On the downhill curves, ancient Clios with dampers that no longer damp squirm at the limits of their equally ancient rubber.The 118i, by contrast, is imperious.

The Ford's set-up is most masterful, the only unwanted by-product of that refreshingly pliant tune being a little extra bobbing through fast, bumpy corners, the movement exacerbated by the Ford's quick steering. The entry-level engine, BMW's now-familiar 500cc-per-cylinder turbo triple, is badged 118i here. That's a lot of smiling.The Focus is more fun to drive than any mainstream hatch since, well, the first Focus, and the Peugeot 205 before it. Where the Golf's measured and the BMW meaty, the Focus feels alert, eager.This is the Ford's USP: the ability to make a humdrum drive fun; every roundabout an arc of apexes to be kissed. And if people didn't notice which axle did the driving in their old 1-series, they certainly noticed that it had less space in the back and a smaller boot than their neighbour's Golf.That's no longer the case. If you don't want a manual, don't buy the Ford.Gearbox and flair-free interior aside, badge snobbery is the Focus's main enemy in this company. We'll decide once and for all, who makes the best mid-sized family hatchback.We know a great deal about the new Golf already. But this one is the hybrid-free 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol, with cylinder deactivation and a six-speed manual gearbox. Published: And while the ride is by far the firmest here (not least because M Sport spec includes a 10mm suspension drop), the 1-series is perfectly tolerable for daily use.Has nothing been lost, then? The 1.5-litre Golf intoppy R-Line trim will set you back £26,630 but will be more given its options, including DCC and LED matrix headlights (which we'd pass on, given their lack of urgency to dim for oncoming cars at night during our test). We're racing west, into the setting sun, and fading amber light plays across a mountainous landscape of sawtooth peaks, gut-churning drops and a serpentine stretch of dual carriageway. The BMW also adds a crisp head-up display, complete with shift lights. More powerful variants, including this car, feature multi-link rear suspension (standard on the 1-series).

But on bubblier UK roads, the Focus is outstandingly comfortable.We'd pick the standard manual gearbox, however. Where in the VW you're cursing (with or without voice control), the Ford is on your side. The slightest turn of the Ford's wheel and you're smiling. (Our car's option packs – including such goodies as digi-dials, HUD, heated screen and incredible stereo – take the price way past £30k, but that £27k is the key figure for a pared-back 118i M Sport. The M Sport 1-series rides the same tarmac like a race car, crashing over ridges and communicating every lump and bump straight to the seat of your long-suffering pants. The BMW starts in the mid-twenties for a 118i or 116d, with M Sport trim taking our test car to £27,230. Volkswagen Passenger Cars is the Group's original marque, and the other major subsidiaries include passenger car marques such as Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, SEAT, and Škoda. The Ford's all-aluminium triple is much more flexible and stronger to pull from low revs than the Golf's, despite its cylinder shortfall. And smile because, while the Ford's Sync infotainment feels conspicuously off the pace, CarPlay sidesteps that neatly. The shift is light of throw, wide of gate and fine but forgettable – a means to an end rather than a thing of mechanical joy like a Ford's.The 1.5-litre petrol four was a real star of the Mk7 Golf range, and it's still great: so quiet you might need to lower a window to hear it running at idle, and as smooth as pâté. Certainly you're aware of a layer of insulation from the action, but neither the BMW nor the Ford can drop the Golf.And when, inevitably, you hit traffic and normal service is resumed, the Golf is the place to be. The Golf has its own interior light show, trumping the BMW's choice of six colours with up to 32 shades to toggle through, depending on spec. Further, VW sold 10 million units while BMW only sold 2 million (not including motorcycles). There may be a delay to any RRP displaying correctly on our materials. Overloaded Dacias churn up the climbs, unable to hold anything like the 120km/h limit. We'd far rather that than the other way around.Clearly, the Portuguese don't believe in the concept of lowest common denominator when it comes to pegging their motorway speed limits. Potholes simply disappear yet the VW never relinquishes its body control; never yields to uncomfortable, confidence-sapping wallow. And, like the BMW, the air-con controls are good old-fashioned buttons.

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