I look for good after sales service by a car manufacturer dealer for a vehicle that is mostly or all built in South Africa. I have a 2004 Toyota Corolla 14i which is still running perfectly after 20 years. It’s done 170k km. I bought it new and it has not given me any major problems ever.

Most informative - Not so popular due to load shedding, etc. Conventional models with internal battery charging remain the most practical at this stage - but at what price??

carbon emissions...and it makes sense to prioritise long term costs especially as I am a firm believer in the value of keeping a car for a long time - 10 years and up.

So car sales people may over exaggerate matters such as fuel efficiency. Which is why I selected Brand. Reputations are developed over a number of years. You can expect a well known brand to be as fuel efficient as possible eh!

So car sales people may over exaggerate matters such as fuel efficiency. Which is why I selected Brand. Reputations are developed over a number of years. You can expect a well known brand to be as fuel efficient as possible eh!

All the critea are important except brand which we presume the all brands have done their design and engineering properly!

I commute 130km/day and have recently replaced my car, purely for fuel consumption. Even with the new, higher insurance, it will be a significant saving.