, but surely the next best thing is its spiritual predecessor? A car of considerable allure and pomp, it’s something that is as dynamic as it dares to be and luxurious as it ought to be, complete with a crystal rotary controller, inch-thick carpets and a voice control system especially receptive to ‘Play BBC Radio 4’.

You will need around £90,000 to buy one with 50,000 miles and on a 15 plate. 

PORSCHE CAYMAN R

The Cayman GT4 RS is a special thing, but at £123,000 it’s unattainable for most of us. The Cayman R of a decade ago is almost as good to drive, but it costs a third as much.

LAND ROVER DISCOVERY

If the near-£60,000 entry price of the rough-and-ready Defender doesn’t pique your interest, you could try a similarly rough-and-ready, and impressively capable, Discovery for around £15k. 

TOYOTA GR YARIS

Pretty much unrivalled on point-to-point pace and, thanks to more hitting the market than first thought, rapidly falling in value. Just £25k gets a clean three-year-old example, while Circuit Pack cars start from around £26k. 

HONDA CIVIC TYPE R EP3

It might look like a standard Type R, but the bodywork (and paperwork) reveals it’s a Japanese import, gaining a more powerful 2.0-litre engine, limited-slip differential and bucket seats. 

LAMBORGHINI GALLARDO

The Revuelto has sold out until 2026, so what to drive to pass the time before then? A £60,000 Gallardo might tide you over – be it until the waiting list is clear or your Euromillions numbers finally come up.

MERCEDES S-CLASS (W140)

So much was spent on the development of the W140-generation S-Class that it was nicknamed the Billion Dollar Car, but as a result nearly half a million were sold. Unfortunately few remain, but those that do cost around £5000. 

ARIEL ATOM 2 160

This short-lived junior Atom lost a gear and used a milder 158bhp Honda engine, but it was no less riotous a thing for it. Today they float around the £25,000 mark, which makes them something of a bargain against later cars. 

MCLAREN 12C

What once cost £180,000 new can now be bought from just £62,500. That’s good news if you don’t fancy the near-£250,000 asking price of a 750S but want something barely any less talented. 

RANGE ROVER SPORT 4.2 SUPERCHARGED

The new Sport is brilliant, but £75k is quite some entry price, especially compared with its mid-noughties forebear. Just £8k gets you a decent one with a lusty engine. 

VW PHAETON V10 TDI