Of the half dozen cars we economy tested this year, the Hyundai i30 Tourer achieved the best fuel efficiency, returning 24mpg.

The official combined figure suggests 74.3mpg should be possible in solo driving, although in practice you would need to drive very gently to get anywhere near that.

The i30 Tourer impressed in other ways besides being frugal. In the lane-change test, the Hyundai performed as well as any car in this class, feeling stable and in control even with the caravan sliding behind it.

At high speeds the i30 needed the odd steering correction, but nothing untoward – we never felt any small movements were about to get out of hand.

Acceleration is rather steady, needing 16.4 seconds to go from 30-60mph. But the i30 certainly doesn’t feel underpowered towing a caravan weighted to 85% of the kerbweight. It did need quite a bit of clutch slip to pull up the 1-in-6 slope used for our hill start test, though.

Like our drivers, the practicality test team were mostly happy with the Hyundai. The large boot didn’t have room for every item of holiday luggage, but for a relatively small estate car the 602-litre capacity is generous.

We were also pleased to see a reversing camera with a clear view of the towball, and the 80kg noseweight maximum is reassuringly high for such a light car.

The i30 Tourer is priced keenly, and has the reassurance of a five-year/100,000-mile warranty.