THIS is just about the biggest time of year for buying new cars and competition has never been as fierce.

Showrooms are awash with new models and it is very much a buyer’s market as manufacturers have invested billions in a bid to out-do each other.

Sectors of the market that were once referred to as “niche” are now mainstream and buyers are spoilt for choice.

New cars have been given the sort of safety, security and luxury features as standard that were once expensive optional extras, including air conditioning, remote central locking, electric windows and masses of air bags.

Despite this huge investment there are still deals to be done on even the most lavishly-equipped models.

Dealers expect buyers to haggle and usually have room for manoeuvre within the official list prices.

Some of the deals currently on offer are spectacular but it is important to know what they are before entering the showroom.

THE Citroen C1 is available in 1.0i Airplay Plus three-door form with a discount of up to 22 per cent, which amounts to a saving of more than £1,350.

The Peugeot 1007 is up for grabs with savings of more than £2,600, which brings down the price of the £11,877 Sport 1.4 model to just £9,235.

Audi’s A3 1.6 Special Edition Sportback is on offer with a discount of up to £1,350, the Kia cee’d 1.6 LS comes with as much as £1,350 off and Peugeot’s 307 has three years’ free interest with a PCP deal on X-Line hatchback models.

Volkswagen’s Jetta comes with a saving of more than £1,750 in the case of the 1.4 TSI 140 SE model, resulting in an actual transaction price of about £14,725.

Skoda’s Fabia attracts a discount of about £550 off the 1.4-litre model, lowering the cost to about £9,700.

The Suzuki Swift 1.5 GLX five-door can be sourced for about £8,600, with a saving of around £600 and Volkswagen’s Fox is being discounted by about £250 in the case of the 1.4 model, resulting in a deal of about £7,160.

Ford has just introduced its new Mondeo so the previous model can be had with huge discounts.

Some of the deals are so good that the car is almost irresistible, with as much as £8,000 knocked off the price of the 2.2 TDCI 155 ST saloon, for example, at £16,000.

Peugeot’s 407 is attracting discounts of as much as £4,000 in the case of the 2.0i SE saloon and the Toyota Avensis 2.0 D-4D is up for grabs for as little as £15,250.

The rival Volkswagen Passat 2.0 TDI 140 Sport is being offered in some quarters for just £18,300, which is about £2,000 below list.

Audi’s A4 comes with the offer of an upgrade to a higher-spec model worth about £600, the BMW 3 Series is attracting discounts of up to £4,500 off the list price of the 320d M Sport saloon, Lexus is prepared to knock £2,500 off the price of its IS250 Sport and Mercedes-Benz is giving discounts of about five per cent off the new C-Class.

Mercedes-Benz is also giving discounts on its larger E-Class models, with typically £3,000 off the price of the E280 CDI Elegance saloon whilst Saab is giving similar discounts off the 9-5 range, lowering the transaction price of the 2.3 HOT Aero saloon to about £25,500.

Even higher up the scale the Jaguar XJ is available with very low finance and the Lexus LS comes with savings of up to £4,000 of the list price of the LS 460.

The BMW Touring can be had for £3,500 less than the list price in the case of the 523i M Sport whilst Jaguar’s X-Type estate model comes with extras such as automatic transmission for free.

Alfa’s gorgeous Spider convertible is about four per cent under list price, the Mercedes-Benz SLK 200K automatic is typically about £2,000 below list and the Volvo C70 is down by about £1,750 in the case of the 2.4-litre petrol model.

Ford’s C-Max is attracting discounts of £1,250 off the list price of the 1.8 Zetec, the Mazda5 comes with free finance over three years, the Mercedes A-Class is discounted by about £500 and Volkswagen’s Touran is down by about £2,500 on some models.

In the case of the BMW X3 there are discounts of up to £3,000 off the 2.0d M Sport whilst Suzuki’s Grand Vitara is being offered with free finance and Volkswagen’s Touareg is discounted by about 12 per cent, bringing the 3.0 V6 TDI SE down by about £4,250.

Fiat’s Panda 100HP model is being discounted by as much as £2,000 to about £8,000, the Mazda3 MPS is down by as much as £1,250, the Mini 1.6S is discounted by about £450 and the Skoda Octavia vRS is being offered with free servicing for three year.

Cheap new Citroens

Citroen

Citroen

ONCE I owned a Citroen GS. At which point it is perfectly acceptable to ask the question “why?”

Well, there were reasons. These were the days when Vauxhalls and Fords were made out of deformed biscuit tins. A time when the very summit of the motoring foothills was to own a Chevette with a working heater, a young man was hard pressed to find a car with personality and equipment unless blessed with a bigger than average budget.

Citroens, however, were different. They were different in the way bondage is different, a bizarre way to get to where you want to be. And yes, I know I could have had an Allegro with a square steering wheel and go faster cushions but that’s just perverted.

Because they had the residual value of old chips, Citroens were a cheap way to drive something that set you apart as different. Actually it set you apart as mad.

To begin with there was radical styling. The designers had used curves at a time when others depended on a plumb-line and spirit level. Of course this meant that people laughed at you but, hey, did it matter when the message being sent was “I’m ever so Rive Gauche, which makes me interesting and explains the smell of Gauloise and pastis.” Sadly when the same message was received it translated as “I am a tosser.”

There was more to the GS than simply showing you understood the subliminal message in the Magic Roundabout. Here was the latest example of all that Gallic suspension genius. A hydro-pneumatic magic carpet that depended on bright green alien’s blood, a fluid that would have cost less replaced by liquid myrrh.

However, the system allowed for three ground clearances at the touch of a lever. Wow, imagine that, a street car equipped to go off-roading. It made about as much sense as shot blasting your teeth.

No matter, it was great fun to sit in car parks with the body going up and down like a drunken auntie’s skirts. Then there was what happened when you braked. The car stopped but the body shell carried on rocking backwards and forwards, excellent for subduing squawking children either because they fell asleep or because they were vomiting violently.

Frankly, what a package. A flat-four engine crossed with a hairdryer to power a hatchback garden swing. With the performance credentials of afternoon tea and logic of an ejector seat in a helicopter.

Sadly all this tomfoolery came at a price. When a GS got sick the ordinary car doctor could do nothing. What was called for was a trip to a specialist Swiss car clinic where they had the instruments for operating on air-cooled rocking horses.

The equivalent today is the new C4. Yes, the one in the advert that turns into a dancing robot. Quite.

You will be surprised to learn that the £17,000 VTS will not turn into Robocop. But let’s dwell there a minute. That’s £17,000 of your English pounds, two grand less than a Golf, with an extra £1,000 cashback offer in force. For that there is 8.3 seconds to 60mph performance, a top speed of 140mph and a lovely body line.

That, on the other hand is just a fraction of the story. Dare to be different? Well how about a French car with a vibrator built in to the driver’s seat to warn you the car is straying across motorway lanes.

The more easily excited can choose to switch the Rabbit off and concentrate on a steering wheel which has a rim that moves and a middle bit that stays still. On the other hand the headlights swivel to follow the C4′s wheels.

With the rim on the turn and the boss still – buttons for radio, phone, cruise control etc stay in the same place. So you see, garlic does not rot the brain. Not that any smell you dislike need stale the air. The climate unit comes with a little holder for the scent of your choice.

It doesn’t end there. High-tech brakes, tyre deflation warnings, six air-bags, double door seats and laminated side window glass to beat the little scrotes who want to boost your radio.

You may, and I can’t think way, not want the ridiculously cheap £16,000 hot version so there are 22 other models.

I know that ashtrays are no longer listed as a standard level of opulence but by any standards the amount of kit on this car is amazing. What’s more people really will say you are chic. Unlike the old GS when it only sounded like they were.

Citroen was the number two choice among private buyers for the first time in February, helping to make the company the fastest-growing major manufacturer in the UK.

With sales up by about 14 per cent so far this year, the company moved ahead of Vauxhall, Renault, Peugeot and Volkswagen outside of the dominating fleet market.

Overall sales of diesel cars rose by about 10 per cent during the first two months, but CitroÌÇn returned an impressive increase of 36 per cent. In the fleet market, which saw sales fall by a tenth, Citroen was one of the only manufacturers to buck the trend and register an increase.

One of the major reasons behind the strong performance is the growing popularity of the C3 which, together with the Saxo, has helped the company to increase its share of the small car market by 50 per cent.

The Picasso remains the most popular MPV, while the Berlingo Multispace has sold more than twice as many as its Renault Kangoo and Peugeot Partner rivals.

Together with the new C8, these figures mean that Citroens now account for one in four of all MPVs bought in the UK, which is more than any other manufacturer.

In Europe, against the backdrop of a declining marketplace, Citroen sales were up by 10 per cent, with increases in all the major markets. In Italy, where the success of the C3 has made it the country’s best-selling car, sales rocketed by 59 per cent. Across the rest of the world Citroen sales are up by 50 per cent.

The UK performance among private buyers has been boosted by the company’s cashback scheme, with more than £2,500 knocked off the list price of some models.

Cheap new Citroens

Citroen

Citroen has introduced a sporty version of its C3 hatchback model in the guise of the 120mph VTR with fancy body stuff and a price tag of £10,545.

There are wider wheel arch extensions, body-coloured rubbing strips, a chrome tailpipe and 16-inch alloy wheels.

The restyled front end of the sporty five-door hatchback incorporates a new bumper, a broader air intake and new fog light housings, while the rear bumper has also been re-styled.

Inside there is a black leather steering wheel and gearknob and firmer sports seats with lots of padding plus a special dark grey trim.

Beneath the bonnet lies a 1.6-litre engine with 110bhp to give 120mph performance and a 0-60mph acceleration time of just under ten seconds with 40mpg economy.

Standard equipment includes air conditioning, electric front windows and a CD player with steering wheel controls.

There are front and side airbags, with traction control and electronic stability programme available as optional extras.

Cheap new Citroens

Citroen

Citroen

Citroen’S funky new C2 supermini is the small car that thinks big.

It may be shorter than the model it replaces – the Saxo – but inside, thanks to clever design work, it’s packed with space.

And the model line up includes everything from a 121 mph version in the VTR to an 80 mpg version in the new 1.4-litre HDi.It even includes a 1.1-litre with the lowest insurance rating you can get – Group 1.

On sale from Friday (Sept 19), the three-door C2 is one of the trendiest new cars to hit the streets in a long time. And while it’s big on space, performance and economy, it’s small on price – with the entry level model priced at just £6,995.

Wild and wicked is how Citroen describes its new baby. But with bold blue, green and amber interiors matched up to vivid translucent gear knobs and door grab handles, the word wacky also springs to mind.

But you have to hand it to Citroen, it is not afraid to be bold, and the C2 is bold inside and out, which ensures it will appeal to a young market. In fact the C2 makes some of its competitors look positively staid.

But the beauty of this car is not just skin deep. A lot of thought has gone into designing and making the C2, and it shows.

It may be trendy on the streets but it is also practical.

Take the two individual rear seats for example. They slide backwards for maximum leg space and forwards for extra boot space.

When you need to really load the car up they can even be folded flat against the back of the front seats, aided by telescopic struts similar to those which hold open the tailgate.

The tailgate itself is split so that if you just need to load something small or if you are in a confined parking area you can simply raise the rear screen. The lower tailgate is strong enough to support heavy objects of up to 100 kg and has a handy five litre stowage compartment built into it.

It may be the baby of the Citroen stable but the C2 comes well equipped. The steering wheel is height and reach adjustable on all models, while all but the basic L model has height adjustable driver’s seat.

The engine line up at launch features a 1.1-litre petrol and 1.4-litre HDi diesel in L, LX and SX trim; a 1.4-litre petrol in SX or the more sporting Furio trim, and the 1.6, 16-valve VTR hot hatch.

On the road the C2 is delightfully agile and I found even the 1.1-litre felt surprisingly quick with an extremely slick gearbox and excellent road holding. A supremely small turning circle makes for easy parking.

The HDi uses Citroen’s lower powered 1.4-litre diesel engine, producing just 61 bhp, but in the C2 this feels more than adequate and boasts a surprising turn of speed and an abundance of torque. It is also easy on your pocket, averaging almost 70 mpg and up to 80mpg on a run.

The 1.1-litre and diesel models have a manual five speed gearbox while the 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre models come with Citroen’s rally-style SensoDrive system. This allows you to change gear Formula 1 style with paddles behind the steering wheel or simply by nudging the gear level backwards or forwards to change up or down. In the city you can change to full automatic mode at the touch of a button.

Citroen believes SensoDrive is the way forward and is looking to put the system on more and more cars. Certainly the paddles make gear changes quicker, but in automatic mode the changes are far from smooth, and unlike conventional automatics the car will roll back on inclines so you have to use the handbrake. It takes some adapting to.

The Saxo VTR held the title of Best Hot Hatch for five consecutive years and the C2 VTR is set take over the mantle. With a punchy 110 bhp it will cover the 0-62 mph dash in 10.9 seconds, has a top speed of 121 mph and is supremely responsive.

Both VTR and Furio come with sporting side skirts, a rear spoiler and excellent sports seats which hold driver and passenger well. The VTR adds 16 inch alloy wheels and cruise control as well as extra safety features like anti-lock brakes and electronic brake distribution.

With its body-coloured painted bumpers, the 1.4-litre Furio looks almost as sporty as the VTR but is designed for those drivers who want style but who prefer an £8,995 price tag rather than the VTR’s £10,995.

In fact the range seems to have something for everyone – a fact which should have the oposition very worried indeed.

Citroens for sale

Cheap new Citroens

Citroen

Citroen