Best used automatic cars
High-quality used automatic cars from rated and reviewed dealers
Best used automatic cars of 2025
Automatic cars have become hugely popular thanks to modern gearboxes offering fast, slick gear changes that allow the driver to relax and focus on the road ahead. If you’re looking for a second-hand automatic car, here are 10 of the best. From family SUVs to sports cars, and practical estates to small city cars, there’s something for everyone.
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As a large, premium estate, the A6 Avant (Avant being Audi’s term for estate) has the class and equipment that you would expect from an Audi, and gives alternatives like the BMW 5 Series Touring and Mercedes E-Class Estate some stiff competition. To drive, it is incredibly relaxing and has a hewn-from-rock sense of build quality. Factor in the A6 Avant’s massive boot, and used automatics don’t come a lot better.
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Skoda has a reputation for building practical family cars, and the Kodiaq is its most spacious model, meaning this SUV is more useful than a Swiss Army knife. Couple this with smart exterior styling, a well-built interior and a slick-shifting dual-clutch auto gearbox, and it’s hard to find any chinks in the Kodiaq’s armour.
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If the thought of quick and precise gear changes is enough to keep you awake at night with excitement, then look no further than the Porsche 718 Cayman, which gets Porsche’s brilliant PDK dual-clutch gearbox. It’s a barrel of laughs to drive and capable of going from 0-60mph in as little as 4.4 seconds. The only thing more impressive than its straight-line performance is the way it sticks to the Tarmac in turns.
The Audi Q7 is a seven-seater SUV that is sturdy and comfortable; of course, it also has an automatic gearbox that changes gear with almost imperceptible smoothness, while the Q7 is also armed with all the tech you’d expect from a posh, massive SUV like this.
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When we think of automatic cars we tend to think of larger models built for motorway miles, but the Fiesta is a great example of a desirable small car with an auto ‘box. This little Ford is great to drive, comes with low running costs and more practicality than you might expect from a car of this size.
Cars don’t come much classier than the Mercedes S-Class. This high-end saloon has such a plush interior that it makes a pub with an open fire and free booze seem uninviting. Plus, you get loads of space for four people and their luggage. Its nine-speed automatic gearbox feels velvet-smooth, and even basic models have enough power for effortless progress.
No matter what car you’re looking for, the Golf is probably on your shortlist, so it makes sense that it should be one of the best automatic used cars you can buy, too. Variety is the name of the game here, with hatchbacks and estates, economical and performance engines and everything in between. The Golf also looks great, has a solid interior and is great to drive.
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The eight-speed automatic gearbox in the BMW 1 Series is brilliant, with smooth shifts when you’re cruising and quick changes when you’re pressing on down your favourite country road. And you’ll end up doing the latter more often than you might expect in the 1 Series, simply because it’s a load of fun to drive.
The Leaf is a slight curveball in this list, in the sense that it is electric and therefore doesn’t have a conventional gearbox. But like an auto you just put the car in ‘drive’ and away you go, so we think it counts. It’s worth considering, too, because the Leaf has long been the king of affordable electric motoring thanks to being decent to drive, fairly spacious and cheap to run.
Battery range up to 28 miles
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The MINI Countryman has the cutesy looks of MINI’s smaller offerings while standing as a relatively large SUV. As a result, it’s much more practical than you might expect with room for four and a boot that’ll swallow a couple of large suitcases. Just like every other MINI, though, the Countryman is fun to drive, and its six-speed automatic gearbox is great for stop-start urban driving.
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