THE bigger than average MG3 supermini has been around since 2013, but a very good revamp in 2018 brought it well up to date.

This redesign brought a new family grille, headlights and front bumper, giving the car a much more modern look.

And at the same time, the level of standard equipment went way up despite low, low prices, making what was already a great buy into a brilliant one.

Add a transferable seven year warranty from new, and there is little wonder that sales went up, and also that many more people bought them secondhand.

The single engine and transmission option is a 1.5 petrol with 105bhp, driving the front wheels through a five speed gearbox. This is enough for a zero to 60 time of 10.6 seconds and very best economy of around 42mpg.

Some said it had a gutless engine but anyone who really knows cars realises that they simply didn't know how to get the best from it.

This good sized five door offers plenty of performance as long as you're prepared to push it up the rev range.

It doesn't have the low speed pull of the latest tranche of small turbos but wind it up towards the red line and it goes surprisingly well.

Because they are so reasonable new, you can get fantastic value for your hard earned money buying secondhand - and with the remainder of the original warranty to protect your investment.

The 3 offers plenty of fun, because as well as that peppy engine it has excellent handling and road holding and positive steering that's full of feel.

The smooth and fairly tuneful 1.5 engine revs sweetly but of course, doing that for too much of the time will affect economy. However it will also pull happily if gently from just above tickover even in fifth gear.

The ride is fairly firm, but I have never found it too uncomfortable even over some of the rougher country lanes, and it handles speed humps very easily.

All in all it's a very enjoyable car to drive and one that I could certainly live with as my every day transport.

Inside it's bigger than most cars in the class, with space for one six footer to sit behind another in comfort, space for five over a short distance and a decent sized boot.

All models have four electric windows, central locking, CD stereo, alarm, electric mirrors, traction and stability control and six airbags.

Mid-range Excite adds Bluetooth, diamond cut alloys, eight inch touchscreen infotainment, Apple Carplay and Android Auto, air conditioning, and wheel mounted stereo controls.

Top Exclusive adds a reversing camera, cruise control and follow me home headlights.

Original owners had a huge array of graphics packages to personalize their cars, so make sure you can live with their choices!

Pay about £6,900 for a '19 19-reg Excite, or just £10,250 for a '22 22-reg Exclusive.