ON THE ROAD: THERE’S a lot to like about the X.

Certain to stand out from its rivals, the 500X offers style and practicality.

Our car was powered by a 1.4 litre multi-air engine, putting out close to 140bhp. Petrol powered, it would suit most people, but diesel variants are available.

The manual gearbox is precise and has a good feel, but the same cannot be said for the steering which is pretty lifeless.

All things are relative though and the 500X is not out to provide thrill a minute motoring.

The ride is pleasant enough on the dual carriageway or around town and there’s minimal body lean if driven respectfully.

ON THE INSIDE: THE interior of the 500X presents both a comfortable and pleasant place in which to sit.

It’s well designed and pleasant on the eye, verging on funky. There is a reliance on workmanlike plastics, but as a father of three boys I found the surfaces were able to withstand their best efforts and were easy to wipe down and keep clean.

Vision is good, although I did appreciate the parking sensors as the sloping rear means it isn’t always easy to judge the car’s extremities.

WHAT DO YOU GET: TECHNO-leather trimmed steering wheel with audio controls, automatic dual-zone climate control, Drive Mood Selector, Uconnect touchscreen with Bluetooth audio streaming, 3.5ins multifunction display, satin chrome finish door handles, front moulding and boot, off road bumpers, rear spoiler, chrome painted exhaust pipe, tinted windows, roof rails, rear parking sensors and electrically adjustable mirrors with defrosting function.

Additionally, there was fog lights with cornering function, hill hold, start and stop engine and a chilled storage compartment.

Options fitted included 18ins Trekking alloys, leather interior, electric sunroof, heated front seats, gearbox controls on steering wheel, lane departure warning, HiFi by Beats and several comfort, visibility and safety packs.

HOW PRACTICAL IS IT: THERE’S no bashing of elbows in the rear with space plentiful in the back and those in the front will be grateful of the ability to stretch out.

With the seats up there are 350 litres of space in the boot, drop them and that rises to 1,000 litres.

The rear seats fold and tumble and the front passenger seat folds flat to aid the stowage of long or bulky items.

RUNNING COSTS: FIAT says it should be possible to get a shade over 47mpg on the combined cycle from our petrol-powered car. CO2 emissions on our model came in 139g/km.

VERDICT: ATTRACTIVELY styled and practical, definitely worth a further look.

ALTERNATIVES: Skoda Yeti, Nissan Juke.