Inspired by the Volkswagen Golf, this chunky hatchback has an unmistakeably American machismo about it, which some may find a little brash, comical or off-putting. It looks more like an SUV than a hatchback at first sight. This reviewer happens to rather like its appearance, however; if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, perhaps quirkily appealing retro-eccentricity is, too.

Whilst it clearly doesn’t like cornering above modest speeds, it does offer a very cushioned and comfortable general ride. One can’t help noticing, however, the somewhat feeble suspension. Combined with the front-wheel drive design, the score for handling doesn’t really get out of the mediocre range. With that said, despite its slightly lumbering appearance, the 2.0 litre diesel reaches 60 mph from stationary in a creditable 8.8 seconds.

For a solid-looking, larger than average hatchback, the Caliber is a tad disappointing vis-à-vis the amount of space it delivers; whilst not cramped, you expect more than you actually get when you clamber inside. The boot space, though, is exceptionally generous. The car also is more fuel efficient than it looks, and its CO2 emissions are by no means unrespectable.

Passers-by will notice it as you drive along, but you may not be altogether sure that you’re always attracting looks of admiration. As American-spec cars go, however, it isn’t bad, even though it would be exaggerating to claim it as taughtly engineered beauty.

Cute without quite making it to sexy, this effervescent little number is made of good quality stuff for an entry level model. It floats over minor bumps with grace and ease, as though it thinks itself a BMW or a Merc of much grander scale, and it will take you on longer jaunts than the average city run around in relative comfort. Like a Cavalier’s house riddled with priest-holes, the Nissan Micra has numerous hidden compartments for extra storage. The rear seats slide cunningly forward to increase boot space, too. For a small car, it’s surprisingly spacious: every cubic centimetre has been thought about carefully.

The Micra is also built from all the right stuff: it’s sturdy and laden with high-quality specs, and it just feels safe to drive. Moreover, the steering is tightly accurate, the chassis deceptively good, road grip is superb and there is virtually no detectable roll. The car comes in a broad range of engines but the 1.5 litre diesel is probably the best, which compares well with the petrol varieties for acceleration but squeezes an impressive 60 miles out of every gallon of fuel.

Whilst it’s definitely more cosy than cool, more friendly than feisty, it has an appealing cheekiness about it and strong performance credentials which make it truly attractive.

Beneath its clothes, the Aygo shares exactly the same mechanical foundation as the Peugeot 107 and the Citroen C1. As a city car on the smaller end of the spectrum, it manages not to feel poky, although the limited boot space (139 litres) is a little disappointing. In fairness, this can be expanded to 751 litres with the 50/50 folding rear seats flattened; but the boot’s high lip makes loading and unloading more effortful than it needs to be. And whilst it will seat four, be warned that passengers will cope with the rear seats for short journeys only – expect full-scale rebellions if you try anything more ambitious.

The short wheelbase tends to make the drive feel a little jerky but it’s a perfect little car for city driving and the engine will handle motorway jaunts, too. Those Peugeot and Citroen siblings offer diesel engines but the Aygo comes only with petrol, which is OK because it happens to deliver a lively and zippy drive. The compact dimensions make it feel very nifty to schlep about town but the engine sound does begin to grate a little at higher motorway speeds. With that said, you’ll have no trouble parking in tight situations and you’ll get up to 50 miles out of each gallon.

If you’re seeking a practical and reliable car rather than an exciting high-performance gaze-catcher, you need look no further than Audi’s A3 range. You’ll get a good quality hatchback which, whilst not winning many beauty contests, manages to be pleasing to the eye even so.

With the A3’s excellent insulation, cruising along the motorway becomes a real pleasure (although any passengers sitting in the rear will wish for a short drive – it’s a little cramped back there). The A3 offer three diesel versions and four petrol models. If you want a little extra verve and power, the 2.0 litre TFSI with its 197 bhp Golf GTI engine can do 0 – 68 mph in seven seconds. The diesel models at the higher end of the power scale, like the 2.0 litre TDI, will give you a more than respectable 168 bhp.

The car handles beautifully, and if storage space is a factor in your calculations, try the ‘Sportback’ A3s. These models are somewhere between an estate and a standard hatch and offer bags more space in the boot. However, the ordinary hatch boot space is 350 litres, which expands to 1,000 litres when the seats are folded.

Finally, if fuel costs are a consideration, the 1.9 litre diesel delivers an impressive 60 mpg and attracts relatively cheap company car tax. The A3 range may not be the most exciting in Audi’s repertoire but as practical, reliable cars, they more than worthy of their badge’s high reputation.

The 307 had acquired a rather ropey reputation; happily, it’s replacement, the 308, does much better on all fronts. Whilst its firm chassis has a tendency to convey every jolt into your backbone on bumpy terrain, on good road surfaces it’s better than fine.

It’s more spacious than the 307, although this seems to have been used to good effect in the cabin with little left over to improve appreciably on the boot space, which remains a little miserly. The interior spec of the cabin, however, is a vast improvement in quality on the 307. It’s stylish without quite making it to ‘classy.’

Whilst it doesn’t handle spectacularly, it is by no means poor and is certainly above average; it’s just that the competition for this range of vehicle is getting better and better, not least from Korea, and Peugeot needs to deliver more than ‘good enough’ to stay ahead. For a French hatchback, the steering is not as taught and responsive as you might have come to expect but it is respectable and it would be exaggerating to suggest that it is poor.

There are a range of engines available but the most solid and reliable are the diesels; the model is a fairly bulky beast so it might be wise to opt for the 2.0 litre HDi, which delivers both power and smooth running.

This sleek and stylish cruiser will keep you in luxurious comfort for mile after mile. The sloping roofline looks gorgeous from the outside but, predictably, from the inside, it’ll make you think twice before sitting in the back seat if you’re moderately tall. The seats, however, are wonderfully comfortable and if you’re taking luggage with you, the boot is exceptionally generous at 520 litres (you’ll get almost double this by folding the rear seats down).

The Insignia has taken the place of the Vectra as Vauxhall’s chief medium saloon and it is a big improvement. Whilst it hasn’t got the effortless power of the bigger German beasts, it handles motorway speeds gracefully and smoothly. It does have a slight tendency to notice small bumps (or, at least, to make you notice them) but at higher speeds you’ll just be floating. As with the Vectra, you’ll have a broad choice of engines, from the 1.8 litre, 140 bhp petrol to the 2.8 litre, 256 bhp V6 turbo, which can hit 62 mph in 6.7 seconds. A good option is the 2.0 litre, 158 bhp CDTi 160, which delivers 48.7 mpg and gets to 62 mph n a very respectable 8.9 seconds.

As a medium level executive car, the Insignia is classy and economical.

OK, so it may be a blatant attempt to copy other hatches, like VW, Toyota and Ford, but as copy-cats go, this isn’t half bad. The Kia Cee’d offers an astonishingly smooth ride, far better than the Cerato (the model it replaces) could ever deliver.

The model comes in a range of engine types and sizes – two 1.6 diesels (89 bhp and 113 bhp respectively), two petrol’s (1.4 litre, 103 bhp and 1.6 litre, 113 bhp) and finally a 2.0 litre, 140 bhp diesel. It’s the last one you should aim for; you’ll have to turn the CD volume up quite a bit at high speed, but it’s fairly nifty. Kia endeavours to keep its prices low so there is an inevitable downscaling of quality material in the interior and elsewhere; but the surprising thing is that, with this series, you don’t notice it.

The five-door Cee’d has independent rear suspension and handles superbly (it seems to float gracefully over speed-bumps). The passenger and boot space isn’t lavish, but neither is it miserly and you’ll certainly have a comfortable ride, whether you’re in the front or the back.

This is the model that should encourage you to shrug off any residual ‘badge snootiness’ and slide boldly behind the wheel of a Kia.

When it comes to trendy-looking jeeps, it would be fair to say there are not too many options to choose from. Fortunately, for those of us who like to rip up the countryside with a bit of style, Mercedes have delivered the attractive GL-Class as the replacement for their older M-Class models. However, it has to be said that the type of driver who likes to take his vehicle off-road tends not to be of the image-conscious variety, so the GL-Class is probably seen just as much taking up two lanes on a tight city street than it is conquering any wild frontiers.

This animal of the road starts with a hefty 3.5litre V6 petrol engine, with 272bhp, along with a 5litre version boasting some 388bhp. Diesel engined options are also available and they have proved to be the most popular of all, the mid-range 420 V8 being one example. Interior-wise, there are up to seven seats available, turning this standard jeep into more of a mini-bus and this is definitely one area where Mercedes have really focused their attention. It may be hard to squeeze more than four adults in the back, but when the two extra seats are flat there is plenty of sports equipment space, a GL-Class hitting the golf course with a business executive four-ball has become a fairly common sight.

For the driver, you are obviously not going to get too much in the road-handling department. It is definitely recommended that you don’t take too many corners at high-speed in this vehicle, although when it comes to rugged terrain, the weight of the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class will be sufficient to keep it upright. When driving this vehicle it will soon become apparent that Mercedes have spent quite some time in getting the engine to perform as efficiently as possible.

In comparison to other models on the market, the GL-Class definitely won’t be the cost effective option. Ranging from £51,471 to £66,610, there will be plenty of other cheaper and similarly reliable four-wheel drive options available, albeit less shiny ones. This Mercedes model has become particularly popular with spendthrifts who are partial to a little off-road chic and it would be fair say it’s not a wise investment for the more frugal car buyer. When it comes to fuel economy, this beast has a big appetite and concern for the environment is not one of its priorities.

Car manufacturers have been following a necessary trend lately. Most car companies are now building cars that are much more compact and more environmentally friendly. With the world’s problems in traffic and the ongoing plight of our environment, car manufacturers have chosen wisely to build cars that are smaller and use less fuel. There is no other car that lives up to these criteria more completely than the Toyota IQ 3.

This is a small vehicle with a 1.33l Dual VVT-i engine that uses the Toyota Optimal Drive (aka: stop-start technology), which can save fuel up to three per cent. The Toyota IQ 3’s new engine can push out 98-hp with a maximum torque of 92 lb/ft, and the new Stop & Start System averages 58.9 mpg for the customer. In the multi-drive automatic model, the car usually averages a fuel economy of 55.4 mpg.

Although it is small, the Toyota IQ 3 has enough space to fit in three adults and some luggage. There is enough legroom for the passengers so that they will not feel cramped, and there is enough space for small amounts of luggage.  Other desirable features of this car are the leather seats and efficient satellite navigation. Toyota came out with the Toyota IQ 3 with only one colour option, white, but they have now decided to produce cars with more than one colour choice following customer demand.

The manufacturers of the Toyota IQ 3 recently released this car’s price tag. The hybrid vehicle has a starting price of £11,495 for the manual model, while the automatic model has a price tag of £12,495.

No other car in the sub-compact category made as much impact as the Honda Fit. Despite the Honda Fit’s two flaws – a hefty price tag and no stability control option for the base trim – people still want this car.

The Honda Fit is one of the most-loved cars amongst fans of fuel-efficient motor vehicles.  It ranked one out of 33 affordable sub-compact cars with regard to reliability and safety, and despite its high price, customers are still vying to purchase this car.

The Honda Fit is a sub-compact car with five doors that is stylishly sporty and great fun to drive. It only looks small from the outside, but it can be very deceiving because of its spacious interior. Although it is a hatchback, the curves of this car make it look more aerodynamic than its predecessors. Honda designed this vehicle with a ’super-forward aero-form design’ and a two-inch-longer wheelbase, plus a wider track as well as a windshield that has been moved five inches to the front for improved visibility and for more room.

The 2009 model includes superior interior functionality, such as one-motion folding rear seats; improved steering, suspension, and body rigidity for sportier driving; Honda’s Advanced Compatibility Engineering body structure for more safety efficiency; and a Honda Satellite-Linked Navigation System. This model also features a one-motion fold-down function for the rear seats, which means that the front seats do not have to be adjusted to fold the rear seats. Also, the headrests at the back do not have to be removed whilst folding them down. The Honda Fit was already popular in Japan and Europe, as was the Honda Jazz, when it first invaded the US market in 2006.