Vauxhall Corsa SRi

The Vauxhall Corsa competes in the supermini class against the Kia Rio, Volkswagen Polo and the Ford Fiesta. The Corsa SRi trim level mixes good looks with sporty performance.

The SRi sits near the top of the Corsa range and is available with three petrol engines and a pair of diesels, although no automatic is available. As ever in the Corsa range, it's the brilliant 1.0-litre petrol engine that's our top pick, because it offers impressive performance and low running costs.

And that's important if the Corsa SRi is to live up to its sporty billing. Standard kit includes sports seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, LED lighting and black foil on the door pillars. If you want your SRi to have more show, then the SRi VX-Line could be the answer. For around £1,000 more, you'll get 17-inch alloy wheels (up from the standard 16-inchers), sports suspension and a sporty bodykit.

Good points

Available as a sporty three-door or practical five-door bodyshape, the Corsa SRi is one of the more overtly sporting models in the range. Despite that, there's a wide range of engines available.It features most of the go-faster goodies you could want, but insurance costs should still be reasonable – even for young drivers.

Bad points

You'll need to spend out extra if you want the full bodykit that the SRi VX Line provides – without it, the Corsa doesn't really look as sporty from the outside as you might expect.

What you get

• Alloy wheels
• Front fog lights
• Manual air conditioning
• Leather steering wheel
• Front electric windows
• Cruise control
• Automatic wipers
• Sports seats
• Bluetooth

Recommended optional extras

• Winter Pack
• Front and rear parking sensors

Our choice

When paired with the 113bhp 1.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, the Corsa SRi or SRi VX-Line is second only to the Corsa VXR hot hatchback for driver appeal.