Brought to you by Intelligent Car Leasing
Very few drivers will run the same vehicle throughout their entire lifetime. There are simply too many different requirements as we move through life, from stage to stage, transitioning youth to old age.
So what’s suitable for when in your life? And why? Here Intelligent Car Leasing highlight a few choice picks, basing our timeline on Shakespeare’s ‘Seven Stages of Man’ from As You Like It.
Infancy - Volvo V60
If your infant child could thank you for getting a car, they certainly would with a Volvo estate. The archetypal family car, Volvo’s V60 combines style, practicality, and an impressive safety rating. It has enough space for parents, children, pushchair system, travel cot, and probably the kitchen sink too. No, make that definitely the kitchen sink.
School-age - Skoda Kodiaq
As children grow up, they should require less space for their kit. Instead, they acquire friends which has the opposite effect. Skoda’s Kodiaq has plenty of clever systems to keep life easy from a driver’s point of view, even if added kids means it’s not simple in any other sense. Seating for five, plus a couple of occasional seats in the boot means it will deal with children, friends, and school bags with ease.
Teenager - Land Rover Defender
There is no other time in your life when being seen in or with the ‘right thing’ is so important. Parents could help mitigate the embarrassment they cause their beloved teenager by having the right set of wheels. The iconic Defender badge will help here, reborn on a new model that shares much of the same ethos as the original. A sharp piece of design wraps around a practical interior so things aren’t compromised there, but the Land Rover shifts things up a gear in terms of ‘cool’ cars.
Young adult - MINI
When learning to drive or having recently passed the test, most drivers are desperate to get into a great set of wheels. However, many ‘good’ cars are expensive to run and insure. The MINI strikes a fine balance between cost and ability, with the compact supermini offering plenty of driving thrills no matter what engine you can afford.
Middle age - Alfa Romeo Giulia
There are plenty of cars that might come to mind first, but if you need something premium that stirs the soul, Alfa Romeo rarely puts a foot wrong. The Giulia has plenty of style, but it’s also good to drive, and a ‘left-field’ choice which means you won’t be sitting in the same Audi/BMW/Mercedes as your peers. Despite the German brigade all being perfectly good choices, the Alfa is more exciting, and a brilliant choice. And, let’s face it, you’ve spent so much of your life recently looking after family, this is a choice for the heart - a proper bit of ‘me’ time.
Old age - Porsche 718 Boxster
The kids have flown the nest, there’s a bit more money about, and most likely have a highly sensible car on the driveway. Good. That means you should also have a car that makes you feel special; that’s an event every time you get behind the wheel. Less expensive than the more famous Porsche 911 so you’re not afraid to take it out, the Boxster isn’t too low to climb into either. However, it’s one of the best driver’s cars around, plus you have wind-in-the-hair roadster motoring for those sunny drives; just perfect.
Dotage & death - Jaguar XJ
A refined and stately car that is either the ideal saloon for later life, or the hearse in which you make your final trip. Understated but stylish, and refined yet fun to drive (the saloon, not the hearse) Jaguar’s now retired flagship is ideal for the retired or those beyond. Spacious as a saloon, and even more so when in service with a funeral director - limousine or hearse - the Jaguar’s attributes, and its superb ride comfort, combine to present a fantastic machine for your final driving adventures.
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