My wife has a 10-year old Audi A3 that has covered 60,000 miles. A high proportion of her driving is in town and on shortish runs; now she wants a new car that is the same size, but sits higher on the road. The MINI Countryman seems to fill the bill, but she has been told that the build quality is poor. Your website has no comment on this aspect, is this criticism justified?

And, whether yea or nay, what else would you recommend us to look at? We do two or three continental trips each year, mountain driving included, and she won't drive a Mercedes-Benz because they are too big. I am too antique to suffer a car that struggles up hills on long runs, and I can no longer do a 1000 kilometre stint in one go, like the old days.