MINI COOPER S

Is the petrol hot hatch a spent force? Not based on this 6000-mile test

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It's easy to become desensitised to the exorbitant prices of new cars as they creep, slowly but surely, ever upwards. Just four years ago, the cheapest new car in the UK was £8000. Today, it’s approaching double that.

So I'll confess I didn't immediately gulp, gasp or go berserk when I saw £34,500 at the bottom of the spec sheet for our Cooper S. Given the general state of things, I thought it sufficiently equipped, suitably potent and aspirational enough to warrant price parity with, say, a speccy Audi A3 or a base-level Volkswagen Tiguan.

But after several thousand miles at the wheel, I’m running the numbers and wondering if I've been a bit short-changed - particularly when I had such a lovely time with the entry-level Cooper C, which is available for £10,000 less (albeit in our case with two fewer doors).

Sure, you get a healthy bump in power with the S, but rare was the occasion I found the C short on puff, and for the casual driver it’s still more than capable of raising a grin on a country lane. Plus, the C’s more compliant suspension set-up and smaller wheels make it the more refined proposition on our shattered roads. A compelling compromise.