7/10VolkswagenPolo£15,185 – £23,255It's a sizeable leap, and enough to shove the Polo up to the upper reaches of the supermini order.
3/10NissanPulsar£16,340 – £18,110A perfectly able family hatchback that brings absolutely nothing new to the sector. Why, Nissan?
7/10SkodaKamiq£17,475 – £25,730Another worthy crossover. Comfy, roomy, but not especially interesting
8/10AudiS1£18,230 – £31,030Well done Audi, this one's a proper little stonker: fast, small, fun, a 4wd hot hatch done properly.
8/10VolkswagenGolf R£18,325 – £31,020One of the best all-round performance cars ever made. Fast, forgiving, and everyday-friendly
8/10VolkswagenGolf (Mk7)£18,325 – £31,020It defines this sector and should be its default buy. You simply can’t go wrong.
8/10VolkswagenGolf GTI (Mk7)£18,325 – £31,020Overlook the fact it’s so good that it’s almost joyless: the latest Golf GTI is very desirable indeed
8/10VolkswagenGolf Cabriolet£18,325 – £31,020After a classy cabrio but don't have Audi-like cash? Try this. GTI expensive but worth it; R perhaps not
8/10Volkswagene-Golf£18,325 – £31,020The e-Golf is an EV that works for most of us, most of the time. A truly convincing electric car.
9/10MazdaMX-5£19,000 – £29,310A great examplar for keeping a car's mechanicals simple. The MX-5 provides fun at entirely legal speeds
6/10Alfa RomeoGiulietta Cloverleaf/QV£19,390 – £26,130A capable machine, but more GT than hot hatch. Think mature rather than arm-wangly Italian
6/10JeepRenegade£19,480 – £30,660Buy it for the looks and lifestyle, then put up with the flaws. Likeable, but irrational
7/10KiaSportage£20,085 – £34,765Facelifted Sportage gains mild hybrid diesel tech, but it’s not enough to radically alter the class landscape
5/10MitsubishiASX£20,110 – £25,880It’s not that the ASX is truly bad by any stretch of the imagination, it’s just that its competition is newer. And better.
7/10RenaultKadjar£20,870 – £30,810Renault’s Qashqai rival is conveniently a rebodied… Qashqai. A fine appliance for family transport
7/10Peugeot308 SW£21,870 – £29,890This is among the best compact estates on sale (partly because it isn’t really compact at all).
8/10VolkswagenGolf Estate£22,100 – £29,565It's taken Volkswagen a surprising amount of time to get here, but finally we have a Golf Estate that's up with the best.
8/10SkodaKaroq£22,305 – £34,880The Karoq might have lost its predecessor’s personality, but on every other front it’s a better car than the one it replaces
8/10SeatAteca£22,770 – £36,075Been around for a few years. Still among the best of its ilk, but look at the new Leon Estate before you buy
