You guessed it - another what car thread

[MiniThirty89]

I'm currently debating about purchasing another car, but can't seem to find anything good that meets my requirements. I was wondering if anyone has any good ideas?

My initial choices were either a w124 or w201 mercedes, but they seem quite expensive to insure at my age (20)
It would probably be used for motorway miles, 25 miles each way.

Requirements:
Age - anything made before 2000 would be considered, although I'd prefer something late 80s or early 90s
At least 20mpg, the higher the better
Powerful to a degree - I don't want to be the slowest car on the road, but neither do I need something extremely fast
Reliable - don't want to keep breaking down all the time
Budget £0 to £1000, could stretch to £1500 for the right car
I'd prefer a manual, but an automatic might be considered
Cheap to insure

Bearing in mind I currently have a 1989 Mini and a Ford Capri, these cars are now classics so I don't really want to be putting huge mileages on them.
I was also wondering if its better to buy a cheaper car and have more to spend on insurance, or a more expensive car with cheaper insurance?