Honda Civic
The Honda Civic took home our overall Car of The Year award in 2023, so it’s no surprise to see it back in the running for 2024. This time, we’ve handed it our Best Medium Family Car award for its winning blend of practicality, fuel efficiency and comfort. We also love how good it is to drive – we guarantee it’ll make you smile on a twisty back road.
Prices for the Civic remain quite high, but Honda strengthens the offer by loading the car with equipment. Even the most basic Civic Sport comes as standard with heated front seats, a wireless smartphone charger, a rear-view camera and a 9.0-inch infotainment system, which is far more than can be said of rivals such as the Ford Focus and the Volkswagen Golf.
The Civic is the ideal solution for families that want to make a more eco-conscious motoring decision, but don’t have the off-street space outside their homes to charge an EV. And we’re especially glad to see that a traditional hatchback is still good enough to put the relentless barrage of same-again SUVs in their place.
Read our Honda Civic review
- To celebrate the 2024 Parkers New Car Awards, we’ve partnered up with Smart Home Chargers to give one of you the chance to WIN £1,000 cash. Simply follow this link for your chance to win!
Based on a 43-year old male the Honda Civic would cost £724.80 to insure.
*Insurance quotes are from mustard.co.uk and are based on a 43-year-old, employed married male living in Stowmarket with nine-years’ NCD and no claims or convictions. Insurance quotes will vary depending on individual circumstances.
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Skoda Karoq
Speaking of SUVs – here’s one. But this one, we like an awful lot. The Skoda Karoq is a no-nonsense family SUV that prides itself on simplicity and usability. If you’ve got young kids, you’ll find it a doddle to load them into the rear seats. Plus, when they grow into teenagers, they’ll still have enough space in the back to endure lengthy family road trips without complaint.
You also get a simply massive 521 litres of boot space as standard, although Skoda offers an optional sliding rear seat that can increase that to 588 litres by sacrificing some legroom for those in the back. The 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol model is probably all the car you’ll ever need. Just be warned that there are cars out there that are much more fun to drive.
Read our Skoda Karoq review
BYD Seal
BYD is a Chinese EV manufacturer that’s trying incredibly hard to make waves in Europe – and we reckon the Seal is good enough to turn the eddies into currents. It’s a sleek pure-electric saloon aimed squarely at the Tesla Model 3 and our initial impressions suggest that Elon Musk has something to worry about.
It’s quick. The top spec, dual-motor Excellence variant churns out a whopping 530hp, which means it can accelerate almost as quickly as the fastest Model 3. Even the standard Seal has a healthy 310hp. Plus, it’s quite practical. You get 403 litres of boot space and enough room inside for four six-footers. The infotainment screen also rotates on its mount, which is sure to keep the kids entertained.
Read our BYD Seal review
