What Car? Used Car of the Year - Overall winner

Vauxhall Vectra 1.8 SXi 5dr ’02/02, 30k, £8040

Picking an overall winner was never going to be easy, and so it proved. The Citroën Xsara Picasso came close to swaying us, and the Ford Focus very nearly retained its crown, but in the end it was sheer value for money that secured the title for the Vauxhall Vectra.

Being able to buy a car for £8000 that cost double just a couple of years ago feels almost like stealing – but that’s the beauty of the used car market. When a car doesn’t have the right image, or lacks that certain something (often without good reason), the end result is a bona fide bargain.

After all, it’s not as if the Vectra is a car without its talents. Think of anything you could want a car in this class to do, and the Vectra – our Family Car of the Year as a new car in 2003 – does it, and does it well.

You’ll find space for five inside, as well as a big boot. Comfort and refinement are excellent, and the Vectra is well built from high-quality materials. Perhaps most importantly, this is the first Vectra to drive as well as it should. In fact, it goes well beyond that basic requirement and steers, rides and handles in a way that no previous Vectra ever has.

Equipment levels are high on any Vectra, but we recommend you look for an SXi. It’s not just that its sporty bodykit and gleaming alloys make it look smarter, they’ll also help you get a good price when you sell it on in the future.

Mind you, you should have no worries about investing in a Vectra. Like any mass-market car, its value takes the biggest hit over the first 18 months or so, so any future drops will be relatively modest on a car of this age.

The only words of caution from our panel were that the car is very colour-sensitive – so avoid a garish or unattractive paint job. Make sure the car is as smart as possible – the importance of its appearance should not be underestimated.

Ultimately, though, what is impossible to ignore is that all this is yours for just £8000. Whichever way you look at it, that’s simply astonishing value, and makes the Vectra a deserved What Car? Used Car of the Year.