I've been doing a lot of research about what kind of city car would be practical. It would have to be a second-hand car, since that's all I can afford. It has to be small and fuel efficient because of the rising fuel costs. And it has to drive decent enough I can bring it on long drives along the highway. It has to be a relatively newer model so I'm capping my baseline to 2017 models and newer. I'll also try to link some autodeal reviews since I put so much weight on their opinion, specially when it comes to fuel efficiency. So without further ado I present to you my top four choices of hatchbacks.
Before going any further, why hatchbacks? I really like them. They seem practical and the fact that when you see the rear window that's basically the rear of the car already. No need to estimate if you'll bump something or not. Plus the taller rear cargo area means you can pile on more things, as long as you pile them on properly and securely.
- Kia Picanto 1.2L AT. Split folding rear seats, decent displacement engine, and some of the best fuel efficiency based on what I've read. The Kia Picanto can go 7 km/L on slow city driving and about 25 km/L on highways. Assuming we're fully loaded I'll be happy to get 6 km/L city and maybe 18 km/L highway.
- Toyota Wigo 1.0L AT. It doesn't have split folding rear seats and it does have a smaller displacement engine, but the Wigo does have great fuel economy. The biggest reason why this is only second is because the engine displacement isn't as big as the Picanto. The Toyota reliability is a big factor, as well as my cousin telling me that their Wigo is a great city car.
- Mitsubishi Mirage 1.2L AT. The reason this falls to third is because it's a Mitsubishi, and I'm not really a big fan of the brand. Except for the Evo and the Pajero. I've seen plenty of these driving around the city and it does look nice. Fuel efficiency is also pretty decent.
- Suzuki Celerio 1.0L CVT (?). I really wasn't considering this car despite the fact that I like how it looks, until I read the review from autodeal. Assuming only one person was in the car with minimal cargo, the Celerio allegedly get 11.1 km/L in traffic, 16.1 km/L at 60kmh, and 24 km/L in the highway. Pretty great numbers. The only reason this is my last choice is because I'm not sure how reliable and cheap maintenance is for the Suzuki Celerio. However it looks like it also has rear split folding seats so that's another plus.
Out.
