Nicest interior for 2016/7 family or mid sized car & budget 12-15k

Pretty much everything in that segment is economical and low tax.

You could look at premium brands for a start
Audi
BMW
Mercedes Benz
Volvo

It’s kinda subjective though too - and it depends on what you’re comparing it to. I’ve seen people rave about the Golf interior for example but some would say that it’s very dull and plain and not actually made from quality plastics. Some people equate lots of equipment to premium and luxury, some prefer nicer design or nicer materials.

Then you’ve got the factor of what you can get for the money. Would you prefer say a Renault with a huge touchscreen and bang up to date driver assists and connectivity - or a 3-4 year older Merc with an arguably better interior but older technology.

It’s a minefield.

I was half thinking of changing the motor this year with a similar type budget. Not as concerned with the year but only other stipulation is that is has to be petrol as I do very little mileage. The choice of 2nd hand petrols is non existent though as everything since the last motor tax change in 2008 has all been diesel.

My current car for the past 6 years is a 2007 Volvo S60 and prior to that I had a Volvo S40 for nearly as long. Been very reliable (apart from one of the ignitions coils failing on 23rd Dec prior to a trip down the country), great specs and would stick with Volvo and like the look of the S90 but too recent and even the S80 petrols are non existant.

The only option that appears to tick a few boxes is the Lexus IS300H, nice looking car and reasonable value in the 2012-2015 range.
Like the Jag XF and a search of DoneDeal for cars between 2010 and 2015 gives 60 results at moderate enough prices but again not one of them are petrol.

Bit of a jump from a Fiesta sized car to an E Class

That adds up

They were cheaper before because the VRT was cheaper.

Also they were also temporarily quite cheap in the uk too a coupe of years back maybe due to relative over supply of ex lease cars or something - but prices on them firmed up there in the last 2 years

I think they’re a great car. They have some shortcomings but they tick an awful lot of boxes.

They’re way better to drive than the CT, being RWD.
The gearbox is more of the same though, but the optional fake engine noises help it feel a bit more normal.

Weak points in my view are the infotainment at any level (there are quite a few setups available on them), the gearbox, and some of the materials used on things like seat bolsters - which can wear prematurely.

Interior is nice on them. It’s completely different to something like an Audi. It’s just that bit more unusual.
I don’t know if I could live with one as it’s quite low slung and I’m tall.