Gotham City 2017. The Batmobile is in for repair and Batman needs a crime-fighting courtesy car.

Enter Toyota with the C-HR, mixing radical looks, high-quality interior and a heap of technology.

Out go the machine gun and missile launchers but voice-activated equipment, radar and camera remain in place.

At first glance, the stand-out styling is reminiscent of the Nissan Juke but in terms of size this is an altogether bigger beast. The C-HR’s footprint puts it alongside rivals such as the Nissan Qashqai, Renault Kadjar, Skoda Yeti and Honda HR-V.

Built in Turkey, its tasteful, faultlessly finished interior is a delight and puts it into the premium class beside the likes of the Audi Q2, BMW X1 and Mercedes-Benz GLA.

Priced from about £21,000, the C-HR, with its low, coupé-like roof line, is built on Toyota’s New Global Architecture C-platform, giving it a low centre of gravity, which in turn makes for balanced handling, less body roll and a more rewarding drive.

Power on the test model came from a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine mated to a CVT automatic transmission. It was also equipped with all-wheel-drive, not a big seller in this class but a useful option for those who have to cope with plenty of winter snow.

Don’t be fooled by the seemingly small size of the engine. With 114 horsepower on tap, the car rides and handles well, even on poor surfaces, and once the revs are up it is fun to drive and clearly well able to handle a much larger powerplant.

Part of the reason for the car’s sharp handling and flat ride is down to the stiffness of the body; its double wishbone rear suspension, and the focus of the engineering team on balancing ride, responsiveness and grip, to produce a car tailored to European roads.

The other engine choice is a full hybrid, 120 horsepower powertrain, as seen in the Prius, combining a 1.8-litre petrol engine with an electric motor to deliver CO2 emissions from 86g/km and official combined cycle fuel economy from 74.3mpg.

With its cockpit dominated by an iPad-sized display mounted centrally and high on the dashboard, the C-HR is an upmarket entry in its class and the line-up offers three equipment grades: Icon, Excel and Dynamic, and all are packed with technology.

All C-HR models are fitted with a package of features that can alert you to crash risks and intervene if necessary to avoid an impact, or mitigate the consequences if a collision is unavoidable. These elements include a pre-collision system with autonomous emergency braking, lane departure warning, traffic sign recognition and automatic high beam headlights.

Even the entry-level models come with dual-zone automatic air conditioning, 17-inch alloy wheels,

a touchscreen-controlled multimedia system with built-in reversing camera, front fog lamps, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, dusk-sensing headlights and an auto-dimming rear-view mirror.

The Excel trim, driven here, adds part-leather seat upholstery, heated front seats, keyless entry, parking sensors and intelligent park assist, rear privacy glass, 18-inch alloys, electrically-folding door mirrors and safety features including a blind spot monitor, rear cross-traffic alert and lane change assist.

So if you fancy a crossover with added wham, zap, and pow, Toyota might just have the answer.

Auto facts

Model: Toyota C-HR Excel 1.2 CVT

Price: £26,495

Insurance group: 15E (1-50)

Fuel consumption (combined): 44.8mpg

Top speed: 111mph

Length: 436cm/171.6in

Width: 179.5cm/70.7in

Luggage capacity: 13.3 cu ft

Fuel tank capacity: 11 gallons/50 litres

CO2 emissions: 144g/km

Warranty: Five years/100,000 miles