Having spent a glorious hot summer week driving around in Vauxhall's new Tigra, I found myself imagining one of the early meetings in the car's development. Up the front sit the eager stylists and roof mechanism designers. Right behind them, listening keenly to the project leader are the NVH boffins. At the back, playing noughts and crosses, imagining the noughts are doughnuts left by the rear tyres of a Monaro sit the ride and handling experts, not really listening as their leader points out the direction the Tigra is to take and its target audience.

A few years later and the Tigra is launched, replacing the likable coupe-only predecessor with a trendy folding hardtop mechanism, but strictly two seats. The stylists have done a good job and deserve a hearty pat on the back. In place of the original Tigra's intersecting curves we get creases and aggressive lines culminating in the new-look Vauxhall beak. The Tigra's front three quarters is its best angle, especially so with the roof stowed, revealing the cool matt silver roll hoops. From the rear, the Tigra has hints of the current Toyota MR2 and unsurprisingly, its biggest rival, the Peugeot 206 CC. I don't think that our pictures show how dainty the Tigra is in the metal. Sure, it has a sharp nose and the Sport versions sit on good alloys, but next to most other cars the Tigra just looks small and cute.

No doubt that is exactly what the designers were asked to do, as the target demographic must be a woman. An unscientific consensus amongst a broad range of my friends concluded that most men won't admit that the Tigra looks good, one or two stretching to acknowledge that it does look better than the dating Peugeot, and even the (to be released) Micra C+C. Some didn't like the 'Matt Star Silver' two-tone roof, but that is optional anyway. The women all loved the Tigra's looks, and in this market segment surely that's all that matters?

It appears not. Customers are a fussy bunch so Vauxhall knew it could not rely on its capable stylists alone. Vauxhall enlisted the expertise of Heuliez to design and develop a suitable folding hardtop for the Tigra (you may spot the odd 'H' badges on the Tigra's wings). We like the design; it is space efficient and quick. In the luggage compartment is a neat movable panel, which is locked in either of two positions: fully forward to liberate the full 440 litres of boot space, or half way back, denoting where the roof will fold into. With this panel in its rearmost position and the ignition on, simply pull up the handbrake, release the clips above the side windows and hold down the tactile button in the driver's door. In only 20 seconds the whole roof folds itself into the boot and the windows return to their previous position. We found that you can fool the car into doing this while on the move if you move the handbrake to its first notch, though wouldn't recommend such a thing above 10-15mph...

To be honest, many prospective buyers will be reaching for their cheque books after witnessing the display of the roof folding, but still there will be others that care what the rest of the car is like. Well, open the sturdy doors (note the stiffening lugs between the rear edge of the doors and the body) and sit in. The Tigra's interior is actually quite roomy (for two) given the wee external dimensions, but more striking is the impressive feeling of quality pervading the cabin. The optional leather (£600) fitted to our test car helped of course, but all the switchgear and even the plastics really do feel like they belong in a bigger, more expensive car and are a step up from the current Corsa. Even at rest the driving controls feel good, with well-spaced pedals, a neat steering wheel with stereo controls, and a slick-moving gearshift. Unsurprisingly, the dashboard shares a lot with the Corsa.

Take the Tigra out on a quick test drive and you should have enough time to uncover its ride and handling abilities. We were impressed by the car's body and wheel control. Thanks to well-tuned damping the car feels light and nimble yet comfortable. There is little body twisting, with only mild scuttle shake detected over badly pitted roads. Turn in is sharp and there is loads of grip from the 205/45 low-profile tyres fitted to the Sport. There is no traction control on the 1.4-litre version, and it doesn't need it, even in the wet. Turn in is immediate and the Tigra takes up a neutral stance through all corners. Body roll is well contained, and it is actually good fun to chuck the little Vauxhall into tighter corners with a little trailing brake. This results in mild stabilising oversteer, which even the smallest engine manages to pull out off. Sudden mid-corner lift-off doesn't bring on any scary surprises either, just pulling the nose into line. In 1.4-litre tune the Tigra could never be described as a sports car, but the chassis is competent and the car is comfortable and fun to drive.

Now comes the tricky bit; you like the look of the Tigra, you love its roof and you're impressed by its interior and standard equipment. As far as driving is concerned, the Sport trim is the one to go for, but which engine to have? Budget comes into this decision of course, and a financial limitation would be the only reason to opt for the 1.4-litre unit fitted to our test car. The engine itself can't be faulted, nor its refined installation (those NVH guys did what was asked of them), but it really does not suit the dynamic image of the Tigra, and is totally at odds with the Sport tag. This four-pot is refined and smooth, even when homing in on the rev limiter, and it returns good fuel consumption figures too, even when being hammered, but it is completely devoid of any feeling of power. The first time I put my foot down I thought I was experiencing turbo lag, and then the engine hit its speed limiter... If your budget can be stretched a little, I would strongly advise you to opt for the 1.8-litre.

For the price, the Tigra competes with the Peugeot 206 CC and the forthcoming Micra C+C. In our opinions it looks better than either of those cars, and should drive at least as well. The Peugeot in particular is getting close to the end of its life, but it is better value than the Tigra in general, and has a 1.6-litre engine in the entry-level model. It is likely that many of the Tigra's qualities will be transferred to the next Vauxhall Corsa, due to be revealed towards the end of 2005. This bodes well for that car's success, and if its chassis is as good as the Tigra's then we could have the making of a cracking little super-mini, perhaps even a Corsa VXR! Vauxhall's range is in good hands.