MOTORING: The best cars to help reduce your bills

As the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite, many of us are looking at ways to cut back on our spending and reduce our bills.

While it might be cutting back on your travel, electricity and gas usage, if you’ve got a car, it’s worth having a look at this too, and if you’re having to spend a lot on fuel, tax and other running costs, it might be worth thinking about making the switch to something that is able to reduce your motoring bills. Here are some great new and used options to suit a range of budgets.

Toyota Yaris Hybrid

If you’re not quite ready to make the switch to fully-electric model, a hybrid model can be seen as a great stepping stone. There’s a choice of plug-in hybrid and regular ‘self-charging’ models, and if you’re not able to put a car on charge easily, the latter makes a great option.

Volkswagen Up!

One of the best ways of reducing your motoring bills is simply by downsizing to a smaller car, and if you want to do so without having to make significant compromises, we highly recommend the Volkswagen Up!. Introduced in 2012, this city car delivers far more than you’d expect for a car of its size, offering a surprisingly roomy interior and good driving manners.

Dacia Jogger

Though new car prices have shot up in recent years, it’s worth remembering that there are still bargains to be had, especially from Renault-owned Dacia, which is now renowned for its cars’ outstanding value for money.

Nissan Leaf

While the cost of electricity has skyrocketed in recent months, there are still significant cost savings to be had with EVs, especially if you are able to charge at home with off-peak rates and make the most of cheaper rates. If you’re shopping on a budget, one of the cheapest used EVs you can get is the Nissan Leaf.

Skoda Octavia

While a diesel car might not be particularly ‘in trend’, especially with current diesel prices being well in excess of those of a petrol, for those doing lots of longer trips, these models remain hard to beat when it comes to their suitability and efficiency. A highly-recommended option is the Skoda Octavia.

Citroen C3 You

Another new car worth taking a look at is Citroen’s C3, which has recently become even more appealing thanks to the introduction of a new entry-level trim level.

MG ZS EV

MG is another firm that’s well known for offering its buyers fantastic value for money, specifically with its electric cars that are really helping to drive this Chinese brand’s growth. It was the MG EV that arrived in 2019 as its first electric car, and it’s now even more affordable on the used market.