Audi's new A1, which reaches showrooms as you read this, is unashamedly positioned against the Mini Cooper but isn't quite as outrageously charismatic.
That's not the Audi way. So there's no Big Ben-sized clock in the dash, and no retro-styled switchgear or chrome overkill.
Audi does things more subtly, but there's still enough here to unequivocally position the A1 as Ingolstadt's compact, young-at-heart family member.
Unlike Audi's homogenously styled sedans which look very much like the same sausage cut into different lengths, the A1 has its own distinctive look and buzz. The compact three-door is just less than four meters long, making it the same size as the Polos and Clios of this world, but it's positioned in a more upmarket category and comes with all of Audi's premium feel.
It's an Audi lite in size only; inside you'll find the same classy trappings as in an A8. Audi's made its name in expensive-looking cabins and the new baby bears that same DNA.
The "buzz" comes in the customisability of the A1. It's a fairly youthful-looking if car to begin with, and LED daytime running lights give it a significant road presence. Once you've tarted it up with options like colourful dashboard inlays and dual tone seats (even in wasabi green if that's your flavour), and an aluminium-look roof arch, it adds a shot of vodka to the fruit punch.
The compact A1's aimed at compact families, and the tight rear seat is for the vertically-challenged only - in fact it's best put to use as additional cargo space with the seats folded down, as the boot's small too.
Like the classy cabin trappings, the driving dynamics are all straight from the Audi textbook. The front-wheel drive car handles with appealing surefootedness - in fact its small size makes it nippier than some of its larger and more celebrated stablemates.
The media launch was held on some of the famously twisty roads of Mpumalanga and Audi's little newcomer zoomed through them with the agility of a rat scurrying through a drainpipe. The obligatory ABS brakes and stability control protect over-enthusiastic drivers from themselves, while an electronic limited slip differential reduces understeer.
Bottom line is that the chassis could easily handle more power, and in fact boy racers don't need to wait long for this as Audi's bringing a 136kW turbo- and supercharged version to South Africa in April.
The A1's ride is on the firm side but the cars we drove on the launch were fitted with optional larger wheels with low profile tyres - the ride's sure to improve with the standard higher-profile footwear.
Of the present model line up my favourite is the 1.4 petrol turbo which makes 90kW and 200Nm. Though the 77kW/250Nm 1.6 turbodiesel was pleasantly smooth and made an easy cruiser, the petrol felt more alive, with an appealingly perky and free-revving nature.
The S tronic dual clutch auto is my first choice of transmission for its slick-quick nature, but there's nothing wrong with the smooth-shifting six-speed manual if you'd rather save yourself the R17 500 for some visual wasabi.
AUDI A1 PRICES
1.2T FSI Attraction 63kW/160Nm - R219 900
1.4T FSI Attraction 90kW/200Nm - R235 000
1.4T FSI Attraction S tronic 90kW/200Nm - R252 500
1.4T FSI Ambition 90kW/200Nm - R253 000
1.4T FSI Ambition S tronic 90kW/200Nm - R270 500
1.6 TDI Ambition 77kW/250Nm - R247 000