Classy, comfortable, good to drive, safe and packed with technology, the Mercedes A-Class stands among the best premium-badged options in the family car class. A lot of the engines work well in different ways: the entry-level diesel (A180d) if you want great fuel economy; the hot-hatch-quick A250 petrol if speed is your bag; the A250e plug-in hybrid if it's super-cheap company car tax you're after. But for its overall pace, efficiency and cost, the A200 is our pick of the bunch. Reliability is its Achilles heel, though, which is one of the reasons we rank the Audi A3 above it.