IT'S a word I know only too well. Everyone of my generation had it rammed into us. We were told we always had to ‘compromise'.

Growing up in the late Fifties and Sixties, if something was unaffordable you were inevitably advised to...compromise.

Later when you earned your own money and seemed to be doing okay, you still had to do it (compromise, that is). After all, an E-Type isn't very practical, is it? Seriously though, it really got on my nerves having to accept second best.

Which makes it all the more strange that in these straightened times, the concept of compromising seems to have all but disappeared as if it's a word that has slipped down the back of a sofa like a carelessly placed coin and been lost for ever - and we are all the better for it.

I say this because I've recently been driving a small economical car, that can pack in loads of luggage in true Tardis-style, will whisk you to 130mph - if you wish - and has the sort of refinement that, only a decade ago, would cost the price of a small house.

The Audi A3 is one of a small group of cars that have become just about classless. Its collective talents are such that it offends no-one, yet pleases almost everyone.

Of course it isn't cheap at £22,730 for the 2.0 TDI Sport that I drove, but neither is it particularly expensive when you cast an eye around at other prices.

And it holds its value better than a good wine. With three doors and a rather scalloped rear, the profile of the latest generation A3 are almost of coupe proportions, yet it is a genuine four seater with acceptable legroom front and rear and the hatchback boot absorbs 365 litres of luggage with a maximum of 1,110 litres when the rear seats are folded.

The two-litre, turbodiesel engine married to a slick six-speed transmission delivers effortlessly brisk performance that doesn't demand too much gearchanging because of the plentiful torque - 62mph flashes by in 8.5 seconds and it tops out at 134mph.

With that sort of grunt, you hardly expect miserly fuel consumption, but the A3 easily squeezes 50-plus miles out of a gallon of diesel and its official figure is 68.9mpg.

My best over a gentle run was 58mpg and over the complete drive I managed 53mpg. Audi's efforts to slim down the weight has clearly paid dividends in the economy stakes.

Nicely trimmed and well finished, the A3 feels more like one of its more expensive brethren from the cabin. High quality, heavy duty plastic mouldings abound and the knobs and switches feel properly robust.

I'm not a fan of Audi heating and air-con controls however, and this model follows the trend. Less posh relation VW makes life more simple and efficient. Another minor grouse is that there should be more space for oddments and wider door pockets would be useful.

Noise levels are constrained and despite its diesel origin, few passengers would be aware of it. The driver, however, benefits from 236lb/ft torque which makes high gear overtaking a synch.