{"id":507559,"date":"2026-06-19T07:41:32","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T07:41:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/507559\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T07:41:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T07:41:32","slug":"best-second-hand-first-cars-for-learners-and-young-drivers-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/507559\/","title":{"rendered":"Best second-hand first cars for learners and young drivers \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

1. Volkswagen Up\/Skoda Citigo\/Seat Mii<\/p>\n

The teeny-tiny VW Group trio still sit at the top of this small-cheap-starter-car segment, even though you\u2019ve no choice but to buy used. <\/p>\n

The simple 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine is reliable, but also fun to drive, and if you can track down one of the brilliant little electric e-Ups you\u2019re on to a great starter EV too.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0The Irish Times best new car picks for the summer of 2026 \u2013 under \u20ac25,000Opens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

The minimalist cabin is smart and well-made, and there\u2019s enough room for four people, although you\u2019ll have to fold the back seats to get a decent loadspace. <\/p>\n

Prices start at under \u20ac2,000, but you\u2019re better off spending \u20ac7,000 or so to get one from a reputable dealer. Make sure the brakes and exhaust are in good order, but the reliability factor is high. <\/p>\n

2. Dacia Sandero\"Second-generationSecond-generation Sandero Stepway <\/p>\n

The Sandero is just about cheap enough as a new car (\u20ac18,890) but you can, of course, save yourself a tonne of money by dipping back into the Sandero\u2019s 13 years\u2019 worth of used models in the Irish market (just beware the finger-snagging cheap plastics in the early cars). <\/p>\n

Prices start from as little as \u20ac2,000 for a 2013 edition, but you can get into a current-shape (and vastly superior model) Sandero (2021-onwards) from around \u20ac8,500.<\/p>\n

The little Renault-sourced 1-litre petrol engine is pretty tough, but they do tend to throw up odd warning lights, which often result in a partially-spurious dealer visit to sort. The 4×4-look Stepway model has a touch of SUV cool on its side, but you have to pay extra, and what\u2019s the point of that?<\/p>\n

Wild Card: Used Japanese import\"AA Mazda 2 from 2010. Photograph: Miguel Medina\/AFP\/Getty <\/p>\n

There are a lot of pros and cons about dipping your toe in the import market. Risks include some insurance firms being loath to cover these cars and concerns that some Japanese imports lack security features \u2013 such as immobilisers \u2013 thereby increasing the risk of theft. Often the infotainment system will be in Japanese unless the head unit has been replaced or converted. <\/p>\n

Nevertheless, the quality of these cars stands out. In particular, we\u2019d point towards the Mazda2 \u2013 usually called the Demio in Japan. This is the sensible primary schoolteacher of the motoring world. It\u2019s sensibly sized, and the steering tells you where the front wheels are. <\/p>\n

Opt for manual transmission and this car will let any learner driver discover the difference between driving and merely operating a vehicle. It\u2019s a car that teaches confidence rather than arrogance. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1. Volkswagen Up\/Skoda Citigo\/Seat Mii The teeny-tiny VW Group trio still sit at the top of this small-cheap-starter-car…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":507560,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[72,30476,8856,61,60,53853,14835,49034,30477,18043,42415],"class_list":["post-507559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-business","tag-dacia","tag-electric-vehicles","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-mazda","tag-motors","tag-seat","tag-skoda","tag-volkswagen-vw","tag-your-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=507559"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/507559\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/507560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=507559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=507559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=507559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}