SEAT IBIZA

The Seat Ibiza FR Edition is fast and fun, but frugal too. It can shut down two of its four cylinders when cruising to save fuel. Surprisingly the Ibiza has more torque than a Porsche Cayman. This fact becomes even more impressive when you find out that you'll pay just £30 in road tax a year. While young drivers will like the fact that it falls into insurance group 8, which is three groups lower than the petrol FR. All of which would be of absolutely no interest if the car drove like diesels of old. But it doesn't. You expect the thump of torque that makes it feel considerably gutsier than the petrol FR, but what's good is that it also avoids a common diesel annoyance by revving with decent verve and zip. This means you can touch the throttle and get a response rather than having to mash it to the floor to wake any kind of wheezy reaction – and that's of particular importance given that the diesel FR has a manual 'box rather than the seven-speed DSG of the petrol version and the Cupra.