i30

Designed in Rüsselsheim and built in Nošovice, the GD is the car that made Hyundai a mainstream European choice. Simple, roomy and extremely cheap to run, with a five-year warranty that means many Polish examples are first-owner cars with dealer history. Petrol 1.6 GDI and diesel 1.6 CRDi are the mainstream engines; the Wagon (kombi) is one of the most practical estates for the money. Not exciting, rarely broken.

A more grown-up i30: quieter, better built, with a full suite of driver assistance from launch and three bodies, hatchback, Wagon and the sleek Fastback. Turbo petrols (1.0, 1.4 and later 1.5 T-GDI) replaced the old naturally aspirated engines, the 1.6 CRDi soldiered on for fleets and the i30 N arrived as Hyundai's first genuine hot hatch, developed by ex-BMW M engineer Albert Biermann. The main buying decision is the gearbox: the manual is a safe bet, the 7-speed dry dual clutch needs a careful test drive.