HYUNDAI continues to improve its offering with every model, it seems, and the new Tucson is no exception.

It’s described by the Koreans as a compact SUV, but it feels anything but compact and offers plenty for your money.

The Tucson is laden with clever tech, has plenty of engine options and four-wheel-drive if and when you want it.

For starters every car gets plenty – alloys, air con, auto lights, Bluetooth, downhill brake control, electric windows, reclining rear seats, digital radio and trailer stability assist are all on the base S model.

As you can tell from that, Hyundai is clearly serious about the Tucson being capable off-road as well as on it – the option of four-wheel-drive on demand shows that as much as anything.

For less than £19,000 that’s good entry spec and great value for a car in this sector.

And you can build on that to your heart’s content.

SE trim gets bigger alloys, dual-zone climate control, heated front seats, lane departure warning and lane keep assist, a bit of leather, rear parking sensors and plenty besides. That’s a good bit of kit for not much more than £20k.

SE Nav adds an eight-inch touch screen nav system, reversing camera and a couple of other bits.

Premium, meanwhile, gives you 19in alloys, adds auto wipers, automatic emergency braking and various other safety features, heated rear seats, parking sensors all round and lots of other finishing trim.

I got a drive in a top-end Premium SE, which brings the Tucson into borderline luxury territory, with such treats as a heated steering wheel, more chrome, keyless entry and start, auto parking, ventilated front seats, electric tailgate and a panoramic roof.

The engine choices are plentiful, too. There’s a new 1.6 turbo petrol, boasting a fairly meaty 177ps for those looking for a half-decent mix of power and efficiency. It manages 62mph in 9.5 seconds, but returns a reasonable claimed 37 to the gallon and emits 177g/km of CO2. There’s also a 132ps version, which makes 44 to the gallon and gets CO2 down to 147g/km.

But it’s the diesels that make the most sense in a big car like this, with 1.7 and 2.0 units available.

They’re torquey and offer far better economy figures – 61 to the gallon and 119g/km on the smaller output and 58mpg and 127g/km on the Blue Drive 2.0 – and there’s a more powerful one as well, with the obvious compromises on economy.

The drive is impressive generally – confident, assured and positive as far as handling goes. This certainly isn’t a big wallower.

Looks are sharp and purposeful and the interior feels high-end, with quality finishes and a decent touch screen system.

The Tucson is certainly somewhere that the whole family will be comfortable with on the long haul, with plenty of room in the boot too.

And versatility is one of the Tucson’s strengths – you can spend between £18,695 and £30,345 on your perfect version.

MUST BLOB

Find out more at westovergroup.co.uk/Hyundai