With this year’s new ‘67 registration plates’ now available, autumn marks a fine opportunity for updating your set of wheels. But what are the latest and best, versatile and practical cars taking to the road this season…?

suzuki-swift

Suzuki Swift

On sale from June this year and available from around £11,000, the latest Suzuki Swift (its fourth generation) is selling like hot cakes – and for good reason. This supermini (or city car, if you prefer) owes its popularity not just to its dependable quality, but also its diverse range; it runs the gamut and includes the SZ3 model, which boasts a 1.2-litre Dualjet engine, manual transmission, air conditioning, six airbags, front electric windows, 15-inch wheels and a touch of luxury in the shape of a leather steering wheel. Plus, each model comes complete with a DAB digital radio with Bluetooth and four speakers – a decent starting point for an in-car stereo system before you decide to upgrade, asking yourself ‘where are retailers for car audio near me?’.

Even better, the SZ5 2WD comes complete with the Smart Hybrid Vehicle by Suzuki (SHVS) system, ensuring that whenever you’re faced with a standing-start or whenever you’re accelerating, your fuel consumption will be smartly compressed via electric motor assist; the electric power provided through regenerative braking. Clever, eh?

nissan-qashqai

Nissan Qashqai

Still Nissan’s most successful model throughout Europe (2.3 million sales in the last 10 years), the Qashqai has been a pioneer among crossover SUVs and remains a market leader with its boast-worthy 10.3% market-share. Why? Well, the fact it’s won in excess of 80 awards, among them 19 Car of the Year titles, doesn’t hurt and its new model ensures the star car’s better than ever, offering terrific handling and a refined driving experience. Plus, innovative technology touches have been added (like ProPILOT, Nissan’s autonomous drive capability) and safety features have been improved.

honda

Hyundai Tucson

The latest incarnation of this compact SUV from the Korean brand angles to be all things to all people. Does it achieve this? Well, the signs are good. Indeed, the emphasis is on versatility and capability; whether you’re looking to drive across the country (and even cross-country, to some extent) or just do the daily school-run. Thus, the 2017 Tucson’s various models (S, SE, SE Nav, Premium and its top-of-the-range Premium SE) are blessed with decent and dependable engines, in addition to 2WD or 4WD (torque on demand) options. Both Auto Express and Top Gear have given it an impressive four out five-stars-rating.

kia-sportage

Kia Sportage

The Sportage is the Korean company’s best-selling model in the UK and its all-new, fourth-generation version, retailing from around £18,000, is proving a record-breaking success story. Not least because it seeks to push the boundaries in fuel efficiency, safety, connectivity and comfort for driver and passengers – and because its range has been extended with the launch of the sporty-looking GT-Line S and KX-5 models. The range also boasts six different 1.6-litre turbocharged gasoline direct injection (T-GDi) engines, available for both 2WD and 4WD models. Moreover, the engines’ efficiency in generating reduced CO2 emissions handily ensures lower company car tax.

toyota-yaris

Toyota Yaris

Finally, proud of the fact 10 million of their customers have made the switch to a hybrid vehicle via the Yaris, Toyota have delightedly released their latest version of the hugely popular motor, emphasising, as they have been, its dynamic appearance and smooth driving experience, as well as its better-than-ever safety credentials. As has always been the case with the Yaris (and, fundamentally, why it continues to be such a hit with the punters), this new incarnation’s all about high fuel efficiency with low emissions, its new 1.5-litre automatic hybrid engine boasting 85.6 miles per gallon and CO2 emissions of just 75g/km.

Safety-wise, it’s fitted with a pre-collision system, an automatic high beam, a lane departure alert and road sign assist technology, while before you pop into one of your nearby car audio shops (or, indeed, online), be aware that stereo-wise, the new Yaris offers Bluetooth and iPod/ MP3 interface as standard; so, there’s decent audio connectivity as a starting point for installing a high-quality in-car entertainment system.