Cheap luxury cars 2024

Whatever your budget, we have luxury cars for sale to suit every taste - from super SUVs to grand saloons and upmarket hatchbacks

By Chris Rosamond

Buying a brand new high-end car is expensive - the top-quality materials, build quality and equipment used to build such luxury mean they don’t come cheap. Or can they? The thing is, more expensive cars have more value to lose when used than cars that were cheap to start with. It’s a true life-hack for a used buyer after something a little more special - used luxury cars offer all the opulence of a new model for a fraction of the price.

Used prestige cars depreciate much faster than more mainstream models which will be more in demand on the used market. This isn’t true of all premium cars, though - rare supercars that may actually increase in value as they get older. In general, though, drivers who buy luxury cars from brand new tend to pay the price, losing big amounts of money when it’s time to sell the car on - leaving great deals for used car buyers.

We think we’re onto something here, so we’ve rounded up some of the best used luxury cars on BuyaCar at a range of prices between £20,000 and £75,000 for cars offering serious luxury. There’s something for everyone from small premium family hatchbacks to sophisticated saloons and SUVs to highlight the wide range of options to whet your appetite for opulence.

If it’s something more particular you’re after, you can filter using BuyaCar’s wide range of affordable luxury cars using the search tool to find exactly what you’re looking for. Not only can you search by make, model, year, bodystyle or engine size, but you can even filter by parameters like heated seats, panoramic sunroofs or reversing cameras with ‘Keyword search’ and tailor your next car choice to your taste - whether your perfect car is in Bristol, Brighton or Birmingham, BuyaCar will deliver it to your door.

If you want to stretch your luxury car budget as far as possible, you can even search by monthly budget on PCP finance, which offers lower monthly payments than an equivalent Hire Purchase contract or car loan. Just remember that if you want to own the car at the end of the contract with PCP you'll need to make the large optional final payment to take ownership. However, as a result, it's amazing how far a relatively small monthly budget can take you, as our selection below should demonstrate.

1. Mercedes A-Class

Used deals Limited stock

The smallest Mercedes model has become extremely popular with those after an upmarket hatchback, and for very good reason. It looks expensive thanks to its dramatic design with a very prominent Mercedes star on the grille, while the striking interior design creates a high-tech cabin ambience that puts many rivals in the shade.

It’s supremely comfortable and good to drive, but you’ll also be impressed with the range of technology the A-Class displays. The entertainment and information functions are displayed across a pair of seven-inch screens as standard, and features like a very slick voice recognition system and digital instruments help to give the car an impressively cutting-edge feel.

There’s plenty of kit on the entry-level SE A-Class models, but opt for Sport trim for LED headlamps and a slightly sharper look or AMG Line, which adds a more overtly sporty look inside and out.

MERCEDES A-CLASS BUYERS' GUIDE

2. Lexus CT

Used deals from £13,214
Monthly finance from £243.46*

The Lexus CT is an attractive used car proposition and a good value alternative to rivals like the BMW 1 Series and Audi A3. As well as being beautifully built, and with an absolutely peerless reputation for reliability, the CT comes with only a single engine option – a 1.8-litre petrol-electric hybrid format that makes it very cost-effective to run. You get a small battery pack and electric motor that provides assistance to the petrol engine, but cannot power the car by itself for long and can't be charged manually as with a plug-in hybrid.

The luxurious Lexus takes a different approach to many of its mainly German rivals, and doesn’t sell itself on providing the most sporty driving feel. Instead, it offers a much more relaxing drive. The latest models feature an attention-grabbing grille (as shown in the image above), that you may love or hate. If it's not for you, check out older versions.

Once ensconced in the cabin you’ll find an ambience that’s as cosy as anything in the class. You certainly won’t want for technology either, as even the most basic CT is dripping with goodies like dual-zone climate control, sat-nav and a touchscreen seven-inch media system.

LEXUS CT BUYERS' GUIDE

3. Jaguar XF

Used deals from £10,818
Monthly finance from £312.48*

Launched in 2015 as the latest weapon in Jaguar’s war with the Mercedes E-Class and BMW 5 Series, the second-generation XF has always lived somewhat in those models' shadow. Nonetheless, it’s a highly desirable car in its own right, offering a truly luxurious cabin, sporty driving characteristics and sleek styling that really stands out.

A facelift in 2020 saw the interior updated, including a significant upgrade to the touchscreen media system, and introduced hybrid power. Earlier cars are not quite as impressive, and lose out to their German BMW and Mercedes rivals which offer a more techy feel in the cabin. However, for drivers who are attracted by the bespoke luxury feel of the Jaguar’s interior, and its impressively smooth ride and agile driving characteristics, the XF makes a fantastic used car purchase.

JAGUAR XF BUYERS' GUIDE

4. Audi A4

Used deals from £12,558
Monthly finance from £222.12*

If you like a more techy take on your luxury motoring, then the Audi A4 is a good place to look. Introduced in 2015, the current model is a technical showcase conceived by some of the VW Group’s top geeks, and even the entry-level Technik trim is well endowed with goodies. A 10.1-inch touchscreen media system and Audi’s striking ‘Virtual Cockpit’ digital dials are both fitted as standard.

There’s an array of safety and driving assistance tech available on the A4 range too, including the sophisticated 'quattro' four-wheel-drive system, which is available across a range of petrol and diesel models and provides maximum grip in poor driving conditions.

While it’s not quite as much fun to drive as the BMW 3 Series or Jaguar XE it’s still enjoyable to drive and the A4 excels in a number of other areas. It’s superbly screwed together, has a genuinely premium feel and is spacious. There’s a good choice of petrol and diesel engines too, making the A4 a fantastic used car choice, whether you're after maximum economy, performance or a mix of both.

AUDI A4 BUYERS' GUIDE

5. Volvo XC60

Used deals from £13,500
Monthly finance from £290.25*

If you want the luxury and space of a mid-size SUV, it’s hard to beat the excellent Volvo XC60 for pure feel-good factor. Instead of pursuing the sporty theme of rivals like the Audi Q5 and BMW X3, the Volvo focuses instead on offering a stunning modern design inside and out, that really can make those rivals feel a bit bland.

The Volvo special sauce is its Scandinavian design, and the cabin presents a purity and simplicity that belies the cutting edge tech hiding behind its big portrait-orientated touchscreen media system. Materials and build quality are first class too, and the XC60 comes across very much as the expensive flagship Volvo XC90 SUV distilled into a more manageable size.

Equipment levels are lavish, with even the entry-level Momentum trim giving you sat-nav, climate control, cruise control and digital instruments. R-Design trim gives you a sportier look with bigger wheels, and twin exhausts plus a more sporty interior feel.

VOLVO XC60 BUYERS' GUIDE

6. BMW X6

Used deals from £21,750
Monthly finance from £452.51*

The idea of a luxury SUV coupe raised a few eyebrows when BMW introduced the idea in 2008, but the X6 has proved popular around the world. Here in the UK, its unusual looks and grand scale mean it’s as ostentatious a choice as it is luxurious, and relatively few people opt for what is effectively a less practical version of the BMW X5.

However, in spite of the swooping rear roofline, there’s plenty of room in the X6's back seats, and the car lives up to its dramatic looks with a range of potent engines that mean even the entry-level model can take on a typical hot hatch in the performance stakes. The top-of-the-range X6 M version, meanwhile, is a super-rapid weapon with its 600hp engine.

BMW X6 BUYERS' GUIDE

7. Range Rover

Used deals from £29,999
Monthly finance from £615.04*

The original 1970s Range Rover might have been an off-road workhorse, but even then it was a posh one. Over the years, every succeeding model has ramped up the luxury and opulence to the point that modern Range Rovers are effectively competing with high-end limousines like the Mercedes S-Class.

Prices have spiralled too, helped by the increasing numbers of more affordable models below it, like the Range Rover Evoque, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Velar, not to mention the move upmarket of supposedly more value-oriented models like the Land Rover Discovery and Land Rover Discovery Sport.

RANGE ROVER BUYERS' GUIDE

8. Mercedes SL

Used deals Limited stock

The SL has always been more of a high-performance cruiser than an out-and-out sports car, and as such it's perfect for conveying two people and their luggage in serene comfort and opulence, however far they wish to travel.

While all SL variants pack a punch, the fun really starts with the high-performance AMG-tuned versions, which were offered most recently with mighty 571hp V8 and 630hp V12 engines, badged the SL 63 and SL 65 respectively.

*Representative PCP finance - Ford Fiesta:

48 monthly payments of £192
Deposit: £0
Mileage limit: 8,000 per year
Optional final payment to buy car: £2,923
Total amount payable to buy car: £11,926
Total cost of credit: £2,426
Amount borrowed: £9,500
APR: 9.9%

BuyaCar is a credit broker, not a lender. Our rates start from 6.9% APR. The rate you are offered will depend on your individual circumstances.