Vauxhall Corsa Excite

The Vauxhall Corsa is the firm's Ford Fiesta and Volkswagen Polo rival – and to help it compete on price, there's an extremely wide range of trim options to choose from.

Sitting near the middle of that long list is the Vauxhall Corsa Excite trim. It might just be the pick of the range since it has all the equipment you'll ever need, with 16-inch alloys, Bluetooth hands-free calling, steering wheel-mounted stereo controls, Vauxhall's IntelliLink touchscreen infotainment system and heated electric front sears.

The three and five-door Vauxhall Corsa Excite comes with more engine choices than any other model in the Corsa range. That means 1.2 and 1.4-litre petrols – including an automatic model – as well as Vauxhall's superb 1.0-litre petrol, which is our pick of the bunch. There's also a 1.3-litre diesel that's capable of around 75mpg.

Good points

There's a good reason why the Vauxhall Corsa remains one of the UK's best-selling cars. It offers buyers a huge choice of engines and specs, plus it's well equipped and practical. It's also comfortable and good value – and nowhere is that more true than in the Excite trim.Even better, it normally isn't too difficult to haggle on price with the dealer and nab a real bargain.

Bad points

Despite the wide engine range, only the 1.0-litre petrol engine impresses. The diesels might return plenty of miles per gallon, but they're noisy, and the 1.2 and 1.4-litre petrols are slow and costly to run compared to rivals.

What you get

• Alloy wheels
• Folding rear seats
• Front fog lights
• Manual air conditioning
• Height adjustable driver's seat
• Heated front seats
• Front electric windows
• Cruise control
• Bluetooth

Recommended optional extras

• Metallic paint
• Digital radio
• Front and rear parking sensors

Our choice

The Vauxhall Corsa Excite is a real highlight in the supermini's range. It's well priced, yet comes with all the equipment you're likely to need.