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Cars and Transportation

European champions in the compact class?

June 29, 2016

Drive it! compares six compact cars in search of a European champ. But they all prove to be strong contenders. Can Opel, Toyota, Fiat, Seat, Kia and Hyundai all be winners?

https://p.dw.com/p/1JFIb

We put six compact cars, each representing a different European country, through their paces in the search for a champ. Opel's new Astra is made in Germany and is a great allrounder. The Toyota Auris comes from England and boasts an advanced hybrid powertrain. Italy's new Tipo is well built and amazingly cheap. The Seat Leon Ecomotive from Spain has just three cylinders, but that is offset by turbo and direct injection. The Kia Ceed and Hyundai i30 share a common platform but look different and have different specs. With so many strong competitors in the running, it is not clear there is going to be a winner. Can they all be champions?