Boot space is often compromised in hybrids, owing to the addition of the battery pack, but this isn’t the case with the Jazz Hybrid.

It retains the same capacity as the standard petrol model - 303 litres with the rear seats up and 883 litres with them down - thanks to the IMA battery pack and power control unit being integrated in the area under the boot floor.

This means that Honda’s aptly-named ‘magic seats’, which flip up, fold down and can now be reclined 73mm to improve comfort for rear passengers, still work in the same way as on the standard model.

To put the magic seats to the test I handed the keys to a keen golfer and cyclist on the Fleet News team.

He was impressed with the ease at which the seats fold down. Lifting the lever once is all that’s needed and, as our picture shows, there’s enough space to accommodate a bicycle.

There are three modes to choose from: the utility mode (which we used to fit the bike in), long mode and tall mode.

Long mode is achieved by fully reclining the passenger seat and dropping the magic seats to create a 2.4 metre long load space.

Tall mode involves flipping the magic seats up and locking them in place by pulling the bar down under the seat. This creates space to store taller items in the rear foot-wells – ideal for golf clubs.

There are also handy storage compartments at the base of the rear seats which are opened by turning some dials (see picture two).

In fact the Jazz is full of storage places. I’ve counted 10 cup and bottle holders. There is also a handy compartment in the front console area to store my iPhone (the Jazz comes with iPod connectivity) and I recently came across another compartment in the boot, although admittedly I haven’t found a use for it yet.

All of this storage space is great but it does come at a price. Keeping the magic seats has meant emissions weren’t able to be lowered below 100g/km. And with Toyota’s Yaris Hybrid on the horizon the Jazz will soon lose its advantage of being the only hybrid in the supermini sector.