ONCE upon a time, if you bought a cheap car it felt like settling for second best. Early Skodas, Ladas and FSOs were grim, utilitarian devices designed and built for getting from A to B over poorly surfaced roads or cart tracks - and nothing else.

Not any more. Lada and FSO are long gone. Skoda has successfully moved upmarket and the cheap end of the car market is inhabited by cars designed in Korea - where standards are far higher than they ever were in communist Czechoslovakia or Russia.

The Chevrolet Cruze is a very important new model for its parent. It's based on a cutting edge platform (in this case GM's Delta 2 chassis) and built to a new standard of fit and finish for the marque.

First impressions are good, the Cruze looks smart and contemporary, not at all cheap or old-fashioned.

I was struck by just how much it looked like an Audi A4.

Parked up next to the German saloon the similarity between the two was startling: the curvature of the clam-shell bonnet, the positioning of the front fog-lights, they way they are picked out in black and even the gaping grille are uncannily similar.

Of course, Audi might not be best pleased but the average Chevvy driver would, no-doubt, be delighted if their motor were to be mistaken for a far more expensive A4.

More good news awaits when you climb inside. The cabin is the best I have experienced from Chevrolet. Particular praise should go to the instruments which use a classy font and cool blue back-lighting for a genuine ''premium" feel. In fact, it's not that dis-similar to the vastly more expensive Vauxhall Insignia.

Chevrolet has added unusual fabric inserts on the dashboard and silvered plastic on the centre console to lighten the otherwise fairly gloomy ambiance. It works, too. There's nothing low rent or uncomfortable in the Cruze's cabin.

The hooded instrument binnacle cuts glare on the main instruments in bright sunshine. All the switchgear is contemporary Vauxhall/Opel stuff. The left hand stalk also switches displays on the fuel computer, which showed the Cruze to be averaging almost 50 mpg during the test.

A chunky leather stitched steering wheel is nice to hold. It has remote switches for the audio (volume and station) and the cruise control.

This top-of-the-range LT model costs a still reasonable £15,195. The test car included Chevvy's classy-looking satellite navigation system with full colour monitor which pulls double duty for the in-car audio system, too. This looks great but costs an extra £750. The audio controls are confusing, though, and there are too many buttons. The CD player is a bespoke unit.

The air conditioning controls are situated directly ahead of the gearstick. During the test the automatic climate control system insisted on turning up the blower to deafening levels, requiring regular manual intervention to keep things peaceful in the otherwise restful cabin.

The seats have reasonable side support. The rear back adjusts via a lever - I would prefer an easier-to-use knob instead.

Legroom in the back is OK for anyone less than six-foot. The front seat backs are scooped out to liberate a bit more knee room and make room for the map pockets. Elbow and headroom are fine. Three adults can sit in the back, but the middle passenger sits on a harder part of the cushion and is therefore not as comfy as his companions on either side. If two people use the rear accommodation the central armrest pulls down to reveal twin drinks holders.

The boot can be opened manually from outside the car. Although the opening is fairly wide it can't compete with a hatchback's versatility. There's a space-saver spare and the boot trim is a bit cheap-looking - no carpeting here. There is, however, a handy hook for bags.

The tyres are Kumho 225/50 on nifty five-spoke alloys. Presumably Kumho is native to the Chevvy's Korean birthplace. A quick Google shows Kumho to be a global top ten tyre company cranking out more than 60 million tyres a year from factories in Korea, China and Vietnam. It also operates a European research facility in Birmingham.

The four-cylinder 2.0-litre diesel is quiet and refined if somewhat reluctant to pull from low revs, particularly from cold.

It's a shame the Cruze is a saloon. A hatchback would be more useful (and likely to sell in greater numbers over here, too). The boot may have a narrow opening but the luggage capacity when you get inside is fine.

The drive is good, smooth, refined and comfortable, but the car's gearing is unusually high. Around town I rarely left second gear and third is good for 60mph at 3,000 rpm - fifth is very much an overdrive.

If you're caught out at the traffic lights you'll need to wait a few seconds for the turbo to spin up before there's meaningful power, but otherwise this is a fine engine and one that's very economical, too.

There are other thoughtful touches, too, like heated wing mirrors and windscreen washers that don't freeze solid on winter mornings.

I really enjoyed the Chevrolet Cruze and can honestly say I was sad to see it go. It may lack the driver involvement of, say, a Ford Focus and the ultimate build of a VW Golf, but it costs thousands less than either.

The Chevrolet badge has more cache than many value brands (even if it does rather conjure up images of a gas guzzling yank tank) and the Cruze feels as thought it has been built to take more abuse than its immediate predecessors. In fact, I very much doubt Cruze owners will suffer an inferiority complex in the company car park.

Second best? I don't think so.

SPEC CHECK: Engine: 2.0-litre turbo-diesel 0 to 62mph: 10.3 seconds Consumption: 50.4mpg Top speed: 124 mph Insurance Group: 7 Emissions: 149 g/km Equipment: Electric windows, mirrors, automatic headlights, heated mirrors, alloy wheels, climate control, CD player, fuel computer.Price: £15,195