Top 5 Best City Cars

City traffic poses particular challenges for your vehicle. If you frequently drive on inner-city roads, you will certainly be familiar with this: slow-moving traffic, narrow streets, and the tedious search for a parking space. So it's obvious that small cars have the edge. But what else makes a good city car? In this article, we share our experiences with you and reveal our 5 favorite city cars.

List: Top 5 Best City Cars

Thanks to our many years of extensive experience, we can present you with the best and most popular city cars:

1. CITROEN AMI: Even from the outside, this little runabout catches the eye. The exceptionally compact design of this little car makes it the ideal city runabout. With a length of 2.41 m and a width of 1.39 m, almost two of them can fit into a parking space. This means you can also navigate the electric car through tight spaces. Inside, it offers space for two people. Its 75 km range is absolutely sufficient for city traffic, and it also offers space for shopping.

2. Opel Corsa: Opel's small car has enjoyed great popularity for decades. It combines the advantages of a compact and economical city car with good space for up to five passengers and room for luggage. With the e-Edition, you can also opt for an emission-free city car that, with a range of 373 km, can also accompany you on a weekend trip into the countryside.

3. FIAT 500 electric: The cult car from Italy has a modern look in the e-version. Four people can be accommodated in this affordable electric vehicle, whose range of around 300 km makes it ideal for more than just city driving. Of course, it also offers space for a picnic basket and beach bag.

4. Smart EQ Fortwo: This small two-seater presents itself as a city car for singles or couples. The agile electric car only takes up 2.69 x 1.66 m of space. The 82 hp electric motor shows its strengths in city traffic, as it accelerates quickly and has a range of 144 km, which is quite impressive in this vehicle class.

5. BMW i3: The compact BMW takes up to four people through the city with agility. Modern on the outside, comfortable on the inside, and equipped with many extras, the electric car leaves little to be desired. Thanks to its 184 hp, it accelerates effortlessly and will take you almost 300 km on a single charge.

Criteria for evaluating the best city cars

What makes a good city car? It represents the ideal compromise between compact dimensions and interior space. But there is more to it than that to make it a specialist for city traffic:

• Consumption: A good city car should not consume much. Combustion engines consume a lot of fuel in city traffic due to the frequent starting. The larger and heavier the vehicle, the higher the fuel consumption.

• Environmental friendliness: Exhaust fumes from combustion engines literally make for bad air. That's why there will be more and more low-emission zones in the future, where only low-emission vehicles will be allowed to enter. With an environmentally friendly electric or hybrid engine, you can enter any low-emission zone. What's more, noise pollution in cities is reduced by the quiet e-cars.

• Comfort: The constant stop-and-go in city traffic is quite exhausting - especially if you drive with a manual gearbox. Electric cars always have an automatic gearbox and also accelerate quickly and powerfully. Modern assistance systems are also a must. With parking aids, you can also navigate into very small parking spaces.

Advantages and disadvantages of selected models

In the following table, we have clearly summarized the advantages and disadvantages of our top 5 for you.

Electric cars as ideal city vehicles

Our favorites among city cars are almost exclusively electric cars, and there are good reasons for this. In the compact class, electric cars combine maneuverability with low consumption and environmental friendliness. But there's more to it than that!

What role do electric cars play in the city?

The effects of climate change are already being felt and are leading to ever stricter regulations on CO2 emissions. There are already environmental zones in a number of major Swiss cities such as Basel, Geneva, and Zurich, where only low-emission vehicles with an environmental sticker are allowed to enter. This is intended to improve the air quality for residents and reduce the level of fine particles that cause respiratory and other health problems.

E-cars do not emit any CO2 and therefore neither exacerbate the greenhouse effect nor pollute the air. They are also much quieter than combustion engines. Noise pollution from traffic is also one of the environmental factors that city dwellers suffer from.

Advantages of electric cars in urban use

Electric motors are particularly well suited to congested or slow-moving traffic in the city. As electric cars can accelerate much better than combustion engines, they help to improve the flow of traffic. Where combustion engines consume more fuel, electric cars can even recover energy. This is called recuperation when the energy generated during braking flows back into the battery. This makes electric motors very efficient. They are also significantly more efficient (up to 90%) than combustion engines (20-30%), as they convert energy almost exclusively into motion. Internal combustion engines, on the other hand, generate a lot of heat, which contributes to rising temperatures in cities.

Buying advice: what to look out for in a city car?

If you want to buy a car for the city, you shouldn't just go for the first offer that comes along. Instead, think carefully about what requirements your city car needs to meet and how long you want to drive it. Increasing restrictions on emissions could mean that one day you will no longer be allowed to drive your new car in your city. This also makes resale difficult. We provide you with some important facts to help you make the right choice.

Size and maneuverability

Street space and parking areas are hotly contested. When looking for a parking space, it is not uncommon to have to circle further and further around your actual destination or switch to paid parking spaces. The smaller your car is, the easier it is to find a suitable parking space. Because compact cars take up less space, more cars can park in the end.

With their narrow width, compact cars manage to squeeze past cars parked in the second row. This benefits the flow of traffic as well as the driver, who does not have to make any complicated maneuvers.

At the same time, you have to bear in mind that compact cars offer little space inside. Tall people often find it difficult to sit comfortably, let alone drive. The load area is also small. With a two-seater, you will reach your limits when the two-seater becomes a family.

Maintenance and costs

Large vehicles are usually more expensive to maintain and repair than small ones. Combustion engines also require more frequent maintenance than electric cars, which do not need an oil change. This means higher acquisition costs and lower operating costs. With a subsidy for e-cars, you can reduce the price of a new car and then save not only on maintenance but also on fuel.

Conclusion

Small and compact cars are maneuverable in city traffic and fit into small parking spaces. This makes the Mini's ideal city runabouts. They are particularly advantageous and future-proof when combined with an electric motor. As they are environmentally friendly, they are allowed in every low-emission zone.

Are you still unsure which car should be your new city vehicle? How about testing different models with no obligation? It's easy with a car subscription from CARIFY. Forget the initial fee or hidden costs: with us, you only pay your monthly installment, that's it. Oh yes, except for the fuel. All other running costs are already included in the subscription price. Terms from 1 month make our offers wonderfully flexible. What's more, thanks to more than 400 partner garages and car dealerships throughout Switzerland, we have the widest range of vehicles of all kinds. Many of our offers are available with environmentally friendly and economical electric drives. We add the Explorer subscription and the evpass charging card on top and wish you a good journey in the city and across the country at all times.

FAQs

What is the best city car?

Depending on your personal requirements in terms of space and comfort, compact vehicles with electric drive are the best city car solutions. There are even two-seater models that offer advantages in terms of economy and maneuverability in city traffic.

What is the cheapest city car?

Compact cars are among the cheapest vehicles and are economical in terms of fuel consumption. Small electric cars are somewhat more expensive to buy, but score points thanks to possible subsidies and economical consumption.

What is a city car?

Low consumption, small size: this makes a vehicle a maneuverable city car.

What is a 'stattauto'?

Stattauto is a car-sharing company that offers vehicles for shared use in a number of Swiss cities. This makes it possible to cover short-term mobility needs without owning a car.