Citroen Saxo 1.1 Forte

I found the Saxo a very reliable car, with great accelaration and really good going up steep gradients. It is cheap to run, doing about 56 miles to a gallon, easy to park, and sufficient boot space. The Saxo is also cheap to tax and insure. Spare parts are easy to come by even though this car is no longer manufactured. On the downside, I didnt like the manual steering and the gears were a bit sloppy. However for a first car I would recommend this to anyone.

The Citroen Saxo 1.1 Forte is a great little car whether you need it as a second car, and economical runabout or as a first car. I should imagine it is cheap to insure.

We have owned this car from new and it is now entering its fourth year having travelled 22,000 miles. There have been some problems with the car which were fixed under warranty and most were due to the lack of use which the car had in its first year (1500 miles). This must be considered against the new cost of £5500!! There is a Mini One in the household as well and this cost twice as much. Therefore pound for pound the little Saxo has been exceptional. The ride is supple on a long or short journey and the handling superb on the motorway around town. The 1.1 gives adequate performance and if you treat it with respect 48mpg on a run! We regularly get 42-44mpg.

You can't buy these new so you have to look for a few issues on most second hand cars. Check the brakes, the discs tend to corrode, especially if the car hasn't been used too much (most will be second cars doing low mileage). In particular, check the operation of the gearbox. The shift mechanism needs regular lubrication to stop shifting problems into first and reverse.

Otherwise a great car and can be bought cheaply as there are plenty around at reasonable cost.