| Small family cars have always been popular with | | | | prices of Focus, Golf and Astra 1.4 petrol models |
| Irish drivers. They can serve the whole family | | | | produced in 2006. Ford has proved to be the |
| while being cheap to buy, drive and insure. But | | | | most expensive with the average price of |
| how to find the best value for money? | | | | €16,000. The biggest rival, VW Golf is not |
| The most popular buys | | | | much cheaper - €15,500. Opel is the least |
| Irish leading motoring website ( team has recently | | | | pricey options and the average amount of money |
| conducted a survey on used cars’ prices | | | | to be paid for a 1.4 3 year old model is only |
| analyzing the data available on its pages. It turned | | | | €12,000 even though it is as attractive as the |
| out, that the most popular vehicles from the small | | | | other two in terms of technology and equipment. |
| family segment are: Ford Focus, VW Golf and | | | | Should it be Opel Astra? |
| Opel Astra. | | | | To sum up, it seems that Opel Astra may be the |
| In fact Ford Focus has been Ireland’s | | | | best choice due to its attractive price. What |
| best-selling car since 2001 and is appreciated for | | | | needs consideration however, is the fact that |
| its quality, reliability, comfort and lively driver | | | | Focus and Golf loose less of value with time, |
| responsiveness. A 4-5 person family can benefit | | | | what may make a difference in several years |
| from its spacious boot and comfortable rear | | | | when we decide to sell our used cars. It is also |
| seats. Probably due to popularity and good PR, | | | | worth mentioning that the new version of Ford |
| second-hand Focus is also more expensive than | | | | Focus will be available next year. As some |
| other used cars from the family segment. | | | | satisfied users of the second generation models |
| The used cars’ prices | | | | may like to upgrade, the prices may fall a bit due |
| The Car Buyers Guide team has compared the | | | | to higher supply. |