Hyundai’s contender in the small city hatch marketplace is aimed very precisely at Europeans, meaning it is dealing with such competition since the Ford Fiesta, Peugeot 206 and Renault Clio.

Also it acquits itself well against those cars. Provided with a range of engines from the 1.1 petrol to a torque-rich 1.5 diesel, there’s also a peppy 1600cc unit with 104PS.

This latter engine reaches its best when teamed with the sport suspension pack, which provides a clear , crisp and tidy degree of cornering power.

The softer standard suspension isn’t exactly sloppy – the vehicle is pleasingly predictable -and only starts to show signs and symptoms of strain once the car is fully laden with four passengers and luggage.