There's a wealth of family saloons to choose from

The Ford Mondeo 1.8-litre TDCi Econetic, with 115bhp, falls into Band B. For 2010, the Econetic gains 16” alloy wheel and Bluetooth voice control and prices start from €29,175; the €1,500 discount brings this down to €27,675.

Opel’s Insignia comes with a 2.0-litre diesel engine and the 130bhp and 160bhp versions fall in to Band B. As with the rest of the Opel range that qualify under the scrappage scheme, most dealers are offering €3,000 off. With prices starting at €27,380 for the 2.0-litre CDTi S Ecoflex 4-door saloon, this drops to €24,380 with such a scrappage offer. At this price, it makes a great buy.

Although it is very much nearing the end of its life, the Peugeot 407 has a very generous scrappage deal offer. The 407 comes with one spec only, a fully laden Executive model with all the toys and a 1.6-litre 110bhp HDi engine, which puts it in Band B. This retails at €26,825 but at the moment, there is a staggering €5,000 off this, dropping the price to €21,825. That gives you a large family saloon with a good diesel engine and lots of equipment for the price of a small family hatchback.

Other contenders: Renault's more than generous offers continue with its Laguna. Although slow-selling, the Laguna might spark some interest with its new price tag. With a total of €4,500 off some models, the 1.5 dCi 110 Royale model starts at just €20,390.

Seat’s new Exeo, which is a previous- generation Audi A4 in everything but badge, looks like an exciting buy. Priced from €26,690, the 2.0-litre TDi version falls into Band B, with both 120bhp and 143bhp. The 120bhp version starts from €27,475 and with scrappage allowance, it falls to €25,975. We expect this model to do quite well this year, especially as Seat is able to offer Volkswagen Bank-backed finance packages.

There is one version of the Skoda Superb on offer as part of the scrappage deal, the 1.9-litre TDi Greenline version with 105bhp. This is a huge car and very well equipped, with dual-zone climate control and cruise control as standard. Priced from €24,380, with €1,500 and some more dealer discount likely, €22,880 could just be the starting point for this car. This is truly amazing value.

Toyota has just the standard €1,500 off the qualifying diesel Avensis models. The 2.0-litre D-4D 125bhp diesel starts from €24,565 and with a €1,500 discount this amounts to €23,065, which is hugely competitive for what is still a very new model. Volkswagen’s Passat also qualifies for the scrappage scheme in diesel and petrol form, with the 1.4-litre TSi 122bhp petrol. The Bluemotion technology in the diesel models offers Band A emissions, giving a €1,500 discount off the price of the model. The Passat had also been reduced by €2,500 recently. Under the scrappage scheme, the 1.4-litre 122bhp Trendline Passat starts from €22,790 and the 1.6-litre 105bhp TDi starts from €23,160.

Scrappage hero: Skoda Superb Greenline