FOR Southbank resident and gourmet food sales representative Kirsten Adamson, 36, her choice of a new car was shaped largely by the city environment.

"I needed something that was easy to park, that would fit in the apartment's parking spot," she said yesterday. "Even though my boss pays for the petrol, the car had to be fuel efficient."

Her past cars have included a Toyota Camry and Ford Falcon and she liked neither. "The Camry was big and unwieldy; it had a huge turning circle."

Initially Ms Adamson looked at medium-sized cars, such as the Holden Vectra and Honda Accord Euro, but "I discovered the Vectra was about to be discontinued, and the Honda was a bit expensive".

She then looked at some smaller hatches, such as the Mazda3.

"The Mazda's price was just that little bit more expensive, but it lacked headroom." Ms Adamson is around 180 centimetres tall, so interior space counts.

Her search ended with Nissan's Tiida, the car advertised by Sex and the City star Kim Cattrall.

"It had nothing to do with that ad," she said. "I bought a model for under $30,000, there's lots of interior space, and there's legroom in the back when my family's on board."

ANDREW HEASLEY