, I'd say (from tiny personal experience) go with a Japanese car. They're built to last.
Have a nissan micra, bought for chips, did 60'000 miles with it and had one breakdown all told (clutch, which is wear and tear for a 12-year-old car). Parts are very cheap, petrol consumption very reasonable, and no cam belt to worry about! Rust will do it in before anything goes wrong on it... that's english salted roads for you!
