Skoda Fabia - Diesel Road test

The engine choices are simple: two 1.4 turbodiesels tweaked to offer 69bhp or 80bhp, plus VW's trusty 1.9-litre turbodiesel unit, set up here to deliver 105bhp. Your natural inclination in these times of carbon consciousness may be towards the three-cylinder 1.4. If so, I'd counsel the 80bhp option. Both taxi their way out of the car park with the aural finesse of a WW1 fighter plane: quiet they most certainly ARE NOT. However, out on the open road the burble subsides. At 120g/km, this unit is cleaner than its 69bhp alternative (it scores 127g/km), though neither hugely improves on the 1.9-litre's 129g/km.

If you don't want your kids expelled for serial lateness, it really looks like the 1.9's conscientious 10.7 seconds to 60mph is the winning factor. Considerably in its wake come the 80bhp 1.4, at 13.1, and the 69bhp option, at a must-do-better 14.7.

In real-world terms though, the 80bhp 1.4 is far perkier than these figures suggest, thanks to a handy dollop of urge between first and third gears. As a footnote, there is a detectable measure of vibration through the pedals.

With such caveats in mind, the 1.9 does begin to look like a more sensible choice, though you might like to compare all three diesels' official combined fuel figures: the 80bhp diesel is the most frugal, with a combined 61.4mpg, the 69bhp option returning 58.9mpg and the 1.9-litre a not-so-abysmal 57.7mpg. The bottom line is that there's little between the options - and consequently little penalty for choosing the 1.9. And on real tarmac, this is the most confident and capable drive, whether cornering briskly, zipping along a country lane or overtaking at top motorway speeds.

Stripped naked of this May's dealership balloons and flashing lights, Fabia 2, with prices kicking off from around £7,800 and extending to the £12,000 mark for the 1.9 in Elegance spec, is essentially a solid effort - true to Skoda's new motto, 'Simply Clever'. You'd be plainly dumb to ignore it.

Tiscali verdict: 7/10 Skoda keeps its cool - in understated style.