Best cars for £15,000 and under

Dacia Duster (2012-present)

'All the car you’ll ever need' is such a cliché that it is now a cliché to say it is a cliché. But because Dacia is a budget brand, and because the technology used to develop this car is as tried and tested as that saying, buying a Duster for £15k makes it very difficult not to repeat. 

This budget gives you access to Dusters that are just a couple of years old, so this has the potential to be one of the most sensible financial decisions you can make. With seating for five and a compelling, chunky aura to both the way it looks and drives, it combines SUV space with hatchback size but is still more desirable than many a crossover.

In departments where you might think it is lacking, such as creature comforts, it’s actually very well equipped. For instance, £14,000 will net you a 21-plate car with part-leather upholstery, sat-nav, parking sensors, and Bluetooth. Even slashing the budget by £10,000 gets you a last-gen car with around 70,000 miles and all of the above kit, bar sat-nav.

There are some things to look out for. If you're taking one for a test drive, make sure it changes gear smoothly, else the transmission oil may need replacing. Some models fitted with the 1.5-litre diesel engine have also had clogging issues with the diesel particulate filter (DPF), which, if not rectified by a motorway blast, has to be taken to a garage.

Dacia Duster review

Maserati Quattroporte (2004-2013)

Styling by Pininfarina, beautifully judged driving dynamics, and a V8 soundtrack that tells its own story. That's all you really need to know about this Maserati.

Well, not all. Manufactured between 2004 and 2013 and facelifted in 2008, it was the last in a generation of four-door saloons from Modena before they became slightly prosaic, and is as much an 'Autocar' car as any.

From its 4.2-litre V8 erupts a cacophony of snarling 395bhp grunt, and there's the potential to dispatch 0-62mph in 5.2sec. Later on, capacity was upped to 4.7 litres, with power boosted to 425bhp, and again to 444bhp in the GTS version.

Pricing is just as attention-grabbing as hearing one on the public road, because even later cars can be bought for less than £15,000. If, however, you want a clean, well-specified first-gen car with less than 50,000 miles, there are so many out there for you. 

As ever, though, there comes a point when it all seems too good to be true. Buying a V8 Italian saloon for less than £15,000 sounds great on paper, but choose carefully. Badly maintained cars can be riddled with electrical issues, so it's vital to check that servicing has been done every 6000 miles, especially on cars fitted with the six-speed Duoselect auto.

Used Maserati Quattroporte 2004-2013 review

Ford S-Max (2006-2014)

Today, choosing which MPV is your favourite is like choosing which eyebrow you like best - the difference between them is so infinitesimal that you may as well choose according to a nursery rhyme. 

But back when the Ford S-Max was on sale, it was basically a foregone conclusion. Even today, it’s as sharp to look at as it is to drive, and it proves that genuine driver enjoyment doesn't stop at seven seats.

It's those seven seats, though, that give this car the practicality that's likely to have drawn you towards it in the first place. Not only can it accommodate several kids, but also their clutter can be stowed away in cubbies so numerous and door bins so vast you wonder whether you’ve actually bought a barn.

Throughout its eight-year production run, 20 engine variants were offered, ranging from 1.6 to 2.5 litres. We recommend the 197bhp 2.2-litre diesel, especially for motorway work. Get the 2.5 if you just want a laugh: it was described by our used car expert, John Evans, as "the Clark Kent of motoring".

Prices range from less than a grand for a rough one to around £14,000, with the sweet spot around the £10,000 to £14,000 mark. For that, you'll find a choice of clean, low-mileage 2012 and 2013 cars that are well specified.

Used Ford S-Max 2006-2014 review

Porsche Boxster (1997-2012)

It's one of the most coveted sports cars ever made and has been such a success dynamically (and financially) that it has long since been a car by which its competition is judged.

You can bag both 986- and 987-generation cars and stay within budget, with two engines to choose from. These were the standard 2.7-litre flat six, which produced 224bhp for the 986 generation and 237bhp in 987 cars, and a more powerful 3.2-litre flat six that increased outputs to 256bhp and 276bhp respectively. 

You might think that it's impossible to still find one of these Porsches for less than £15k, but there are hundreds.

Of course, just as every wine cellar has cheap bottles that age like milk, the classifieds are riddled with examples that will become money pits. But there are still a number of really tidy Boxsters with full service histories ready for your picking.

As far as maintenance goes, check that any potential purchase has had the intermediate shaft bearing replaced or budget for it, and problems with mass airflow sensors are not uncommon.

Jaguar XE (2015-2019)

It’s in its twilight years, but even now Jaguar's baby saloon still has a chassis so fine, engines so strong and looks so sharp that it continues to feel far more expensive than it is.

Underrated it may be, but it represents a lot of firsts for Jaguar. It was the first car to be built at the firm's Solihull factory alongside the Range Rover Sport, the first clean-sheet compact saloon the brand had ever built, and the first to use its Ingenium engines.

Those engines included a 2.0-litre petrol and 2.0-litre diesel, and replaced a pretty tired Ford Ecoboost unit of the same size. A 3.0-litre supercharged V6 was available in the XE S, together with a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 in the fire-breathing SV Project 8.

The V6 and V8 cars are out of our budget, and with the ability to leave yards of black stripes behind them, probably slightly thirsty. But the 2.0-litre petrol cars produce enough shove to match a 3 Series. Even the basic 197bhp unit dispatches 0-62mph in 6.7sec.

Some cars have been reported to have issues concerning their steering pumps, fuel system and suspension components, especially in cold weather. To get the most attractive buy, make sure the car you're looking at has been looked after. Scuffs on the alloy wheels and budget tyres are telltale signs of a hard life.

Jaguar XE review

BMW 330e (2019)

This hybrid BMW 3 Series is worthy of your attention for five reasons: it can be driven into low-emission zones, has performance similar to its petrol and diesel siblings, can be had from around £14,000, wears high miles well, and is a BMW 3 Series.

Only one thing might dissuade you: a modest electric-only range of 19 miles. However, that is more than enough for most commutes, especially when you consider that the beautifully integrated 2.0-litre petrol engine still lets you go 310 miles between fill-ups, and it nudges 45mpg. Performance is equally satisfactory, with a 0-60mph of 6.3sec, a top speed of 140mph and mighty overtaking ability.

Thanks to its age, it hasn't suffered from any noteworthy issues and it garners praise on most online forums. Aside from the regular maintenance agenda, it should slot into your life like a T-shirt.

BMW 3 Series review

Mercedes C350e (2017-2018)

It didn't sell in as many numbers as its petrol and diesel equivalents, and it was a fair bit heavier, being retro-stuffed with petrol-electric gubbins, but stick with us because this elegantly styled saloon is something of a sleeper. 

A 0-62mph time of 5.9sec and a top speed of 155mph was achieved from a 2.0-litre petrol engine mated to an electric motor and 6.2kWh battery. So it has the performance to match a Volkswagen Golf GTI, which makes it fast enough in our book, and, because it's a Mercedes, there is a quality touch to many of the materials inside. However, it can come up short, especially in the company of the belt-and-braces 3 Series.

Its electric-only range matches the BMW, at 19 miles, though - long enough for most journeys. A full charge from a regular Type 2 socket should take around two hours.