In a city of 20,000 black taxis, driving a black taxi can be a great hiding place. For celebrities, the anonymity of being at the wheel of a London taxi is a big attraction. Actor Stephen Fry can visit the theatre with ease. At Buckingham Palace, even Prince Phillip can motor up the Mall incognito.

Andrew Lloyd Webber has also used one to move around town without being spotted. It couldn't be a better time to buy one. In December, the law changes and all black taxis must be wheelchair accessible. This means that 1,000 second hand cabs are coming on the market.

Tim Hayton is a computer engineer from Didcot. He owns a FX4, which cost him £1,600.
It is his fourth London taxi over a period of 10 years. Tim now certainly wouldn’t be without one. He says taxis are solid and well engineered. His fiance feels that everyone is staring at her when she is a passenger, and prefers her Vauxhall Astra.

A 10 year old London cab can cost between £1,500 and £2,000 from a taxi dealer. Peter DaCosta sells secondhand cabs to a growing number of private customers. He explains:
"People have got a love affair with taxi cabs. They know them to be very robust. They are very safe and very reliable. You can pack lots and lots of things into them, and pets can get in. I recommend that families have a look at taking a cab as a second vehicle."

Value For Money tested one out on the Davie family from Marlow in Buckinghamshire.
Simon Davie and wife Suzanne are both teachers and have 5 children. They really fancied a people carrier, but those cost about £20,000. So, they agreed to try the 1987 Fairway, worth just £1,500. The taxi uses diesel fuel which is cheaper than petrol, but it only averages 25 miles to the gallon.

Firstly, the family tried the taxi out on the weekly shopping trip. They then put it to use ferrying the children to work and to the nursery. Finally, the family packed the cab with enough luggage for a weekend away. The insurance for private use of a cab is low, the same as a Ford Fiesta, though not all companies offer insurance. The mileage can be high with black taxis, and 300,000 miles is normal. However, London cabs go through an extremely rigorous annual MOT. So, the condition of a London cab is what's important when you are buying, not the mileage.

There are a few ground rules for driving a Hackney cab as a private car. You cannot drive in a taxi or bus lane, as that can result in a £20 fine. You cannot park on a taxi rank - and no plying for hire, otherwise there is a penalty of a heavy fine. The thing to watch out for is the public jumping in your cab. Tim Hayton was waiting at some traffic lights and a couple of Japanese tourists just opened the back door and got in. He tried to explain to them that he wasn't a real taxi. However, because their English wasn't very good, it took him a few minutes to persuade them to get out again!