WHILE not usually one who follows the "which is best brigade" there are times when even yours truly can stretch a point, particularly when one of my all time favourites, the SEAT Leon is the car involved.

The current revised second generation Leon has introduced some stylish, pioneering design, high quality standards, advanced technology and impressive dynamics to the family hatchback class.

This latest Leon was created at SEAT's state of the art Technical Centre in Martorell near Barcelona where the engineers and stylists worked hard to produce an elegant five-door family hatch that neatly blended the sporting image of a coupe with five-door practicality.

While its 2009 revisions wisely retained the car's original sporty silhouette with only modest styling modifications the inside story was a different tale.

Here the design team has taken the opportunity to ring the changes while significant engineering modifications and improvements.

Despite its compact form, the Leon is a pretty capacious and comfortable, family sized car with some vibrant styling.

A generous wheelbase of 2,578mm supports a roomy cabin and, while the wide front and rear tracking help to deliver a typically sporty stance, the Leon's low profile look helps to give the car its coupe-style outward and visible signs.

Some decent boot capacity, too, weighs in at 341 litres with the split folding rear seats in place which, while not over generous is still sufficient for family outings. Interestingly the luggage bay's design allows for the most efficient use of space available.

Driven here is the flagship SEAT Leon FR+ Supercopa 2.0 TDI CR which puts 165bhp under the bonnet.

SEAT Sport bodykit and exhaust plus Exclusive FR sports seats, front and rear bumpers, leather steering wheel and gearknob are there to ensure you don't forget that this is a quite potent motor.

As you would expect from an Audi VW sourced car standard kit is very generous including electrically adjustable and folding silver door mirrors, dual zone climate control, DAB radio tuner, Bluetooth audio streaming, MP3 compatible single CD player with eight speakers, steering wheel mounted controls and cruise control.

Also included in the manifest are the likes of front and rear electric windows, six airbags, remote central locking with deadlocks, front foglights with cornering functions.

Touch screen sat nav is also on hand, while front and rear parking sensors, 'follow me hom'e headlights and further driver aids which include traction control and an electronic stabilisation programme.

The FR+ Supercopa makes the very best of the turbodiesel engine beneath the bonnet to deliver 0-62mph acceleration in around eight seconds.

This Leon proved frisky and a great handle while its economy stance was hugely positive delivering a combined mpg figure of 55.4 and decent CO2 emission figures of 134g/km.

Overall, the Leon FR+ proved hugely agreeable with its looks helping to turn many heads en route - a situation one would expect from the Touring Car-inspired Supercopa.