Well, maybe I don't [i]need[/i] one but an upgrade is sure in order. I currently have an older generation VW Polo, 1.2 Twist 3 door model. It has served me extremely well and has been a brilliant car, but it's about time I upped the ante and went for something a little more economical over motorway journeys. The poor little 1.2L engine really struggles to maintain 70mph for, as near as makes no difference, 150 miles, drinking around £90 worth of petrol in a return journey. The issue is that it is always almost fully laden on the trip, so fuel consumption goes through the roof, and let's not even start on the speed of the thing. I get overtaken by lorries just because of the torque they pull. Anyway, with the Polo soldiering on, I'm looking for suitable replacements. We have several cars on the table, with a decent second-car budget. I'll lay out what I've got in mind thus far, and we can go from there. Keep in mind we're looking at [b]used[/b] cars in the [b]UK[/b], so none of this V8 turbo nonsense. If only. Well after looking at several Renaults and Citroens, I can say the build quality has put me off. There's a reason they depreciate so much so quickly. I never realised the BMW was rear-wheel-drive which is what makes them so expensive to insure. Knowing this now though, I'm really tempted to hold out until July and get a 1 series. Still, if not I've narrowed it to a choice of two cars, both in the region of £5-6.5K with the same insurance cost. We have: [b][u]NEW, EDITED LIST:[/u][/b] [b]Option 1:[/b] VW Golf 1.6 Match, 5 door. Brilliant spec of car and a range to choose from in the price bracket. Cruise control. Climate control. Audo controls on the steering wheel. 6-speed. 0-62 in 10.8 seconds (no race winners for this budget and insurance bracket). [b]Option 2:[/b] Audi A3 Special Edition/Sport FSI 1.6, 5 door. Some of the A3s are faster than the others, with less than 11 seconds in the 0-62. These are more expensive to insure than the 102hp models which do it in 11.9 seconds. So the Audi is slower than the Golf, less well-equipped, but damn is it a looker. My budget is topped out at £7,000 including insurance, but there is a tiny bit of room for going over. Preferably a £6,000 car with less than £1000 insurance. Anyone got any other recommendations?