Despite providing just 54bhp, the 1.0-litre engine makes the Kelisa nippy enough to keep up with traffic in town. However, once you get beyond the city limits, the engine struggles much more noticeably. As for overtaking, you can pretty much forget it.

The Kelisa has a surprising amount of grip and it rides reasonably well most of the time. But, if you drive it over a series of ruts or bumps, it soon runs out of composure. Body lean is ever present, too.

Engine noise is well contained, but that's about as far as the good news goes. Head out of town, up the speed and you'll find that both wind and road noise intrude only too obviously at speed - and soon become wearing.

This is motoring on a tiny budget. Not only is the list price rock bottom, and running costs should match. Cars with a manual gearbox avaerage more than 55mpg, and while depreciation looks steep, at least the low purchase price keeps your losses in check.

If there's one area, above all others, where the Kelisa shows its age, it's this. The standard of the interior plastics and trim are dismal, and all models have just a two-year, 24,000 mile warranty, which looks poor compared to other models - and Perodua's own Myvi, which is covered for three years.

Again, this is an area where the Kelisa really shows its age. Front airbags are fitted, but that's about it for safety kit. Side and curtain airbags aren't available at all, and the security levels are similarly modest.

You what you pay for, and that means that there's precious little in the way of modern niceties, such as steering wheel or seat height adjustment. At least the major controls are easy to find and visibility is good.

In this respect, the Kelisa is a car from another era and modern superminis look like giants in comparison. There's precious little leg- or headroom in the rear seats, and the cabin is narrow. To cap it all, the shallow boot is also tiny.

Again, there's no avoiding the fact that you get what you pay for. The price of the entry-level models may be attractive, but they are sparsely equipped. You need to step up a grade to get things that are stanard on most other cars - central locking and electric windows, for example.