Looks good, handles well, but could suffer when compared to its rivals.

The C30 is a concerted effort by Volvo to enter new territory. It has gatecrashed the traditional territory of the magnificent VW Golf, the Ford Focus and the Audi A3 and, if the responses of the youngsters who crowded round the car were anything to go by, Volvo has shed it’s unfounded ‘boring and boxy’ image once and for all.

The handling of the 1.8SE Sport couldn’t be faulted. At urban speeds the car was nippy and responsive and cornered with confidence. The interior is tasteful and appropriate, but the hard plastics around the bottom of the doors were easily scratched and would age quickly.

The driving position gives good visibility and the front seats were generous and comfortable. Even after a six-hour drive to Cornwall I could have done more. In the back two extra adults could be seated comfortably, but this is definitely a four-person car, no more.

The big drawback in taking rear-seated passengers is access. For the young fit and able this is one thing – and a bit of a laugh.

Don’t try and get anyone over the age of 45 to clamber in to the back, they won’t thank you for it and they might never recover!

Marketed, some might say strangely, in the same way as vegetable extract Marmite - ‘love it or hate it’ – the C30’s styling certainly turned a few heads. And I liked it.

However, in a crowded market place it is hard to see where this effort fits in. At motorway speeds it cruised well, but acceleration at top speeds proved sluggish and frustrating.

For a small car the economy wasn’t great either. The mpg, even cruising on the motorway, was in the mid-to-low thirties – probably on the low side of expectations. And when it comes to luggage space the C30 hits a low. Compared to its rivals, it is less than generous and nothing more than adequate. It would accommodate luggage for a weekend break, but go on holiday for a week - as we did - and the stingy space causes a bit of a problem.

Overall the C30 has much to be proud of. Volvo has got the styling right and the engine is a match for many of its competitors.

However, it’s probably never going to be anything more than a good second car, and at these prices even that could be optimistic.

However, love is blind to many a fault and with its unique look it will probably set a few hearts a-flutter and carve a niche for itself at the younger end of the market, which probably isn’t such a bad thing afterall.