Is your car up to the back-to-school run?

Driver Guides  General Guides 

It's the time of year every parent looks to with a mixture of fear and relief. After six weeks or more of constant pestering, the children have finally gone back to school. Let's hope it's for good this time too.

Once the stress and huge expense has been dealt with: uniforms ironed and ready to go; bags are packed; lunches made and snacks packed; last minute panics (usually involving PE kits) are resolved, you can finally relax and enjoy the peace and quiet until half term.

But for those of us dealing with the dreaded school run there's another thing to consider. What's the best choice of car to throw the kids out of every morning? Not literally, obviously, but you get the point.

Clearly this depends on lots of factors like the school location, the distance from your house, and the number of children you're delivering. If you've got kids coming out of your ears you're unlikely to find much use for a two-seater convertible. Likewise, if you decided one of those small human things was quite expensive enough, you probably won't be looking for a minibus.

With that in mind we've picked a few options that might give you something to think about when you arrange your next lease car.

Whether it's an inner-city scramble to the school gates, a rural ride-share complete with sing-along, or just a case of getting there asap so you can get on with the rest of your day. Whatever you need to ensure your children's education, and help you enjoy the next few weeks of peace, we've got the lease deal to get you behind the wheel.

Toyota Yaris

If you want a small city car to nip through traffic, the Toyota Yaris is an energetic little car with a style to match. The Yaris is a great all-round car and more economical than many of its competitors thanks to the hybrid system. The Yaris boasts a really practical interior, generous equipment, and an enviable reputation for reliability. If you're looking for excellent value for money, the Toyota Yaris is hard to beat.

Citroen Grand C4 SpaceTourer

If you've got productive loins, or you are part of a ride-share agreement, you might want the endless space of the Citroen Grand C4 SpaceTourer. This car has impressive volumes, going all the way up to a massive 2,181 litres of load space when the second and third row seats are folded down. With all the seats up, you can also transport up to six whole children in one go. It also features wide seats for each passenger, and unparalleled connectivity to keep them all entertained in transit.

BMW X3

Turning up at the school gates in some kind of SUV is pretty much the norm these days. One of the best options available at the moment is the latest BMW X3. It offers a superb driving experience that is suited to almost any terrain, BMW's intelligent xDrive all-wheel drive system, semi-autonomous driving systems, turbo powered engines, plus a plug-in hybrid model variant for those who want to set a good example for the children. Not only that, but you'll never look out of place in a BMW.

Volkswagen ID.3

If you really want to set a good example you need to go all electric. The Volkswagen ID.3 offers all the benefits of electricity but is still small enough to handle city traffic as well as longer commutes. It even recognises you when you approach the vehicle, and the optional Matrix LED headlights light up as if the car is greeting you. Not that this kind of stuff is important, it's just really cool and we all know that's the only way you're going to get a reaction out of a teenager. And even if it doesn't have that effect you'll still have one of the best new electric cars on the market, and a range that makes it as practical as a regular hatchback.

Bentley Continental GT Convertible

Although if you really want to show off, or you just want to make the most of the drive to school, you could turn quite a few heads in a Bentley Continental GT Convertible. Ok, we know you probably won't, but you can still admire the driver-focused performance, hand-crafted cabin and the latest in cutting-edge technology. You can choose from either a 4.0-litre V8 engine, or a sublimely powerful 6.0-litre W12, and to make sure you can still pop the roof down in winter there's a neck warmer integrated into the GT Convertible's heated and vented Comfort Seats, a heated steering wheel and heated armrests.

Or failing that you can just dream about driving the kids to school in a Bentley. Although if you're only going to dream about it, why not lose the kids entirely and keep the car all to yourself.

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