The 'getting to work down the lanes' car - opinions please

[Paul-gackh]

Font's of knowledge,

Fed-up of squeezing through, reversing back down and spending my days admiring new scratches created by confrontations with predominantly white vans on my tiny Shropshire lanes to work daily I'm in the market for a second vehicle I can care less about than my F-Pace S

- Doesn't need to be /have
4WD (although the lanes can be 'interesting' in winter)
Rear seats or a big boot

- Does need to be
Fun to drive (so much so I hanker to use it at weekends too)
Small enough to get past the aforementioned traffic
Cheap to run, insure and tax (although it won't do more than a couple of '000 miles a year so it could be a little thirsty perhaps).
Not ugly (I have my 'best looking car in the work car park' reputation to protect after all! )
Reliable

Love to get your recommendations based on a budget of £1,500-£3,000

Top of my head I'm thinking

mx-5
Polo GTi
Abarth 500 (high mileage obviously)
Mini Cooper S
Honda CR-Z (ok, think I've lost it at this point)

Feel free to link me to other articles if I'm being too lazy to search properly

Thanks

Paul

[NDA]

What about a 1 series BMW?

[redandwhite]

Clio 1*2 - just make sure the belts have been done (with proof).

[thetapeworm]

1.7 Puma - might not fit your version of attractive though.

[james_gt3rs]

Clio 182?

[Grunt Futtock]

NDA said:

What about a 1 series BMW?

For country lanes 'interesting in winter' ?

Fiesta / Focus ST
Seat Ibiza FR

[Filibuster]

So you will be keeping the F-Pace for weekend duties, right?
Do you really need the F-Pace / big SUV?
Why not sell the F-Pace and go for a smaller, sportier car instead? Jaguar F-Type? Porsche Cayman? Or an Audi RS3 when you want/need a hatch.

If you want to go down the two car garage: Clio 182

[Alex_225]

james_gt3rs said:

Clio 182?

100% this. The last time I had to commute by car was back in 2005 and I'd bought a Clio 172 new in 2003. I used absolutely love the drive to work.

If you can get a 'full fat' model it'll come with leather/alcantara, xenons, climate control and some other niceties but if it's been spec'd with the Cup pack you'll get stiffer suspension. That said even a non-Cup'd model will handle really well. You'll also get 34mpg all the time, which means it's cheap to run too.

[V12 Virgin]

Fiat Panda 100hp- you will not look back.

[kambites]

With those requirements, I'd be going for a mk3 MR2 (assuming you really don't need much boot space).

[Hol]

james_gt3rs said:

Clio 182?

^^ This or a Megane 225, if you need bigger.

[FoxtrotOscar1]

I second the Fiat Panda 100hp.

White, silver or grey so you dont notice the scrapes

[Pistonheader101]

Mk5 golf gti

[The_Burg]

MGF, plenty of traction in the snow.
Available for as little as £500 add a hardtop and your away.

[Evanivitch]

FoxtrotOscar1 said:

I second the Fiat Panda 100hp.

White, silver or grey so you dont notice the scrapes

Or Panda 4x4.

[M-SportMatt]

Pistonheader101 said:

Mk5 golf gti

This....with all season tyres

Fab engine

[TheVole]

Depends on your definition of attractive, but some ideas based on my car history with similar commutes in Oxfordshire:

Ford Puma 1.7
Clio 1*2 (if belts have been done)
Ford Fiesta ST150
MX-5
MR2
MGF or TF (just get one with the HG already done)
You might get a leggy Subaru WRX for that budget?
Civic Type R
Polo/Golf GTI
Leon/Ibiza Cupra
Toyota Celica
Toyota Corolla T-Sport
MINI Cooper S

[Zetec-S]

Another vote for the Panda from me.

[Jakg]

Suzuki Ignis Sport

[Alex_225]

Hol said:

^^ This or a Megane 225, if you need bigger.

Only thing to consider with those is making sure the cambelt has been done fairly recently. I was quoted £1,500 for the belt and water pump on my 225. I still paid £900 for it to be done in the end. Just that bit more expensive to run than an RS Clio but you do get more power and refinement from them.