The new Suzuki Splash will send ripples through the small car market after it arrives in showrooms on 8 March.

The company’s first model made for Europe, it will be competing as a mini-mpv with its five-seat capacity and choice of four-cylinder 1.2 petrol and 1.3 diesel engines designed by Fiat but built under licence in India.

The all new petrol engine and the familiar diesel are designed with low emissions to beat congestion charges while still providing good performance on open roads. The diesel achieves close to 63mpg and emits 120gkm so qualifies for a £35 VED while the petrol will exceed 51mpg.

Costing between £8,500 and £10,500, the Splash is keenly priced but it is not a cheap car and oozes refinement with standard high safety equipment including sophisticated traction control and multiple airbags, comprehensive sound system including MP3 compatibility and air conditioning.

It is built by Suzuki in Hungary on the same lines as the Vauxhall Agila, but that will be sold with a 1.0 engine option as well as the 1.2 and 1.3 units. Otherwise they are largely the same models.

Splash will be first to market and Suzuki UK expect to sell about 4,500 this year with a reasonable proportion to be conquest sales now that it can offer a modern small mpv in a sector of the market which is very cost and capacity conscious.

It is also likely to be the catalyst for a rise in Suzuki’s dealer network, from under 150 to about 180, and which has been encouraged by a steady rise in sales and good reports within the retail network and dealer satisfaction in successive trade surveys.

The five-door Splash is a 3.7m super-mini with five seats and a small boot which can be quickly extended when the offset split rear seats are folded and the practical boxy shape is utilised to create up to 573 litres maximum space from the normal 178 litres.

I found the room in the back was slightly short of leg space with the front seats set for a six-footer but the headroom is good throughout and those in the front have good adjustment possibilities.

All seats are comfortable once you adjust the rear seats’ headrests normally set low to aid visibility.

Ride comfort is very good for a small car and it was surprisingly smooth over some poorly surfaced French roads. This led to some body roll present.

Roadholding was reasonably good in the dry and never gave cause for concern. The upright shape of the cabin, low waistline and big windows allowed excellent visibility and it can be accurately placed on the road when cornering or eased into the smallest parking spaces thanks to the standard power steering.

Brakes are also well up to the Splash’s performance and the high set gearlever operated precisely and neatly.

Secondary controls are well laid out, instruments simple and clear, heating and ventilation good on a warm day. Oddments room was reasonable but the door pockets were on the slim side. Boot space was easy to load and of a good shape for weekend shopping.

Up front the engines were extremely strong in mid range and the new 86ps 1.2 petrol was particularly quiet even when pushed hard on some mountain roads. It cruised effortlessly at motorway speed.

Buyers of the petrol have a choice of five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission, but I did not test the latter.

The gutsier 1.3 diesel initially felt slower off the mark but it had good mid range pull within its 75ps output and flexibility and it was not very noisy either.

Suzuki UK still expect about 80pc of sales to be the new petrol and I think they are probably right in their research but the diesel does deserve to do well.