In these difficult days, there aren’t many manufacturers who can claim to have sold a record number of cars. But that’s what Chevrolet UK are saying, and last year was their best ever with more than 18,000 of their vehicles taking to the road to take their biggest ever share of the market.

It’s all the more remarkable as the classic American brand made its debut this side of the Atlantic only in 2005. Much of that success was down to the launch of two new models last year, with the three and fi ve-door Aveo supermini replacing the popular Kalos to become Chevrolet’s second best-selling model behind the Matiz. The four-door Epica family saloon also made its debut, offering great value for money, distinctive design and reliability. Even with this year’s credit crunch, the company is feeling positive, helped by the launch of one of the newest to the range, the Ikon, a special edition of the Captiva four wheel drive SUV which has gone down well since its launch in 2007.

The Ikon is based on the Captiva LS model, but at £15,995 represents great value for money, not least because it is cheaper than the standard LS model but comes with over £3,000 worth of extras including 20 inch alloy wheels, privacy glass and a chrome exhaust tailpipe. That’s on top of the standard equipment such as air conditioning, electric windows and door mirrors, a glass fl ip tailgate and high quality sound system with controls mounted on the steering wheel.

When money is tight, it’s good to hear of something else that will help you hold onto the pennies…..and especially when it comes from an upmarket German manufacturer.

It’s the new 116d from BMW which is now the marque’s most fuel efficient and least polluting vehicle. With an amazing consumption figure of 64 mpg and a CO2 emissions fi gure of just 118g/km, it’s even better than the current World Green Car of the Year, the BMW 118d. That also means that road tax is only £35 a year and rates only 13% for Benefi t in Kind, which will appeal to the business user.

It comes in both three and fi ve door versions and is powered by a two litre four-cylinder diesel engine producing 116 bhp to give it an acceleration time of 10.2 seconds from zero to 62mph and a potential top speed of 125 mph. It’s on sale this month, and prices are £17,605 for the three door and £18,135 for the fi ve door.

Also new in the showrooms is the latest arrival from Alfa Romeo, the MiTo, which is the fi rst sporty compact from the classic Italian marque since the 1970s. It looks superb,which it should, because it comes from a collaboration between Alfa’s styling centre in Milan, Centro Stile, and their factory in Turin, Mirafiori. They put on their collective creative hats and came up with the MiTo, which is designed to appeal to a young, image-conscious buyer. It certainly has head-turning looks, with a sculpted Vshaped bonnet, flared wheel arches and a very short rear overhang. On the road it behaves superbly, with great driver response and excellent handling to give a really good sporty feel.

There are three models in the range – Turismo, Lusso and Veloce – with a choice of three petrol and two diesel engines. The prices are good, starting at £10,745 for the entry level 1.4 16valve Turismo, up to £14,745 for the top of the range 1.4 turbo Veloce. Cars come with so much equipment these days, a lot of which end up proving unnecessary, expensive and unused. However I loved some of the toys which came in the latest Range Rover, in which I spent a very enjoyable few days over one of our coldest Scottish weeks a wee while ago.

Certainly, as a Vogue SE with a twin turbo V8 diesel engine, it had a hefty price tag of just over £68,000, but I was mightily impressed, from the Lucerne green paint job to its ivory leather seats with their adjustable armrests. At that price it comes with stacks of standard equipment and two items were particularly welcome. There’s nothing better on a cold and frosty morning than to take your position behind the wheel and settle into seats which you’ve set to pre-heat a few minutes earlier. But in this test car, there was one special feature – the steering wheel itself was heated, and until you’ve experienced this, you just don’t appreciate how cold an unheated leather wheel is first thing in the morning. I have a further suggestion for Land Rover though – a bit of heat in the cold steel gearchange lever would also have been appreciated.

Amongst the extras was the £400 Venturecam, a wireless relay camera developed by Land Rover themselves. The idea is you position it on or outside the vehicle to keep an eye on specific areas, such as in the horsebox you’re towing or to give a better view of obstacles. The moving colour image is transmitted onto the dashboard touch screen. The camera is only the size of a mobile phone, is waterproof and so tough you can drop it from three metres and even drive over it in the Range Rover itself. It combines a Bluetooth hands-free phone function and is one of the smartest ideas I’ve seen for a long time.