Hi, thanks for replying. I think he's gotten used to the safety features when they're adjusted properly. I found his distance control was set to maximum for example. When they were adjusted it improved things. He's very reliant on GMaps so Android Auto is a godsend for him.

Looked at the Kia but it's slightly out of his price range. With being given a lemon, I agree that it doesn't mean all cars are like that, but he being he, does think that way. That started when he ended up with 3 different cars of the same make and model in succession that all had faults.

The GT spec in a Golf is quite nice, but I'm not sure I'd spend that much on a Golf which is nearing 6 years old.

It's also worth looking at the Leon which is much the same car underneath but significantly cheaper, particularly secondhand as it doesn't have the VW badge which is quite desirable among younger buyers particularly on the Golf. You'd probably get a 4 year old similar spec Leon for the same money.

Pretty much every newer car has intrusive driver "assistance" features of some sort. The main thing to check is how easy they are to turn off. On the motorway and in town they rarely intervene, but if your trip is on fast country roads they can't cope. My wife has the current model Leon and that needs the "Lane Assist" switching off every time we leave home as the first few miles are down a fast-ish B road where it constantly thinks you're about to drive into the hedge and tries to push you out too far into the middle of the road. After having had the car a year, turning it off (via a rather irritating set of menus on the touchscreen) is now as much a part of the setting off routine as switching on the ignition and putting seatbelts on.