City-sized eco-focused cars are sensible but can be drab and dull. To disprove this myth, we’ve bought together four used cars that are anything but: a diesel Mini, a two-cylinder turbo petrol Fiat 500, a petrol-electric Honda Jazz and a classy VW Polo in ultra-eco Bluemotion guise. Which is the most stylish and sensible of all?

The most technologically intriguing is the Honda, which combines an 87bhp 1.3-litre petrol engine with a 14bhp electric motor. In contrast, the Mini has a traditional 89bhp 1.6-litre turbodiesel – but because it weighs a lot less, it’s faster against the clock. Not only that, the Mini is also a blast through the bends, with super-fast steering and tight body control. The ride isn’t as comfy as the Honda, but it’s still the one we’d rather drive.

The engines in the other two cars are rather disappointing. The Polo’s 1.2-litre turbodiesel is unresponsive and lacking in flexibility, while the Fiat’s noisy 875cc engine takes an age to build speed. The Polo has a very composed ride and is stable through corners; the Fiat has a jiggly ride, wanders about too much at speed and has vague steering. Saying that, the 500 is nice and lithe in town, with good grip.

The most refined car in town is the Honda though, thanks to a quiet engine and electric motor that cuts in and out smoothly. The Polo has a clattery engine but low levels of wind and road roar; the Mini has lots of wind roar but an extremely refined diesel engine.

Inside, the Mini’s retro features are a triumph of style over substance, although the plastics are well assembled. Even so, the Polo’s interior is much classier, with high-quality trims and flawless ergonomics. And the Fiat manages to combine retro design with good ergonomic common sense; the Jazz is the blandest of the four, although there’s no arguing with its robustness.

The Jazz is also super-roomy, and has the biggest boot, plus folding rear seats that are a work of art. The Polo isn’t bad either though – and both are roomier than the two three-door cars on test here. Of them, the Mini is the bigger of the two, both front and rear. Four adults really will struggle to squeeze into the little Fiat.

The Jazz isn’t super-affordable, though. Secondhand, it’s the most expensive car to buy here – and because the hybrid model was a relatively rarity, it’s also hard to track one down. Same goes for the Polo Bluemotion, actually: Volkswagen sold far more non-Bluemotion TDI models, so you may consider trading a little on-paper economy for one of these instead.

Not only are the Mini and the Fiat easier to find, they’re also cheaper to buy. The Fiat is the cheapest of the lot here – you can get one from £5000, compared to £7250 for the Honda. In theory, the Honda is also the least fuel-efficient, despite its hybrid tech – although our testing did reveal it’s the one most likely to get near to its official figure in real-world driving.

Fiat quotes 68.9mpg for the 500, Mini claims 74.3mpg and the Polo is rated at a staggering 80.7mpg. Even during testing, we returned over 61mpg from it. Which makes it a pity this money-saving ability is dented a little by it having the most expensive servicing costs of the four cars here. The Honda is expensive too; the Mini and Fiat are considerably cheaper.

At least the VW and, in particular, the Honda have a good reliability score, though. The 500 is much less impressive – and surprisingly, the Mini is worst of all, particularly regarding faults related to its diesel engine. This sees it plummet down the Reliability Index rankings.

But impressive reliability isn’t enough to save the Honda from coming last here. It’s practical and sensible but not very exciting, while both its high cost and poor economy let it down. While it’s much more stylish, the Fiat also flounders, because of its weak dependability and irritating engine.

It’s close between the Mini and the Volkswagen. Indeed, the Polo has plenty of across-the-board appeal, from its smart interior, stylish looks, classy feel and all-round practicality. The weak point is its noisy 1.2-litre engine, which simply isn’t fast enough. It contrasts starkly with the punchy 1.6-litre in the Mini, which is a joy to use and helps enhance the rest of the lithe, wieldy little car.

A few question marks over reliability, boot space and interior ergonomics mean the Mini isn’t perfect, but that’s not enough to stop it winning here. The image is great, it’s fun to drive and it looks superb: even though the Polo runs it close, it still gets the nod as our fun-to-drive fuel-saver.

Specifications: Mini One 1.6D (4 stars)

Engine size 1.6-litre diesel

List price when new £14,480

Price today £5500

Power 89bhp

Torque 159lb ft

​0-60mph 9.8sec

Top speed 109mph

Fuel economy 74.3mpg (Official average)

CO2 emissions 99g/km

Specifications: Volkswagen Polo 1.2 TDI Bluemotion (4 stars)

Engine size 1.2-litre diesel

List price when new £15,480

Price today £6500

Power 74bhp

Torque 133lb ft

​0-60mph 15.6sec

Top speed 103mph

Fuel economy 80.7mpg (Official average)

CO2 emissions 91g/km

Specifications: Fiat 500 0.9 Twinair Lounge (3 stars)

Engine size 0.9-litre petrol

List price when new £12,265

Price today £5000

Power 84bhp

Torque 107lb ft

​0-60mph 14.6sec

Top speed 105mph

Fuel economy 68.9mpg (Official average)

CO2 emissions 95g/km

Specifications: Honda Jazz 1.3 Hybrid HE (3 stars)

Engine size 1.3-litre hybrid petrol

List price when new £15,995

Price today £7250

Power 87bhp

Torque 89lb ft

​0-60mph 11.1sec

Top speed 105mph

Fuel economy 62.8mpg (Official average)

CO2 emissions 104g/km

Price today is based on a 2011 model with average mileage and full service history, correct at time of writing.