Best compact family car

Even though Hyundai’s i30 didn’t manage to keep hold of its Top 100 crown for a second year, it has still proved unbeatable in its class. Finishing ahead of Volkswagen’s Auto Express group-test winning Golf shows just how talented the Hyundai hatchback really is when you drive it every day, exposing both its strengths and weaknesses.

However, take a look at the top two compact family car model’s scores and you’ll see just how close this race was run. Only 0.01 percentage points behind its Hyundai rival, VW’s latest Golf narrowly missed out on class honours. This fantastic score is the result of the genuine design and engineering quality which has kept many buyers heading back to Volkswagen showrooms time and time again.

Vauxhall will be delighted to be mixing it with class leaders at last, with the current Astra grabbing a bronze medal. Almost five percentage points ahead of the class average, the Vauxhall is now exceeding the expectations of many drivers, where its predecessor was often regarded as a letdown.

The i30’s sister model, Kia’s Cee’d, and SEAT’s latest Leon complete the top five in this ultra-competitive class.

What you said: "The i30 is a fabulous little car. Far better than the Vauxhall that I used to run. More economical to run and far cheaper on company car tax." - Hyundai i30 Driver

"Very enjoyable to drive, great performance and handling but surprisingly practical and cheap to run for a hot hatch." - Golf GTi Driver.

Compact Family          Class average: 83.76%