Criteria

Auto transmission, Kat needs to drive it
Hatchback preferred
Features like bluetooth and cruise control would be great
Not expecting to drive heavily, maybe 100km every week or two, plus the odd long holiday/photoshoot trip
Higher running costs are okay with me

Think about

Finally, we saw a very nice looking Mercedes C200 in a yard: http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/_/OAG-AD-1634793

It has low enough mileage, seems to be in perfect cosmetic condition.

Adan at Maag & Stucki in Woolloomooloo.
They specialise in European cars, obviously have a bias towards them.
VW he reckons only in manual, their automatic transmissions cause trouble too often to recommend.
Mazda3 is decent but doesn't really take his fancy. Similar for Subaru Impreze and Liberty that I mentioned, because they're not European.
A Corolla would be the most reliable and cheapest to run for sure ("If everyone droves Toyotas we'd be out of business"), but they're utterly boring and uninspiring to drive - "agricultural" was the word he used.

Based on the VIN, that C200 has a delivery date of 2001-11-13. For that age it's got great mileage on it (77,000km), and it has a 111-series engine. That's apparently from the end of that series' lifetime, which is a good thing because all the engineering kinks have been worked out.
Expected running costs are ~$3,000 per year on average; lower some years and higher some years.
Broadly speaking, that engine and transmission should be pretty right, not too much trouble.
He's less inclined to buy from a dealer for this sort of car, but I couldn't fully understand his reasoning/logic on this point.
It absolutely needs a pre-purchase inspection. Recommends test driving, and if I really like it then hassle them to let it get inspected, they quote $200+GST.
Context for this was unclear, but he said absolutely do not accept an arrangement where they take a deposit and agree to return it if any problems are found. No deposit without passing inspection. Inspection MUST be done by someone not associated with the dealer.

In terms of other recommendations in the price range that I outlined, he mentioned:

Mercedes has "sports coupe" models that might fit the budget and are worth looking at, they're apparently the ones with the squarish headlights
I've not had a look yet, but they can be found on carsales.com.au by putting in Merc -> C class -> 2-door
He also mentioned the 3-series BMW range, maybe the 318i

2006 model with 123,000 km, black interior, parking sensors
- $13,000 list price
- http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Mercedes-Benz-C200-Kompressor-2006/OAG-AD-2130904/
- VIN: WDC2030422R249246
- Croydon, across the road from Eddie Nash Automotive
- Motor Gallery, 3 Regatta Rd, Five Dock, 9747-3777
2002 model, 101,000 km, white interior
- $9,990 list price
- http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Mercedes-Benz-C200-Kompressor-2002/AGC-AD-16672349/
- Phone number 9715 7772, looks like Auto Drift, 426 Parramatta Road, Strathfield

Mechanic advises expected running costs of about $3000 per year.

CTP: $860 with GIO (under-25 driver)
Rego: $346
- Registration: $62
- Motor vehicle tax: $284 (1155-1504kg vehicle)
Insurance: ???
- GIO comprehensive: 1100-1200 depending on options. $2150 excess, insured for $10000
- NRMA comprehensive: website offline
- Woolworths comprehensive: $1411 (or $580 without collision insurance)
Servicing: $800-1000
Tolls: ???
Roadside assistance: ???
Fuel: $1600 (guess)
Maintenance (eg. tyres, etc): $324 (wild guess)
Payment towards next car for replacement (aka. depreciation): $1000