It may seem odd to recommend a car not from a ‘mainstream’ brand as the class best in such a hotly contended sector of the marketplace, but this is an instance where Suzuki, a tiddler in global terms, but a company positively feisty in its independence of ownership and thought, has really gotten its sums right. Following decades of underwhelming cars carrying the Vitara name, this one really hits home. Not only is it refreshingly handsome at which to look (although there are some slightly iffy colour combos to be avoided) it is roomier and a little more practical than is the norm for the class, and if you equip it with the optional four-wheel drive it can do the mud plugging thing with surprising aplomb. A good car in a relatively mediocre class.
Best buy: Vitara 1.6 DDiS GLX from €25,995. Prices start at €19,995.
PCP packages start from €246 a month.
Read the review: Suzuki Vitara wants to get its turf back
One thing you can say about the smallest Jeep - it looks the part. Not all will love its styling (we’ve heard some compare it unfavourably for bottom-dwelling aquatic life) but it looks every (square) inch a proper Jeep. And it is a proper Jeep too - spend the extra to get the fully equipped, higher-off-the-grounf 4WD ‘Trailhawk’ model and you’ve got a car which can just about keep up with the mighty Wrangler in the tough stuff. Front-wheel drive 1.6 diesel models may lack such chutzpah, but they still talk the talk, which is after all the point. The cabin is roomy, if a bit plasticky but the boot, at just 350-litres, is a limiting factor for a car purporting to be family transportation.
Best buy: Renegade 1.6 Multijet Longitude from €27,200. Prices start at €22,950.
PCP packages start from €268 a month.
Read the review: True American with the heart of an Italian
The 2008 is probably one of the plainest looking cars in this segment (certainly next to its Frankish rival, the Renault Captur) but that relatively simple suit hides a car of excellent ability. Unlike some of the more compromised offerings in this class (all style, little substance) the 2008 has plenty of interior space, a reasonable boot (just slightly too small if we're honest) and a well-made interior. You may not love the small-wheel-high-instruments cabin layout but we do, and the overall effect of practicality and simplicity puts you in mind of a Land Rover Discovery that shrunk in the wash. Clever traction control (and all-season tyres) stand in for heavy 4WD and the pick of the engine pack is the 1.2 petrol turbo. A facelift, which lands in time for 162-plates, manages to make it look a touch more butch and outgoing. It's conspicuously good value for money too.
Best buy: 2008 Allure 1.2 PureTech 110hp from €23,495 . Prices start at €19,290.
PCP packages start from €POA a month.
If the original Soul was something of a style icon (looking rather as if Kia had simply rolled it directly from the motor show stage onto the floor of a dealership) then this second go-round adds substance to that style. So the interior is vastly improved, with the cheap and nasty plastics thrown out and lovely, soft-touch surfaces parachuted in. It’s a very good car to drive too, with fast, direct steering and an apparent ignorance of its own height in the way it refuses to roll too much. The only downside, really, is a ride that’s just too firm in the Soul’s natural urban environment. Oh, that and a Co2 figure that just seems too high - possibly because Kia really sees the Soul as a a US market car, not really a European one. Only one trim level, but it’s predictably well equipped.
Best buy: Soul EX from €24,495. Prices start at €24,495.
PCP packages start from €256 a month.
Read the review: This Kia's got the looks – and the Soul power too
The Mokka is one of those cars that gets a touch unfairly ignored when it comes to new purchases, but thanks to decent build quality and tight, urban-friendly dimensions, it makes a pretty canny used buy. One overriding thing must be remembered though - do not buy the 1.7 CDTI diesel engine. Not only is it rattly and noisy, it also has a very bad habit of cutting out at crucial moments if you let the engine rpm drop even a fraction too low, such as when pulling out of a tight junction… Stick with the smoother, quieter and barely any less frugal 1.4 turbo petrol and you won’t go wrong. Equipment levels are generally high, and optional leather really helps to lift what is otherwise a rather dark, plain cabin.
Best buy: 2013 Mokka 1.4T SE for circa €18,000.