Hyundai i20 Active safety is disappointing. Although the new car hasn’t been tested by Euro NCAP yet, the i20 hatchback was reviewed in 2015 and failed to get a full five-star rating.

It’s also a shame to see many modern advanced safety systems missing from the standard specification. Many of today’s cars come equipped with collision prevention systems or driver aids; even the Vauxhall Viva city car offers lane departure warning as standard.

What you will have on your i20 Active though are six airbags, child-proof locks on the rear doors, seatbelt pre-tensioners for those in the front, an alarm, tyre pressure monitoring and a hill-start assist system to prevent you rolling backwards.  

When it comes to practicality, the Hyundai i20 Active fares very well.

The boot space on offer mirrors that of the i20 hatchback with 326 litres available; that’s just a shade smaller than the excellent Skoda Fabia and much bigger than the Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Corsa. Even some of its crossover rivals like the Fiat Panda 4×4 and the Nissan Juke cannot compete.

To create more space, the rear seats can be folded in a 60:40 formation increasing boot space to 1,042 litres. To secure your shopping there are hooks and Velcro straps available, plus a dual-boot floor – handy if you want to create a deeper load space or hide items out of view.

There are plenty of practical solutions on offer including places to store your sunglasses, magazine holders behind the front seats, a large glovebox, door pockets which will accommodate a one-litre bottle of drink, an ideal cubbie for loose change, plus the USB and auxiliary ports are conveniently located for charging your various devices.

All the doors open wide so getting in and out is no problem, while features like the standard cruise control, steering wheel mounted controls, electric windows and heated door mirrors make life easier while out on the road. We would have liked to see automatic lights and wipers included on the standard specification, though.

The i20 Active also has roof rails fitted as standard which can carry up to 70kg of weight.