If it's economy you're after, go for a small diesel such as a Volkswagen Golf Bluemotion or Volkswagen Polo Bluemotion - both will do more than 70mpg. Other similarly economical cars include the SEAT Leon Ecomotive, Ford Focus ECOnetic and Skoda Fabia Greenline. These all use either a 1.2-litre or 1.6-litre diesel engine.

If you're after something a little older, the Volkswagen 1.9 TDI engine with 105bhp is also very economical. It's used in a wide variety of cars from the Golf to the Audi A3, Skoda Octavia and most SEATs. Hybrids are only really any good if you spend a lot of time in traffic (so they're ideal for city driving) but on the motorway, where you're doing a more consistent speed, diesels are better for economy.