I T'S called the Sportrider and the racy special version of SEAT's Ibiza is everything you expect from a brand whose success has been built on providing more fun at the wheel.

This is a more sporty hatchback – one of the quickest examples of the popular SEAT supermini, in fact.

Body-hugging sports seats come as part of the limited-run Sportrider deal. So, too, does firm sport suspension.

It's also a pretty quick car with a top speed of 117mph. So, yes, it's a vehicle that will certainly appeal to drivers seeking greater enjoyment at the wheel.

Yet this is also a hatchback that comes up trumps in the economy stakes because its power plant is a diesel engine and a cracking derv-burner at that.

The lusty 1.6-litre engine delivers 105PS, which means it is pumping out the same power as the 1.6-litre petrol burner of one of the great hot hatchbacks of the 1980s, the original Peugeot 205 GTI.

But there is a big difference between the two cars when it comes to economy.

Driven carefully, the Sportrider version of the Ibiza will give you 60mpg-plus motoring in general running. I averaged close on 50mpg and I must admit that I didn't hang about when driving the car.

Its lower CO2 emissions mean it has a band C rating when it comes to road tax, so there's no duty to pay in the first year of ownership. Thereafter the road tax fee is £35.

Impressed? I was. And not simply by the car's performance and economy, either.

The five-door hatchback also delighted by being such a great car to drive. It felt so good at the wheel: taut, responsive – and just so dynamic.

The firmed-up suspension gives this Ibiza a real sporting nature and ensures the driver always stays in control in more enthusiastic cornering.

But then this has always been the case thanks to SEAT'S renowned Agile Chassis that's made the supermini a favourite with drivers seeking greater driving enjoyment.

The chassis was updated in the development of the current Ibiza and with wider front and rear tracks the car looks and feels even more 'planted' than its predecessor while also delivering both a composed ride and class-leading, sporty handling.

Add the new suspension settings to a stiffened, yet lighter body and the result is an even more involving drive, as the changes deliver on SEAT's promise of better agility, stability and handling.

An increase in length has brought greater room in the cabin and an increase of 25 litres of boot space, bringing total capacity up to 292 litres.

The backs of the rear seats fold down when greater capacity is required and there is additional carrying capacity when the car doesn't have a spare wheel.

The Ibiza is a surprisingly roomy supermini and the five-door model is ideal for those with children because its extra openings make life easier when on the school run or placing a child seat in the rear.

The driver and front passenger sit lower than in the last Ibiza, and enjoy greater headroom as a consequence.

A lower seat also makes for a more sporty driving position.

The car has a chunky, three-spoke steering wheel and the instruments are nicely angled towards the driver.

An innovation is the option to connect a portable sat-nav system direct to the dashboard using a clever, pre-installed dock located above the ventilation nozzles.

The car on test came with the pre-installation kit as well as a winter pack, including heated front seats, headlight washer system and heated front washer nozzles.

It also had bi-xenon headlights with daytime running lights.

Former Lamborghini designer Luc Dunckerwolke, with iconic supercars such as the Gallardo to his name, is seeking to make SEAT models even more successful and he has certainly created an attractive trio in the five-door Ibiza, its three-door stablemate, the SportCoupe, and the ST estate version.

The Ibiza has more angular bodywork in its latest guise, looks more robust and I like the way the designer has repositioned the headlights and radiator grille lower down to create an arrowhead look.

There are S, S Copa, SE Cop and FR versions of the five-door Ibiza in addition to the Sportrider examples, with the line-up embracing some ten models in all.

Make no mistake, the Ibiza is a car which truly evokes the youthful spirit of the brand which was once promoted as the wild child of the Volkswagen group.

It's sporty, fun to drive and, in the case of the diesel-engined version, offers more spirited motoring in tandem with excellent economy.