FOR those who do most of their driving in heavily-congested towns and cities a set of wheels that's fun-to-drive, easy to manoeuvre and high on safety is just the ticket.

Throw bags of space for up to five, nimble handling, 55mpg fuel consumption coupled with low emissions and you have something that's certainly worth checking out.

Now, while there are quite a few offerings that come close to fitting the bill, Chevrolet's little Spark city car is certainly worth looking at, if only for its funky, chunky looks.

For this replacement for the now long gone Matiz city car - remember the one which started life sporting a Daewoo badge before the struggling Korean maker were bailed out by General Motors - just happened to be a breath of fresh air.

Those bright sparks at Chevrolet showed just how a city car should be and when it was launched, the entry model came with a price tag that was then cheaper than the Matiz it replaced.

To keep things relatively simple, the Spark came with the choice of just two four-cylinder petrol engines of one-litre and 1.2-litre capacity, engines that can still be found on brand new Spark models today.

Strangely enough, both the 67bhp and 80bhp units offer exactly the same fuel economy and emit identical 119g/km CO2 figures.

As the figures show, neither engine was designed for speed, but in fairness both can turn it on throughout busy town traffic when pushed hard.

Out of town, both choices will cruise away happily up to the national speed limit, but the smaller powered car will struggle somewhat to keep up the pace on steeper inclines.

Inside the car there's a remarkable amount of space with plenty of legroom for taller passengers. Headroom is also better than a lot of competitors because of the Spark's high roofline. However, because of its narrow width - the Spark is just a tad over 1.5 metres wide - it is best served as a four-seater.

Don't expect a huge boot - remember this is a city car - but with the split rear seats folded it will swallow up a respectable enough 568 litres, or three medium-sized cases. 

Out on the road, the Spark behaves quite impeccably, with the ride at the top end of passenger comfort compared with other cars in its class.

Most bumps and holes are soaked up by the car's front McPherson strut and rear torsion beam suspension and while there is a bit of body roll to be felt on corners, it is no more than to be expected on a small budget-priced vehicle.

All Sparks come kitted out with front, side and curtain airbags helping the car gain a four-star rating in Euro NCAP tests.

The LS offered the likes of remote central locking and 14-inch wheels, and you may find one with the optional Plus pack which added electric windows, alloy wheels, trip computer, heated door mirrors and roof bars.

However, to get any real decent level of creature comforts, try and go for the larger engined version which came with higher spec LT trim or better still the range-topping LTZ. 

Price-wise, you should be looking at paying from around the £3,750 mark up to £5,150 for a three-year-old motor with 30,000 miles on the clock.

And because the Spark is not the most common city car around, it does mean that what you get is a little gem for not an awful lot of money, with the added bonus of that tad of exclusivity.