THERE'S lot of competition in the compact 'crossover' market - with a personal favourite being the excellent Ford Kuga - but I think Mazda's CX-5 might be that little bit better.

It's a solid and chunky-looking individual (a bit like myself!) and there is a definite feel of a well put together car about this largely unheralded little star turn. And, it's pretty smart-looking too and, for those conscious of the pennies, you can expect to get between 50 and 60+ miles or more out of every gallon of fuel, depending on your choice of three engine options.

That's all down to Mazda's adoption of what it calls SkyActiv design criteria, which embraces all areas of engineering and body design to take a holistic approach to keeping running costs down. It's an admirable take on how to do such and it allows the likes of Mazda's excellent 2.2-litre turbo diesel still to be a force to be reckoned with, rather than taking the option of simply downsizing the engine to meet engine emission standards and lower fuel costs.

On test for us was the range-leading SportNav version with the most tuned 2.2-litre diesel which gives 173bhp and the intelligent all wheel-drive system was through a six-speed manual. Options include a detuned 148bhp version of the same engine or a 163hp 2.0-litre petrol.

Manual gearing is the only choice with the petrol model, but the diesel versions can also be specified with a six-speed auto-gearchange.

The petrol comes with two-wheel-drive, with that also being an option for the diesel, but for country use the 4 x 4 system, while not the most sophisticated in the world, is the ideal choice. It provides a safe drive on all but the most hazardous surfaces and will handle muddy grass and slightly greasy roads with equal aplomb.

Some of these small 'crossover' types make you feel as if you are wrestling with the wheel on some of our winding and undulating roads, but that's not the case with the CX-5. It handles superbly well and is an easy car to drive.

The lively 173bhp diesel makes the most of the handling set-up and will do the 0-62mph timed run in 8.8 seconds, which is a pretty good standard for this type of vehicle.

While the interior could never be described as 'stunning', it is typically Mazda clean cut and the SatNav system was easy to operate, with Bluetooth simple to hook up to - which is becoming an issue with some other makes of car!

That takes us to the price, though, which is heading for £29,000 for the model tested, though the range starts at a more affordable £22,000 - but that would be without the benefit of four-wheel-drive. At that top-end price, you get into the realms of Audi's Q3 - while bottom end models are just a little more expensive than rivals like the Ford Kuga.

So that's the main downside of the Mazda CX-5, along with a rather bland if functional interior. But even taking that into account, it is a useful and sensible rural runabout, with more load space available than on most of the competition.

However, on the upside, even the entry-level machines get what would normally be add-ons with some brands, like cruise control, climate control and air conditioning. With the SportNav spec', a reversing camera and an upgraded Bose sound system is in the mix.

• Coming soon is a smaller take on the CX-5, the CX-3 which was shown for the first time this week at the Geneva Motor Show.

This will also utilise SkyActiv technology with three engine choices - but this time it's two petrol motors and one diesel, with again optional four-wheel-drive.

It is scheduled for sale in the UK from June and the18-strong range, with five spec' levels, will be priced from £17,595 to £24,695 on-the-road.