Used Car of the Year Awards: Small SUVs
With living costs on the rise, getting a good deal on your next car is more important than ever. That's where our Used Car Awards come in. These are our favourite small SUVs...
Skoda Kamiq
Price from £10,000 Our pick 1.0 TSI 116 SE
If you're one of a trio of triplets, people can assume you have the same personality as the other two. It would be easy to assume this was true of the closely related Seat Arona, Skoda Kamiq and Volkswagen T-Cross, but no; the Kamiq stands out for being roomier, classier and more comfortable than its siblings.
Unusually for a small SUV, the Kamiq is spacious enough for a six-footer to sit behind an equally tall driver without brushing their knees on the seat in front. It’s a capable load lugger, too; its boot can hold a whopping seven carry-on suitcases (two more than the T-Cross will take), yet it’s still compact and manoeuvrable enough to be a great fit for city life.
Mind you, if you go for the 114bhp 1.0 TSI 116 petrol engine, it’s also perfectly at home on the motorway; there’s more overtaking power than the entry-level 94bhp engine gives you, plus an extra gear for quieter high-speed cruising.
Meanwhile, the supple suspension manages to soak up all but the worst bumps, whatever the road conditions.
The Kamiq’s tidily arranged, user-friendly dashboard has always looked classy, and facelifted 2024-on cars feel it, too, with more widespread use of soft-touch materials. Earlier cars did have more scratchy plastics on the dash and door trims, but even these cars still felt well screwed together for the class.
No Kamiq is short on kit, either; even entry-level S trim gives you 16in alloy wheels, LED headlights, air-con and a DAB radio with Bluetooth. Our preferred SE trim brings 17in alloys, rear parking sensors, auto lights and wipers, cruise control and an upgraded, 8.0in infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay phone connectivity.
Best of all, the Kamiq is great value. Prices start at around £10,000 for a 2021 model; that’s about what you’ll pay for a Seat Arona of the same vintage, and it’s a handy £2000 less than a Ford Puma will set you back. The sweet spot is at the £13,000 mark; this should secure you a 2023 Kamiq, saving around £1000 over a Puma or T-Cross of the same age.
Also consider...
Best for running costs
Toyota Yaris Cross (2020-present)
Price from £16,000 Our pick 1.5 Hybrid Design
Think of the Yaris Cross as a Yaris hatchback that’s had a growth spurt. It’s longer and wider than the hatch and has a higher driving position.
The Kamiq is more spacious and considerably cheaper, but if running costs are more important to you than purchase price, the Yaris Cross should pique your interest. Hybrid power is the secret; in entry-level 114bhp form, the 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine and electric motor prove incredibly economical, returning an average of 60.1mpg in our Real MPG testing and an impressive 103.3mpg on our simulated town route, making it a fantastic choice if you live in a city. It’s a shame, though, that the CVT automatic gearbox causes the engine to be rather rowdy under acceleration.
The Yaris Cross costs more to buy used than many small SUV rivals, but when you factor in its reasonable servicing costs and Toyota’s 10-year/100,000-mile warranty (provided you let Toyota do the servicing), it’s a very tempting package.
Read our full used Toyota Yaris Cross review >>
Find a used Toyota Yaris Cross for sale >>
Best interior
Range Rover Evoque (2019-present)
Price from £15,000 Our pick P300e
The Evoque is just like its larger Range Rover siblings but distilled into a compact package. It looks great and blends lashings of standard kit with relaxed driving manners and a lofty driving position. Its interior is especially classy, with plush materials giving it an upmarket air few other small SUVs can match.
The Evoque can be had with a good range of petrol and diesel engines, but our favourite is the P300e plug-in hybrid, which promises low fuel bills if you make a lot of shorter trips and can charge at home. All versions are quiet and deliver their power smoothly. The ride is supple, too, although the larger wheel options can highlight coarse and broken road surfaces at lower speeds.
Expect to pay around £17,000 to put a 2021 model on your drive, so it’s pricier than the Kamiq and Yaris Cross, but it does feel more expensive. The Evoque’s reliability has improved in recent years, too.
Find a used Range Rover Evoque for sale >>
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