AFFORDABLE
SKODA OCTAVIA £22,000/SOON
If you’re fed up with all the 4x4-styled “crossovers” that are so popular at the moment and just want a car-shaped car, the Skoda Octavia could be just the thing for you. The all-new version is available as a hatchback or a practical estate, with a range of petrol or diesel engines. Simple, right? Okay, the ‘hatchback’ version looks a bit saloon-like, and one of the petrol engines has a mild hybrid system, but the Octavia is still about the most straightforward car on the road these days – precisely what the Czech manufacturer is famous for. The 1.5-litre petrol estate is the pick of the bunch for general family use, while larger-displacement diesel engines will remain popular with long-distance drivers.
VAUXHALL MOKKA-E £30,000 (EST)/SOON
Vauxhall’s Mokka is the latest car to get a fully-electric powertrain and a lower case ‘e’ added to its name to denote a fully electric drivetraine. Just like the new Corsa, you can also get the Mokka as a petrol or a diesel as well as an EV, making it an extremely easy car to recommend to a wide variety of buyers. With the Mokka-e you’ll get up to 200 miles of range, nimble acceleration and the same family-friendly practicality that made the previous Mokka such a firm favourite with British buyers – but with no emissions at the tailpipe. We think it’s more attractive than the old one, too.
VOLKSWAGEN GOLF £24,000/NOW
Every four years, a new Golf lands on planet hatchback, leaving a massive impact crater and killing off the older, lesser family cars that once roamed there. 2020 is one of those years, and the 8th generation Golf could prove just as disruptive as its ancestors. Obviously it’s a five-seat, five-door B-segment car, designed to appeal to, well, pretty much everybody. But with family buyers turning their backs on fossil fuels, and with the arrival of the ID.3 all-electric hatchback, could this lumbering giant be nearing extinction?
HONDA JAZZ £18,000/NOW
The new Jazz is another clever hatchback from Honda. Its hybrid system uses a 1.5-litre petrol engine and two smaller electric motors to power the front wheels, with claimed fuel economy of over 60mpg and low overall emissions. The Jazz has always been a popular car in the UK, and its reputation for reliability around the world is remarkable; this isn’t an exciting car, particularly, but it’s about as close to perfection as you can get in supermini form. The taller, chunkier, pricier Crosstar version comes with Suv-inspired plastic trim, and is arguably a bit cooler than the standard version.
JEEP RENEGADE 4XE £23,000/SOON
Like a bald eagle going vegan, Jeep is now offering plug-in hybrid systems. The first to receive it will be the Compass and the Renegade, the latter being the more characterful – though arguably less practical – family SUV. It’ll have around 25 miles of zero-emission range once it’s been charged up, with the 1.3-litre petrol engine kicking in as required, and is likely to be just as useful off-road as the regular Renegade. A more powerful ‘Trailhawk’ version is also available, pushing Jeep’s yee-haw nomenclature to the absolute limit. It might not be the best plug-in hybrid SUV you can buy, but it’s one of the more interesting.