Which car should I buy? We help you decide

If you are considering buying a car, it can be difficult to keep track and weigh up all the options. While some may find choosing a car an unpleasant prospect, others find it a treat (including us!). But it can be easy to get carried away and it is important to keep both feet on the ground while looking. As tempting as it may be to opt for the model that catches the eye with a great colour, attractive looks or a thick A-brand, it can be worth it in the long run if you take a step-by-step approach to buying.

We have put together this guide to help you decide which car to buy. In the end, you alone know your lifestyle, taste and budget. This guide will help you figure out what you need a car for and put together a checklist for the best option.

What to look out for when buying your next car

• What is your budget? How much do you want to spend - both on purchases and fixed costs
• What you will use the car for
• How much space you need
• Which features you need or want
• Petrol, diesel, hybrid or electric?

New or second-hand?

Deciding to buy a new or used car is the first step towards buying your next car. Your budget is likely to play a big part in the decision and this will also largely determine whether a new car is possible at all. If you buy a new one, you will benefit from the peace of mind of a long manufacturer's warranty (may vary by brand). You can also customise the car exactly to your taste and needs, but a new car can have a long delivery time, and remember that you will almost always lose more money in the long run than if you were to buy a used car. This is because of the rapid depreciation on cars, although this can vary greatly by make and model.

Used cars, meanwhile, have their own advantages. A used car will almost always be cheaper than a new one and the first owner will probably have taken the first hit of depreciation, so you won't have to. A good place to start your search is through CarProf, for example, where you can find various view occasions.

How do you use your car?

Think about how you use the car, if you mainly drive around town, fuel consumption may be a secondary concern (few cars are most efficient in stop-start traffic), but you may want a small car to make parking easier. Four-wheel drive, on the other hand, is usually not necessary unless you plan to tow regularly or frequent the countryside.

And of course the question, how much space do you need? Do you need seven seats, or will a cheaper model with five seats suffice? Is there room for your family or friends in the back of the car, and is the boot big enough for the stuff you often take with you? Would a higher ride height make getting in and out of the car easier? If you have bikes or canoes, are roof rails useful? Or a tow bar for a cart or bike carrier? By asking yourself questions like these, you'll narrow down your search criteria and make the search a lot easier.

Which body shape?

If you bought a car twenty or thirty years ago, this choice was quite simple; if you didn't cover that many miles, you bought a hatchback, a station wagon was for those who regularly had to carry large loads or had a large family. While everyone else drove a sedan. It's not that simple these days.

Nowadays, SUVs are a lot more popular, thanks to their higher entry and larger interior space. More modern models drive reasonably well and do not consume much more fuel than a conventional car. You may also have heard of the term 'crossover' - this was originally a term referring to a car that combines the features of two body styles, but is now mainly used to refer to cars based on traditional small hatchbacks with increased entry and handling with features of SUVs.

The following body styles are available:

• City cars (e.g. Fiat 500)
• Superminis (e.g. Ford Fiesta)
• Small SUVs (e.g. Nissan Juke)
• Family hatchbacks (e.g. Ford Focus)
• Family SUVs (e.g. Nissan Qashqai)
• Large family cars (e.g. Ford Mondeo)
• Estate cars (e.g. Skoda Octavia Estate)
• Large SUVs (e.g. Kia Sorento)
• MPVs (e.g. Ford Galaxy)
• Executive (high-end) cars (e.g. BMW 5-series, Mercedes E-class)
• Coupés (e.g. Audi TT)
• Cabriolets (e.g. Mazda MX-5)

When deciding which car to buy, keep in mind roughly what body shape you want, but be prepared to expand the search. For example, if you are looking for a traditional hatchback like the Volkswagen Golf, would the extra space available in a similarly priced Skoda Karoq SUV be useful, or will all that extra space just go to waste? With brands, a similar story applies: be prepared to consider manufacturers you once considered too luxurious, as well as brands that may have previously been dismissed because they seemed too 'budget'. So be open to looking around.

Petrol, diesel, hybrid or electric?

The next thing to consider is the fuel for your car. While some cars are only available with a petrol engine, such as the Skoda Fabia, most manufacturers offer both petrol and diesel engines. Mild-hybrid, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric models are becoming more common and can be an excellent choice, especially if you do a lot of city driving.

As a rule of thumb, if you travel less than 19,000 kilometres a year, a diesel engine may not be suitable. Diesel cars cost more to buy than their petrol counterparts, and you will have to drive quite a few kilometres to make up for the difference in fuel savings. Although with today's fuel prices, this is sometimes not entirely true anymore. So do the math to determine the difference between a petrol and diesel car, include road tax and insurance in this. Conversely, most hybrid petrol and plug-in hybrid models offer lower running costs than a petrol/diesel car, but are more expensive to buy. Nevertheless, EVs and hybrid cars are becoming increasingly available on the used market and are becoming more affordable.

If you mainly do short trips, a diesel is probably not the right choice. This is because diesel engines need to run at speed regularly to burn the soot that accumulates in the diesel particulate filter (DPF). If you don't give a diesel engine a chance to do this from time to time, you could end up with a clogged particulate filter and a high repair bill. If you want lower consumption and emissions, a diesel with mild-hybrid support may be a good choice.

If you plan to use the car for shorter trips, then one of the best plug-in hybrid models could be a viable choice. Think about charging that though, do you have the space at home to install a charging point or does it have to be along public roads? A large number of PHEV models, such as the BMW 330e and Mercedes A 250 e, can drive around 50 kilometres electrically depending on how you drive it, a range that can often be sufficient for short commutes.

Electric cars offer the lowest fixed costs (there is no road tax to pay for now and charging at home costs much less than a full tank of fuel), so you can offset the higher purchase price of an electric car with much lower fixed costs than you are probably used to. There is now a wide range of electric cars on the market, many of which cover more than 320 kilometres between charges - far more than most people ever drive at one time. With government subsidies, you can also save on the purchase cost of many electric cars.

What is really important to you?

Once you have a rough idea of the size and shape of the car you are looking for, think carefully about what you will use it for. If you have small children, a crossover SUV is a good choice, as the raised ride height makes it much easier to get children and their seats into the car. If you like to do odd jobs, carrying capacity may be important, as well as easily foldable benches. If you want your car to have certain features, such as a navigation system, phone connectivity, adaptive cruise control, parking sensors or leather seats, try to choose an equipment level that includes them all together, as this is usually more economical than adding the individual options separately.

How to finance?

Because the vast majority of new cars are bought using some form of financing, and because dealers are encouraged to sell cars through this method, cash is not necessarily king, and you are just as likely to get a discount by buying a car on financing. If you decide to lease or take out a loan, keep an eye on both the total price and monthly repayments; an optional extra may not seem that expensive on a monthly basis, but it is easy to lose sight of the true cost of options. You may not get your money back when it's time to sell or trade in the car, so delve into the terms and conditions carefully before entering into a deal!

What are the fixed costs?

It is tempting to go to extremes when setting a budget for a new car, and monthly repayments can be temptingly low. Even for more expensive models. However, keep in mind that fixed costs are easily pushed aside at the purchase stage, and excessive fuel consumption or insurance premiums can cause your car to become headline-grabbing. Look carefully at what the road tax is for your car, this can vary greatly. Also look into any subsidies if you decide to buy an electric car.

Fuel consumption must of course be taken into account. While manufacturers' official figures were previously hard to match in the real world, the introduction of the new 'WLTP' economy and emissions testing in 2017 means they are now more accurate. You should still take said figures with a grain of salt, as how and where you drive will obviously affect fuel consumption. Keep an eye on the on-board computer during each test drive for a more realistic fuel economy figure, and ask the dealer how to access this information if you are unsure.

And remember to request a number of insurance quotes for each car you are considering buying, as some models can be significantly more expensive to insure than others.

Take a test drive

If you know roughly which car you want, try testing several cars that are similar. This is worth doing; while it may mean waiting for the dealer to deliver the right car, different engine and gearbox combinations can completely change the way a car drives, as can options like sports suspension and large alloy wheels. If you are looking for tech features in the car, such as Bluetooth phone connectivity, check how well they work, as some systems are much better than others. Menu and digital screen controls are also very different by brand, test this too and find out what works best for you. Fortunately, most cars come with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, so you can use your phone's navigation and media apps on the screen instead of the car system.

If you are buying a car for the whole family, take your partner and children along to see how they like the car. They may notice problems you hadn't thought of, such as poor interior storage space or an uncomfortable back seat. It is also a good idea to bring along large items - such as children's buggies or golf clubs - that you take with you regularly, to see how well they fit in the boot.

Make sure you drive along different roads during the test drive, from four-lane roads to winding back roads. This will help you get a better idea of how the car drives. Some dealers allow you to borrow a car over the weekend, and this can be useful, but make sure you don't get too attached to it, as an objective approach is crucial.

The main focus of any test drive is obviously the car itself - so don't let the salesperson distract you too much with small talk - although it pays to be polite if you want to get a good deal! Speaking of which...

Negotiate now!

Once you have decided which car you want to buy, it is time to agree on a price. Some dealers are more open to haggling than others, but any salesperson will definitely look around at competitors and know if the price is right. Don't be afraid to share this information with the seller; after all, they want your money. If the car you are looking for is a particularly new or in-demand model, discounts are probably not realistic. However, you should be able to get a set of car mats and a full tank of fuel.

Unless you are buying an older used car, you should also expect some form of warranty. There is of course a legal warranty but many garages also offer an additional warranty, ask about this! Used cars that are between one and three years old can offer significant savings and sometimes have factory warranty as well.

If you are trading in an old car, do your research and find out how to value your used car before you start looking around for a new car, so you can be sure that the dealer will give you a fair price. So ask for the trade-in price from multiple vendors so you can get a good idea of the value.

Deciding which car to buy is a complicated process but definitely try to take your time in your search. Try different cars and get well informed. Have a good search!