We live in the age of the two-car family. Most of those with kids have a largish-car for main duties, plus a supermini-sized one as a runabout. Which is all very well in theory. In reality, the small car in question ends up having to cart the fruits of large supermarket shopping expeditions and embark on four hour trips to visit Aunty Marjorie. Which is why families have been turning to small cars that are larger, faster and better engineered, yet still as nippy and frugal as small cars need to be. Models, in fact, like Toyota's second generation Yaris.

Now every manufacturer will tell you that its small car is well capable of fulfilling such a role, but self-evidently, some are better at it than others. That's one reason why we have a long term test fleet and subject key cars to the full family treatment over long periods. Having analysed the small car market, we've narrowed our choice in it down to two or three superminis that we think really are primo picks for the family wanting a small car that can be.. well, more than just a small car. Toyota's Yaris is one of them and we've been running one for the last six months.

So how has it got on? Well, I should start by saying that nothing's broken or come off, nothing rattles and of course, there have been no breakdown mishaps. You'd expect that of course with a brand new car, though you can't always take it for granted. Normally, we find on our long term test fleet that after a few months, you start getting rattly pieces of trim and odd things that stop working quite as they should. There's been nothing like that with this little Yaris, despite the high mileage that it's done in our hands. As indeed you might expect from a marque with a peerless reliability record.

We've purposely subjected our car to a diet of long journeys as well as urban work and it's a surprisingly easy travelling companion for motorway stuff. In most small cars, you get out of the seat after a three or four hour trip and feel yourself to be in need of a visit to the chiropractor. This Yaris is different. No, you don't feel as fresh as you would do if you'd stepped out of one of the brand's larger Auris or Avensis models but this car is a surprisingly comfortable and refined steer nonetheless. It's also, in the diesel D-4D form we've been using, impressively economical.

"The Yaris is as close to perfect as you can reasonably expect a small, family-minded car to be.."

Our Business View Editor Jamie Unwin, who has spent most time in the car, reckons he's getting pretty close to the claimed 62.8 mpg on the combined cycle on a regular basis, almost twice what he was getting in his previous car. Ever more importantly, he isn't always looking round the carpark for something larger to change into when a lengthy journey beckons. The Toyota's 1.4-litre D-4D also has exemplary green credentials, emitting only 119g/km of CO2. We went for the standard five-speed manual gearbox on our car but we could have chosen Toyota's MultiMode transmission featuring automatic or sequential gear selection.

When I've managed to prize the car away from him and subject it to the sticky-fingered attentions of my family, it's been clear that the Yaris manages the more normal aspects of a supermini's existence just as effectively as it does the abnormal ones. As I write this, it's actually very difficult to think of a single aspect of the car to criticise. All right, so it's not the most exciting supermini of its kind, either to look at or to drive, but as an exercise in covering all the bases, this design has plenty to be said for it. Plus, it also feels very well built. The double-sealed doors have been designed specifically to feel thicker and weightier and shut with a thunk rather than a clang. The unconventional fascia looks far removed from the supermini norm, with a 3D effect on the main display. More conservative buyers may find it a bit unusual but it's certainly distinctive.

On first acquaintance with the car, the Yaris' diesel engine felt a bit pokier than I remembered and, sure enough, close perusal of the spec details revealed that it's had a bit of refurbishment as part of its installation into the MK2 Yaris model. Basically, that's been about an increase in the injection pressure to 1600 bar with six-hole injectors. This makes the fuel burn more efficiently, giving increased power and better fuel economy. This has resulted in an engine that delivers 89bhp at 3,600rpm compared to 74bhp at 4,000rpm for the previous model. The sprint from 0 to 62mph is achieved in 10.7 seconds going on to a top speed of 109mph.

On the road, the Yaris 1.4-litre D-4D is a competent if not an exhilarating drive. There is plenty of low-end torque to make town driving a breeze and the steering is light and responsive. Visibility is good all round, except for the large 'A' pillars which you have to peer around on tight bends.

There's only so much money that can be thrown at a car where margins are this tight and there are plenty of unlined cubbies and hard plastics on display. This is somewhat disappointing for something otherwise so well built. Still, the flip side of this is that the interior is hard-wearing and the combined attentions of my three girls (Caris, age 10, Ellie, aged 7 and Amy, aged 2) have failed to corrupt it.

We chose our trim level carefully, opting for the TR trim that is rightly favoured by many current Yaris buyers. In this guise, the car cuts quite at dash while managing to steer well-clear of the kind of extrovert accessories that make some superminis look like they're benefiting from the proceeds of a ram raid at Halfords. The compact, chunky lines of the standard Yaris are lifted by classy 15" Savara alloy wheels and front fog lights. The TR is based on the middle ranking T3 trim level so buyers also get that car's body-coloured door handles and bumpers to enhance its appearance.

Inside, there's more tasteful detailing including chrome scuff plates on the door sills and an upmarket silver-effect coating for the door pulls and handbrake button. Otherwise, equipment levels are high as those familiar with the Yaris range would expect. The TR comes packing desirables such as a six-speaker CD stereo, air-conditioning and no fewer than nine airbags. A matching leather steering wheel and gearknob round things off nicely. TR prices start at £9,545 and top out at the £11,545 for the diesel five-door we tried.

In summary, the Yaris isn't perfect but it's as close to perfect as you can reasonably expect a small, family-minded car to be. The best thing I can say is that after a few months of use, this Toyota is higher up my recommendation list than it was at the start. And that we don't want to give it back to Toyota any time soon...

TOP 5 YARIS DEALS

The results below show the top YARIS deals on buyacar

	Toyota Yaris 1.3 VVT-i SR Nav 5dr Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £163	Saving £2,551	Price £9,089
	Toyota Yaris 1.4 D-4D SR Nav 5dr Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £178	Saving £2,691	Price £9,949
	Toyota Yaris 1.4 D-4D SR Nav 3dr Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £170	Saving £2,626	Price £9,514
	Toyota Yaris 1.4 D-4D TR 5dr Spec edn Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £171	Saving £2,073	Price £9,567
	Toyota Yaris 1.4 D-4D TR 3dr Spec edn Hatchback
	ETR	Mthly £162	Saving £2,008	Price £9,132

typical 13.01% APR

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