Low cost runner for the school run and wife's commute

[Fiisch]

Our current second runabout is a Citroen DS3 Racing which I love, however I'm amazed to find it's not the most reliable car I've ever owned and we're looking to exploit the solar panels on our roof and try and reduce our bills by switching one of the cars to an EV. We live in a fairly rural area, and so a lot of our runs are 40-50 mile round trips (e.g.: kids' school is 10 miles away, wife's work 15 miles away etc.).

My wife doesn't want something too leggy, and we have a budget of up to £15k. Obvious choice seems to be a lightly used Nissan Leaf. Decent specced models with under 30k miles can be had easily within budget. We already have a much larger (Skoda Superb) family car, so this would only be used for shortish hops.

Any pitfalls to be aware of / any other cars to consider? Is buying a lightly used Leaf a more cost-effective option than an equivalent lease? Looking to save as much money on this car as possible to put towards a Subaru Impreza as a garage queen..!

[Fiisch]

ZX10R NIN said:

I'd say a plug in hybrid may be a better option.

Leaf wise you'll get a 2021 model still within its warranty which you can extend:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304276...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302144...

Ioniq Premium SE:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304206...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303074...

Thank you- the Leaf on 3.5k miles seems a steal at that price I'll be phoning in the morning!

I hadn't realised Ioniq was full electric - interesting curveball, and perhaps a touch bigger than the Leaf.

Why do you think plug in hybrid preferable to a budget EV? I've always considered plug-in hybrid as the worst of all worlds - the weight of the battery + minimal range on electric power only, added to reduced economy for the petrol engine...