After a week with a modest Vauxhall Corsa 1.3-litre CDTi turbo diesel I'm pleased to report that General Motors has a challenger to Japan's dull range of hybrids. The little oil-burning Vauxhall is a cracker. Bigger, more refined, better equipped and cleaner-burning than before it comes at a price that has left supermini rivals gasping.With a list price of just £10,215 in Club three-door trim, the roomy Corsa can also be ordered with air-conditioning for £10,715. It's also available in five-door guise from £10,460 and can even be specified with this frugal power plant in entry-level CDTi Life trim for only £9810.But for top value the well-appointed Club three-door makes the most sense. It averages 62mpg and on test I managed to squeeze nearly 70mpg. Insurance is affordable in Group 3 and servicing is needed only once a year or every 20,000 miles.Standard equipment is generous. The base 1.3 CDTi Club comes without air-conditioning, but the ordinary heating and ventilation is effective and powerful. The interior demisted easily with blower assistance and heat production from the little diesel unit was quick and comfortable.Sadly the safety system I'd like to see as standard on all cars - electronic stability control - is an optional extra on all Corsas apart from the performance SRi model, but the Club does get front and side airbags with full-size curtain airbags, excellent ABS braking, remote central locking, height and reach steering column adjustment, electric power steering, driver's seat height adjustment, a 60/40 split rear seat, electric windows with touch sensitive auto-reverse, heated and power-adjusted mirrors and a superb CD/radio.The Club is nicely finished with some subtle styling features including body-coloured handles, mirror covers and side rubbing strip. On the lighting front the Club comes equipped with "welcome" lighting to illuminate the door sills on entry and exit.Interestingly, my test car was fitted with a pair of clever optional extras – adaptive lighting that was great for lighting up the verges on the inside of corners on narrow roads and a FlexFix bike carrying system.This second feature is a £350 option that slides out horizontally from behind the rear number plate to provide a carrying frame for mountain bikes. Twin rear light sets are part of the clever and system that stows out of sight in seconds under the car's roomy high-floored boot. There's no loss of boot space but the downside is that you can't have a towbar if you fit the FlexFix system because the FlexFix ironmongery robs the Corsa of its spare wheel space. Punctures are covered by an electric inflator pump and sealant compound that comes with the FlexFix option.What singles out the 1.3 CDTi is its flexibility and economy. The standard five-speed manual gearbox has a wide enough spread for town and open road work. Like the clutch, it's easy and light to use, and helps this mighty atom of an engine tick all the boxes. I was conscious of its diesel "knock" only at startup, and although the modest power means the car accelerates in a leisurely manner and will barely top 100mph, it turns in an adequate performance family use and still felt able fully loaded.Safety levels are high: Vauxhall achieved a five-star Euro NCAP occupant rating, three stars for child protection and three stars for pedestrian safety.The cabin is very roomy and airy. There's good head and leg space for five adults and a boot that swallows a useful 285 litres with the rear seats in place and 1050 litres and a flat floor with them folded.I was irritated by the tipping mechanism on the front seats of my three-door. It was stiff and awkward to use and access to the rear seats felt obstructed. I was also saddened to find the good-looking and intelligently designed dashboard finished in the same kind of cheap-looking hard plastic that blights the new Mazda2.More annoying was the disappointing tyre noise generated by the Continental ContiEcoContact 3 covers that drummed incessantly on rougher surfaces and spoiled the Corsa's otherwise composed ride.On roller-coaster roads there was a hint of understeer when I cornered hard, but roll was negligible. The ride is good, the steering accurate, and the car has the kind of docile nature that makes it an ideal family hold-all. For once Vauxhall has a supermini that can grip and handle like much more sporty machinery. Quite an achievement.The 1.3 CDTi Club is a car that gets admiring glances from pedestrians and other motorists. Its architecture is clever, blesses the hatchback with real character and offers a feast of design sweeps and curves that have been developed from the seductively sleek Astra Sport Hatch. Engine 1248cc, 4 cylinders Power 74bhp Transmission 5-speed manual Fuel/CO2 62.8mpg / 119g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 13.6 seconds Top speed 101mph Price £10,215 Details correct at publication date
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