DAIHATSU COPEN

The Daihatsu Copen ought to be awful, which helps explain why it seems so bloody marvellous when you have a go. A tiny, fizzy, agile little thing that’s endlessly fun to thrash and looks fantastic.

• Comfort

  You don't buy a Copen for cosseting. It rides pretty hard, there's plenty of wind noise from the folding roof and the 1.3-litre engine sounds like a leaf blower that smokes 20 a day.

• Performance

  The sensation of speed, rather than anything amounting to actual speed, is what the Copen is all about. So close to the ground, 30mph feels like twice that, while the national speed limit feels lethal.

• Cool

  Oddly the Copen is borderline cool. Slick-looking, practical (ish) and always a hoot, it's a car for everyman. Or every woman anyway.

• Quality

  It doesn't feel particularly classy inside the Copen, in fact it just feels small and really old, but at least it's highly unlikely to ever go wrong. There's lots of scuttle shake too, but that's what you get in a £10k soft-top.

• Handling

  This is the ace up the Copen's sleeve. Despite being, well, a Daihatsu, it's superbly involving to drive. Lots of feel, lots of grip, bum nearly touching the deck, this is the 21st Century's MG Midget.

• Practicality

  Buy this with the understanding that there's never going to be much room for you or your luggage and you'll be pleasantly surprised by what the Copen does offer. Folding tin-tops are the best of both worlds, and it's tiny dimensions make the Copen a boon in the city.

• Running costs

  Low insurance, especially for a soft top, combined with excellent economy and quite strong residuals mean your money's safer in a Copen than in any other Daihatsu.

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DAIHATSU MATERIA

Improbable styling makes the Daihatsu Materia stick out in any company. It’s also very well packaged, meaning it’s actually far more sensible on the inside than it is without. Perfect if you have a child or two, and share their mental age.

• Comfort

  Belying the small glass area and chopped look to the roofline, there's bags of head and legroom in here. Bad British roads aren't an issue either, with the whole driving experience feeling reasonably refined.

• Performance

  There's only one engine option for the Materia, and it's a modest 102bhp 1.5-litre petrol. This means if you want to hit 60mph you need to apply in writing and that the top speed barely nudges three figures.

• Cool

  The Materia will appeal to a certain sub-section of the car buying community. The same sub-section that fancies itself a bit ‘street' but still has a Superman duvet cover.

• Quality

  The Materia is so well knocked together it'll fall out of fashion long before it falls to bits. Plastics and finish are the usual budget end of the Japanese market, but they pass muster.

• Handling

  The Materia rides well, especially for something that looks like it's been slammed to within an inch of the asphalt. It's not going to out-drive the Fiestas of this world, but if you're tempted by one of these that'll be the last thing you need to worry about.

• Practicality

  Will seat four adults in relative comfort - no mean feat in a car of this size - but the trade off is in the boot. Which is getting on for not even being there.

• Running costs

  Like all Daihatsus, insurance is low because they are slow and no-one wants to nick them. Economy is good on the Materia too, but we wager residuals won't be.

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DAIHATSU TERIOS

Despite some serious revisions, the new Daihatsu Terios feels old and out-classed. Not by a long chalk is it a proper SUV, but it’s also pretty hopeless as a road car. Which makes it, well, useless.

• Comfort

  As comfortable as being at sea in a small boat in a large swell. It rides well enough thanks to big boots, but is way too unsettled to ever put you at your ease.

• Performance

  Performance stats aren't exactly a selling point for the Terios. It takes over 16 seconds to get to 60mph, making it one of the slowest cars on the market. Get the automatic gearbox and things get even worse.

• Cool

  Since Jeremy went to be part of a hunt in one, it's immeasurably cool. Truth be told, it's muddy boots utility always meant it was cooler than the sum of its parts.

• Quality

  If cheap plastics are your thing, then the quality rating here should be 20. They aren't ours, in any way shape or form, so we'll only give it 8.

• Handling

  The Terios handles like a toddler who's been through the liquor cabinet. Its tiny wheelbase, narrow width and excessive height combine to create all sorts of unnerving pitch and roll.

• Practicality

  Four-wheel drive, short and nippy - the Terios is a reasonably practical small off-roader. But it also won't tow a horsebox, so therefore little Timmy and Tara won't find it especially useful at the gymkhana.

• Running costs

  Fuel economy isn't what it could be, thanks to that four-wheel drive and the drag coefficient of a double-decker bus. It's also not cheap enough considering what little you get for your money.

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DAIHATSU SIRION

The Daihatsu Sirion is not actually half as bad as you might think, and leaps ahead of its ropey predecessor. It’s well packaged and bravely styled, but it’s also fairly pricey for this segment, and prone to hefty depreciation, so go secondhand if you go there at all.

• Comfort

  Ride is reasonable in the softy sprung Sirion. It soaks up the bumps surprisingly well for a car with such a short wheelbase, but the kick-back is that compromised handling.

• Performance

  Strictly speaking there isn't any. The 1.0-litre car gets tailgated by glaciers, while even the range-topping 1.5-litre takes over 10 seconds to hit 60mph. Economy, however, is what the Sirion is all about, with 54.3mpg achievable on a combined cycle.

• Cool

  The Sirion's restyling, good as it may be, makes it look like you're trying a bit too hard. A Fiat Panda, by way of example, isn't trying at all, and is therefore exceedingly cool.

• Quality

  You can be confident the Sirion is well built and reliable. This is a shoo-in for almost any modern Japanese car, but there's no real perception of quality in the cabin. Cheap plastics abound.

• Handling

  That tall body makes for lots of body roll, discouraging any urban heroics. There isn't a huge amount of grip either, so maybe that's not such a bad thing.

• Practicality

  The Sirion is one of few cars in this size and price bracket with five doors, and there's a decent amount of space in the back for a couple of actual people. The drawback is a small boot. The rear seats do fold, but it's one or the other.

• Running costs

  Both engine sizes are cheap to run, the larger one actually offering slightly better all-round mpg. Insurance is low too, but watch out for that hefty hit of initial depreciation.

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