Renault Clio

The five-door Clio is a huge leap forward over its predecessor. Build, comfort and refinement are better, and ample space makes it a fine supermini comparable with the class above. Its 86bhp diesel is smooth, gutsy and economical. The improvements make up for light steering and a price increase.

Compared with the three-door Clio we drove last week, Renault expects the new five-door to be a rare sight. The firm anticipates the latter variant to account for only 15 per cent of sales, reasoning that if buyers want rear passenger space, most will plump for a compact family hatch.

But the new Clio is much longer, wider and taller than its predecessor, and closer in size to the Megane than ever before. So could the five-door actually be more popular than Renault predicts? We jumped behind the wheel of an 86bhp 1.5-litre dCi model to find out.

Just like the three-door, this Clio is a quietly handsome machine. The addition of two rear doors has taken away some athleticism from its profile, but the newcomer is classier and more stylish than the model it replaces.

Sharing the same wheelbase and exterior dimensions as the three-door, it's just as roomy inside, although passenger access to the rear is obviously much better. There's plenty of space for four adults, with head and legroom easily topping the five-door supermini class, and rivalling cars from the sector above. Quality and comfort also impress, with solid build, tactile plastics and a better driving position. Boot space is identical to the three-door's, too.

In addition, the Clio gets the thumbs- up on safety. Extra body strengthening has resulted in a five-star Euro NCAP crash test rating, and only the base Extreme fails to get curtain airbags as standard. You can even specify a clever centre headrest for children, which supports their head should they fall asleep.

The stiffer structure and increased dimensions do mean the new Clio has put on a hefty 130kg, but only the 1.2-litre model feels underpowered. The 1.4 is the pick of the petrols, while the 86bhp 1.5 dCi - the car we spent most of our time in - is the best turbo-diesel, offering decent performance and 64mpg. If you regularly carry rear passengers, it's certainly the best choice, due to a wide spread of torque.

Thanks to some extensive sound deadening, the engine is quiet on the move, making the Clio a very refined small car. In general driving, the five-door feels just as good as its three-door equivalent, with a comfortable ride, stable handling and a real big-car feel.

However, the steering is vague on all models - and particularly on the diesel, over-assisted. Sales of the five-door begin in January, with prices expected to be around £600 more than those of equivalent three-door variants. That means our Dynamique test car should cost around £12,250 - some £900 above the model it replaces.

This may seem steep, but the newcomer offers nearly as much as its Megane big brother. What's more, the outgoing Clio will remain a cut-price supermini option for a couple of years.