Small automatics with hill hold/hill assist?

[richleeds]

Hi

I need to replace my Mum's Megane which she has had for many years she is now 70 and wants a simple/basic/small runaround - it has to be auto as she passed her test in one and that is all she is allowed to drive.

I thought a Citigo would be ideal, but the DSG box does not have hill assist - something she has had on every car she has ever owned and wants again.

So basically when you take your foot off the brake on a hill the car gently moves forward and never rolls back.

a Hyundai i10 has been suggested to me but it seems some models do and some don't have it, its not a standard feature.

Ideally 2010 onwards £5 to £7k budget.

Thanks

Rich

[kieranblenk]

Suzuki Swift or Splash. Have both in the family and while they don't have hill hold they're a proper torque converter auto that doesn't roll back. My 60 year old mother in law loves her Splash as it's high up, easy to drive with good visibility.

[Mo28]

I was in a similar position around 6 months ago and my mum settled on a Yaris Hybrid. With regards to the Citigo/UP!/Mii they have the ASG gearbox and all the franchise dealerships I spoke to told me to stay well clear from them as they are problematic and not that good.

Honda Jazz, Hyundai I10 and Kia Picanto would be best choices with regards to having a proper automatic gearbox.

My mum previously had a Vauxhall Agila (basically a Suzuki Splash with a different badge) and it was great and never went wrong in the 3 and half years she had it.

[Bumblebee7]

This has Honda Jazz written all over it. I do believe that the slightly newer CVT auto models have it.

[ZX10R NIN]

Kia Rio 2

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Picanto 3

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[richleeds]

Thanks everyone, Ive read all your replies and I am starting to make a short list from the above.

Anymore replies suggestions/welcome.

Big thanks to ZX10R for the links as well.


Cheers!

[CJG1]

VW Polo with DSG? I have a Polo all be it manual however the hill hold works absolutely flawlessly.

[M4cruiser]

Yes, the newer cars will have the pukka hill-hold, but tend to come with auto stop-start, which is a real pain, and keeps "stopping" when you're manoeuvring. My mother would have trouble understanding that. Autos will stop/start in Drive, (but normally a manual won't). Have you ever tried to park a newish auto Mini or 308 with the auto-stop-start not switched off!

Older auto cars will rely quite well on the torque-converter's idle-creep, as stated above.

Agree with the above suggestions of Jazz, Picanto, Splash.

[MorganP104]

My Mum's just bought a MkVII Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost Auto, and absolutely loves it. She took the plunge on the strength of her best friend raving about her own car (also a MkVII Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost Auto, funnily enough).

Good looking, reliable, economical, cheap to service/repair/insure, powerful(ish), great handling, all with a gearbox that won't let you roll backwards down a hill.

What's not to like?

Not to be outdone by my learned colleague, ZX10R NIN, here's some I found on Auto Trader.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

I could go on... There are LOTS of these under £10k.

[ZX10R NIN]

I agree with Morgan the Fiesta is a cracking car but I'd say get your Mum in a Titanium or Titanium X model, the X model is hard to find within your budget but well worth seeking out:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Rare 1.6 model but these are non turbo so less chance of bork:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[richleeds]

Thanks again everyone and ZX and Morgan for more links

I think a Fiesta might be overkill and over budget.

She doesnt drive daily and when she does its usually less than 6 miles so comfort/luxury/refinement arent high on her list.

If I could licence a bumper car for onroad driving that would probably do!

[ZX10R NIN]

All the Fiesta's I listed were within budget, I think that 1.6 would be the best option as your mum does very short trips so the smaller engined turbo cars won't warm up properly where this is much less of an issue on the lesser powered 1.6 N/A car, which is why I recommended it plus it has parking sensors front & rear!

[richleeds]

ok, cheers will take another look at the 1.6