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COGITO VIRGO SUM

Any Vehicle That Makes A Fiat Seicento Look Like A Battle Bus Has To Make Sense In Cities. Andy Enright Shrinks To Fit...

Whoever coined the phrase that small was beautiful had a). never clapped eyes on Robin Cook and b). never had to travel in the back of a citycar. Travel any distance with your knees around your ears and the conceptual beauty of miniaturisation soon wears a little thin. Some manufacturers carry off small a good deal more convincingly than others, however, and if you're serious about downsizing, the Microcar Virgo is just about the definitive article.

Firstly, we need to make it abundantly clear what the Virgo is not. If you want a dual-purpose chi-chi scootabout that can mop up long distances and cut a dash around town a la Volkswagen Lupo, the Virgo falls on its face. Likewise, if you're after the sort of driving enjoyment served up by a Ford Ka, the Virgo isn't a contender. Do you have a fetish for the neatness of a Smart interior? You know where to go. And given that a SEAT Arosa TDi can return better fuel economy figures than many microcars, their very raison d'etre may appear a little fuzzy.

Venture onto the Continent, and you'll see a fair number of microcars ? also known as quadricycles - ambling about. What's the appeal? Given that you can drive one on a full motorcycle licence, can we expect to see hordes of frustrated bikers behind the wheel when the weather turns nasty? Doubtful. I have a friend who despite being the most astonishing rider is quite unable to pass his four-wheeled driving test. Unless the Virgo could corner at 120mph and was renamed the CBX-R1 500 Flamethrower I doubt he'd be interested.

"The best part is piloting one about town."

The real reason these cars sell is much more prosaic. Once you've overcome the often surprisingly steep initial price, they cost next to nothing to run, are effortlessly green, are easy to park and thread through city traffic and are so simple that reliability is usually assured. Manufactured in France, the Microcar Virgo Range is imported to the UK as a rival to the longer established Aixam and Ligier Ranges of microcars and you'd have to say that straight out of the crate the styling's a good deal neater.

There's none of the embarrassing frumpiness that usually accompanies these vehicles. The Virgo merely looks like the runt of a litter of Seicentos. Two engine choices are available, petrol or diesel. Both return suitably ridiculous economy figures, and the fact that the petrol powered version tops out at 68mph as opposed to the diesel's sedate 55mph would make us hesitate to recommend the oil burner unless you were passionately parsimonious. The two-cylinder petrol engine is a 505cc four stroke, manufactured by Lombardini and utilises the same belt drive system that powerful snowmobiles use which results in a slightly elastic take up of power, exacerbated by the rubbery CVT gearbox. You won't care though because it really is just foot to the floor simplicity, you're not going to be heel-and-toeing down through a gearbox like Jacky Ickx. If you can drive a dodgem, you can drive a Virgo. Except for that smashing into your closest neighbour bit.

The entry model in the Range is called, somewhat confusingly, the Premier. Supplied as standard in two-seat form, an extra pair of seats in the back can be specified as an optional extra. Trim is, as you might expect, fairly rudimentary, running to a third brake light, a colour co-ordinated dashboard, head rests, body coloured door mirrors and door cubby boxes. Prices start at £5,995.

Next up is the Odyssey which adds a heated rear window, a glove box, an electrical outlet, a clock and standard metallic paint. The Prestige is the next model up the hierarchy with colour-co-ordinated bumpers, electric and tinted windows, a rear wiper, radio cassette and reclining seats with adjustable headrests. If you want to spend more there's a Prestige SE and even an HSE model but when you start fitting your green machine with burr walnut dashboard trimmings one would suspect that you may have missed the point and at prices which nudge £7,500, you're encroaching on Citroen Saxo or Ford Ka territory.

Based on a monocoque chassis constructed of glass reinforced plastic, the Virgo may not be the last word in technical sophistication, but it appears well engineered. Steel rollover protection beef up safety and the construction has been designed to shrug off low speed knocks and make slightly heftier ones easy and cost-effective to repair, helping the car to a reasonable Group 2 insurance rating.

The best part is piloting one about town. At 2580mm long, the Virgo is a mere 8cm longer than a Smart but with the option of those occasional rear seats it's even more versatile. It's also a good deal narrower, enabling it to slot through gaps that most drivers will never even countenance. The turning circle of 3.95 metres means that should you overshoot a parking place, you'll be able to effect an about turn and be parked in it before other car drivers have even registered the fact.

At first glance, it's difficult to make a case for microcars, even though the Virgo is one of the better examples of their ilk. Spend a little time with one, and you begin to appreciate their logic. That is, until you realise that you need a regulation sized family holdall for those longer journeys as well. Like all intensely focused items, it does one thing very well. For some customers the Virgo may well be the answer to their short-hop metropolitan woes. In all it represents a creditable stab at a UK market that's been tough for the French to crack...