The Aveo petrol engine is excellent around town and careful on fuel – the 1.2-litre returns 52mpg. Queuing and pulling away at traffic lights is made easy by the exelent gearbox, which favours slower crawls and quicker darts of speed than sustained time on the motorway. The Aveo comes with a five-speed manual gearbox, while a four-speed automatic transmission is also available on 1.4-litre five-door models. It is an easy car to live with. It’s compact and simple to park, with enough room in the boot for six or so shopping bags. Larger loads can be transported by folding down the rear seats. The supportive driver’s seat is a big help on longer journeys and all passengers enjoy decent headroom and legroom throughout.