Try, Buy, Dream – September 2023

Trying a car has never been easier - lots of car brands now offer subscription services that allow you to drive a car on a monthly basis, with no down payment or exit fee, swapping in and out of different models with three months’ notice. Or you can lock in for longer, on a leasing deal, which still means you just pay a monthly amount and hand the car back at the end of the deal.
Then there’s the Buy choice, whether it’s paying for the car with cash or signing up to a three-year finance deal with the option to buy the car at the end. These are cars that make good long-term sense. And finally, our fave section, for dreamers everywhere. The new luxe stuff, the wishlist option or the “treat yourself” splurge, depending on how big that bonus is. Enjoy our first month’s offerings.

Going electric can feel scary (although our Astra electric, is a safe bet to buy, below). So a three-month subscription could be the ideal solution, allowing you a taster of life on electric avenue before you full tonto on the household budget. And if you’re going to dabble with the plug, why not take a punt on an out-there design, too, and go for the futuristic Nissan Ariya? It’s gives you up too 329 miles on a full charge and has parking sensors, panoramic sunroof and smartphone mirroring.
Nissan’s subscription service rewards those willing to commit for longer - you’ll pay about £150 less a month if you commit to 24 months of ownership rather than three, but at that point you might as well commit for three years and go fully finance. The subscription looks pricey but insurance, roadside assistance, servicing and maintenance are included so do some fag-packet maths first. Find out more: Nissan Ariya review.

Hats off to Vauxhall for the unbelievable make-over the brand and its cars have undergone - who’d have thought an Astra would ever be a good-looking, desirable city car? And yet here we are, all wanting a slice of that sharp Astra suit, with its glossy black badging, chiselled jawline and smoky eyes. Add wireless phone charging, 258 miles of range and a head-up display and it’s pretty much all the small family car most people need.
From just under £40,000, it looks expensive, but really, you’d be surprised at how much you can fit in it the boot, and the leg room in the rear, meaning a lot of households won’t ever need anything bigger or grander. Handles like a dream, too, and so easy to park. Find out more: Vauxhall Astra review.

The best-looking Aston in the world, ever. Fact. Must be ordered in Iridescent Emerald, a colour which shimmers in the sunlight, changing colour subtly through a palette of aquamarines, blues and greens as you walk round it, admiring those fulsome curves and the sleek lines.
It’s a British, luxury, super tourer: a fast Grand Tourer (GT) to you and me, which means it’s supercar-rapid but also a comfy mile-quasher for long-distance tours. It feels big and wide to pilot, which is unnerving at first, but you soon start to enjoy the evident prowess and street status it demands. Inside, Aston has thankfully calmed its tendency towards multiple materials and changes of direction, favouring instead smoother surfaces and larger expanses of leather. There’s even a new touchscreen. Fast, expensive, rare and smells like money (just under £200k, since you ask). Sit back and dream big. Find out more: Aston Martin DB12 review.