The Spark was awarded four stars out of five in official Euro NCAP crash tests which is a decent score, although some other small cars have achieved the maximum rating. It actually came within a single point (out of a maximum 100) of achieving a five star rating but the fact that stability control is not standard counts against it. However, all models come with six airbags as standard along with seatbelt pretensioners and a pedal retraction system, which pulls the pedals away from occupants in the event of a frontal collision, reducing the risk of lower leg injuries.

Despite being only slightly longer than 3.5 metres, the Spark has impressive room for passengers as well as a reasonable boot. With the seats up there’s 170 litres of space – more than a Kia Picanto but less than the Hyundai i10 or Fiat Panda. The tailgate opening is wide but there’s a pronounced load lip. Worse is the finish inside – look closely and there are exposed cables which you’d expect would be covered safely away.

On the plus side the rear seats split and fold down flat (with the seat bases flipping up) to allow you to carry larger loads while in the front there is a useful cubby located underneath the ventilation controls plus a double cupholder next to the gear lever.