At your price level, condition matters more than make or model. Older diesels can go expensively wrong at high mileages, but the 1.9 TDI VW engine is one of the most reliable.

Another one worth thinking about is a Toyota Yaris: one of our regulars here has had a Yaris diesel for many years without trouble. Mind you, you'd get 40 + mpg out of the petrol 1.3 Yaris and be able to have a newer one for the money. Avoid the 1.0: too sluggish and probably no more economical unless you drive ike a snail.

Toyota Corrolla......plenty of these still going @ 10+ years old, 1.4 petrol will do 38ish to gallon and shoule be cheap to mainain

Thanks for the replies so far everyone - they're hugely appreciated.

It is our first baby and I have thought about keeping the Mondeo for the commute, but I have two things to consider - the first is a serious point, which is that the car needs to have ISOFIX points and the second is less so and is that the car needs to be relatively aesthetically pleasing for my missus to drive around in it.....:)

Looking at the last point, she's always liked Meganes and I've found a 53 plate version with under 70k miles on the clock. 1.5 diesel, five doors, ISOFIX, decent trim level (air con, etc) - but I no diddly squat about Meganes from this age.

It's priced at £1,690, so well within budget, but from the quick look I've had a look online, it seems the reviews are mixed, with some being great and others not so much (although the criticism does seem to be around dodgy electrics, which we can live with).

Any thoughts?

Are fashion or economy the most important? At £2k you don't really have the luxury of both or barely one.

Don't buy a 53-plate Megane for £2k. Just don't.

Here's a curveball: Kia Cerato diesel.

You can get something like a 2006 one with 70k miles on for £2k or less.

I don't think the engine has a DPF, so avoids any of that malarky. Pretty low tax band, plenty of equipment, sufficient poke, pretty good economy.

Have a look for a Skoda Octavia, especially with the 1.9TDi engine.

You might be in late mk1 territory or early mk2 territory at your budget, but they're reliable well built and I think the Mk2's even have ISOFIX, as I seem to remember my 2005 estate had it.

Cheers

BRG

Problem with buyng the diesel s that you're in competition with every minicab driver in town when buying so end up paying over the odds.

The 2 litre petrol Octavia (the old 8V one in the Mk1 not the FSI) is surprisingly economical for this kind of trip and pretty much bulletproof., They're not very desirable (it's not a VRS and not a diesel) so you can get a surprisingly decent one for about half your budget,. My wife's 03 reg one of these is used for a similar commute and does about 400 miles off £60 of fuel. In theory it's a lot less economical than that, but it's stop-start town driving awhich does for the economy. Her car has just passed 120k miles, and only "non service" items it has needed in the last five years are a rear brake caliper and front suspension bushes, a total cost for unplanned maintenance of less than £300.