According to 'Which?' magazine, 'a well equipped Nissan Note is all the car you'll ever need'. If you're looking for a compact family car, that's as good a recommendation to start with as any.

The Note, in case you didn't know, is one of those 'supermini-MPVs', a breed of small hatches with slightly larger dimensions and a series of MPV-style touches. Cars like Renault's Modus, Ford's Fusion, Vauxhall's Meriva and this Nissan all campaign in this sector - and more are coming.

To keep their offering fresh, Nissan have recently introduced a series of improvements. The latest model year cars come with fully body coloured bumpers, Bluetooth phone operation with steering wheel activated controls, an MP3 auxiliary jack socket, air conditioning with glove box cooler, Nissan's 'flexi-board' storage system, front seat storage nets and foldaway tables, front and rear electric windows, plus the combi-meter display which is now set in a silver background with orange indicator needles. In other words, a 'well equipped Nissan Note' could these days be the base model in the range.

That variant is now badged 'VISIA' and is priced from £9,990. Above this variant sits the ACENTA trim level that most customers will probably choose. Go for this and for an extra £500 premium, you car can be ordered as an 'ACENTA R'. This seems like a decent deal as this package includes quite a lot. The 'R' stands for Red to acknowledge the unique black on red detailing in the upholstery for the seats and door pockets, plus an exterior colour designed to get your heart pounding called 'Emotion Red'. If Red is not your favourite paint colour, then this variant can also be selected in a pearl Black metallic. You also get 'TEKNA'-styled 16" alloy wheels and rear privacy glass. If all that's not enough, 'TEKNA' is the flagship specification.

"Designers of supermini-MPVs can make them bigger, smarter or both. The Note's stylists opted for the latter option"

As before, three engine choices are being offered. The two petrol units comprise an 87bhp 1.4-litre as well as a 108bhp 1.6-litre powerplant as seen in the sportiest Micra supermini but the big seller is likely to remain the diesel engine, a 1.5-litre dCi common rail unit borrowed from the Micra range with 85bhp on tap.

Designers of supermini-MPVs can make them bigger, smarter or both. The Note's stylists opted for the latter option. This car was designed by Toyota - Taiji Toyota that is - one of Nissan's most talented stylists. Toyota points out that the Tone is "tall, but not too tall. We wanted a roomy interior and the benefits of a high driving position but we did not want to make the car look top heavy. With the long wheelbase and body we feel we have achieved a shape that will appeal on both a practical and emotional level."

It would be natural if potential buyers were comparing this car to its French cousin, Renault's Modus, a car which shares all three of the Nissan's engines. However, at 3.99m long, the Note is significantly longer (by 20cm) over its Gallic stablemate. At first glance, the Modus looks cheaper but only because it comes with the option of a 1.2-litre engine the Nissan doesn't bother with. Compare like-engine derivatives alongside each other and the Note is a few hundred pounds cheaper car for car.

The Nissan's interior certainly feels very spacious and that's in no small part down to the fact that the wheelbase of 2.60m is longer than that of cars like the MK5 Volkswagen Golf. This available space can be optimised between luggage and rear passengers with the aid of a sliding rear bench seat as well as the usual folding rear arrangement. The Note's most interesting feature, however, is the split level luggage bay. Most would never know that beneath a flat loading deck there's a 250mm deep second layer that can keep valuables out of the way of prying eyes. Cup holders, bag holding hooks and umbrella stowing points also hint at the Note's attention to detail.

Although the exterior design isn't going to set pulses racing, the Note has an athletic, wheel at each corner stance that gives it a rather more masculine look than the rather mimsy supermini-MPVs that have become the norm. The dashboard isn't going to have designers in black turtle necks swooning but it's a tidy piece of work with even the entry level models offering a level of fit and finish that's rare in this sector. Colour and material choices are far from conventional and the cluster of instruments around the centre console is rapidly becoming a Nissan trademark.

The underpinnings of the car are nothing too novel with MacPherson strut suspension up front and a torsion bar at the back. A 'sporting' RX version is on sale in Japan although it's doubtful that enthusiast drivers here will queue up for such a Note, especially when Vauxhall seem to have that sector of the market squared away with their 180bhp Meriva VXR. For the majority of supermini-MPV drivers, however, the Note is a model they'd be ill advised to overlook.

Perhaps Nissan are rather belatedly realising that the Note has been rather overlooked by buyers up to this point. Unfairly so in fact for it's an excellent product if you're looking for affordable, no-nonsense family travel in a compact package.

TOP 5 NOTE DEALS

The results below show the top NOTE deals on buyacar

	Nissan Note 1.4 Acenta 5dr Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £185	Saving £1,014	Price £10,426
	Nissan Note 1.5 dCi Tekna 5dr Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £237	Saving £1,014	Price £12,776
	Nissan Note 1.6 Acenta 5dr Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £203	Saving £1,014	Price £11,226
	Nissan Note 1.6 Acenta 5dr Auto Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £220	Saving £1,014	Price £12,101
	Nissan Note 1.6 Tekna 5dr Auto Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £248	Saving £1,014	Price £13,351

typical 11.12% APR

PCP finance quote over 48 months,  10,000 miles pa,  deposit of £1000