TOYOTA'S joint venture car with the PSA Peugeot Citroen group is a thoroughly practical urban runabout but it's not cheap.

It exudes Toyota quality throughout and has a strong individuality amongst its stablemates.

Importantly it also comes with a very good five-year or 100,000 miles warranty and that's a lot of city commuting.

It also means the first buyer is likely to enjoy a strong residual used price for the Aygo when it comes to selling in two or three years.

The Aygo is a car for today's market with another eye on its future value.

The busy 1.0-litre triple-pot engine is a good starter but it needs to be stirred along through the slick five-speed gearbox and with a light clutch and gear action that means it's very easy to drive in town and country.

Engine noise rises quickly and is distinctive but it pulls well. Road rumbles are the most noticeable feature but other mechanical noise and wind turbulence were low.

Mid-range acceleration was reasonable and the economy was close to 50mpg on test while it really settled down at about 60mph on motorways with not a lot in reserve above this.

It felt agile and nimble in town, turned quickly and tightly and visibility was good through the windows, with reasonable headlights but not particularly good wipers.

There are three or five door designs, and we had the more practical version, with good room infront but a shortage of rear legroom for anyone over a child in height. Back seats fold 50/50.

Boot space was on the small side, shopping is probably all you could fit in the boot with the back seat in use, and oddments provision was fair in the cabin.

The secondary controls were close to hand, easy to use and the very basic instruments were clear if not calibrated in detail.

Heating took time to warm up and it was not particularly powerful but the ventilation worked well by contrast. It comes with powered front windows on this version.

With fairly good front seat adjustment and a height selectable column the driver can tailor the set up very well.

Toyota has also specified a comprehensive traction control system and hill-start assist and it always felt very stable on twisting roads.

For a city car, the Toyota Aygo x-clusive was well equipped with the equipment you might have seen only on a medium sized car a few years ago.

It was easy to drive, felt safe and with optional navigation pack it could be given its head across country as well as in town.

Definitely one of the better new-generation city commuting cars.