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When it comes to looks this little car is a sex kitten. Sleek and well proportioned, it’s the sort of car that you could imagine purring when you run your hand across it. However, like any good feline, there’s a side to the thing that’s more than ready to scratch and spit when the mood takes it.

In the fun stuff where the corners are no more than fifty metres apart, and wind around as God intended, the handling is both precocious and forgiving. Turn the wheel and the car turns with ease and accuracy. There’s little in the way of body roll and the suspension delivers plenty of feedback to the driver. It’s not easy to get the little Pug out of shape, but if you do start the car slithering across the camber, it’s easy to control on the throttle and you never feel that things are going to turn ugly.

Which brings me to the driving position and equipment. This is a small car and you’ll have to accept that once in the seat, you are more or less slotted into position rather than lounging about in armchair-like comfort. In truth the seat adjustment is good and the general position and feel is comfortable, but there’s a fly in the soup, the foot pedals are simply too close together.

Equipment is good and easy to operate, although the column mounted radio control stick is not as simple to use as other manufacturer systems. In terms of room there’s only really room for two, anyone getting in the back will either have to be very small or only traveling a short distance.

These days how much fuel gets sucked through the engine is a key buying factor and once again Peugeot have produced a car with stunning economy. The base model 206 was astounding, returning 16.4km/l on test, and the GTi version was not far off the same. This puts Peugeots hot hatch into budget micro car territory, and is something the competition will have to work hard to match.

The Peugeot 206 GTi is a great small car that is easy on the eye, easy on the pocket to run, and immensely satisfying to own and drive. It’s not a family car, nor a commuter hatch, nor a full-on sports car. It’s a mixture of all three. It’s like a French mistress, chic and adorable, with enough rudeness to make it exciting.

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