BUYING CARS

I KNOW that “don’t be afraid to try new things” sounds like a phrase parents say to picky kids while trying to feed them something not dinosaur-shaped, or perhaps by your partner when they buy you a tandem bike as an anniversary gift. But it’s also an idea worth bearing in mind when choosing your next car.

- ELLIS HYDE

We like what we know. That’s how certain brands are able to earn such loyal customers – whether it’s exceptional build quality, frugal engines or (these days) how easy they make turning off the speed-limit warning. We probably all know someone who has only ever bought cars with a particular badge on the bootlid, year-after-year, decade-after-decade.