Hyundai Getz - Pictures

A soft ride means the Getz is comfortable on the motorway, but at lower speeds it becomes bouncy over crests. The set-up copes with imperfections well, although there’s too much body roll through corners.

As with the Proton, the Hyundai interior is reminiscent of a late-Nineties hatchback – the layout is functional but uninspiring and the dull grey dash looks drab. It has a higher-quality feel than its Malaysian counterpart, thoug

It’s a gripe we’ve brought up time and again, but having the indicators on the right side of the steering wheel is still incredibly frustrating when nearly every other manufacturer does the opposite.

While the diesel is strong, the gearshift feels vague and lifeless. The Getz had the fastest in-gear times – at 10.9 seconds, it was 4.6 seconds up on the Swift from 50-70mph – but that was thanks to its torquey oil-burner.

One area where the Korean machine outdoes its rivals is boot space – it has the largest capacity and the rear seats fold and tumble. The only downsides are the narrow opening and flimsy plastics on the inside.