This improved version of the fourth generation Rio certainly looks more distinctive. The refreshed design retains the car's iconic 'tiger-nose' grille, narrowed for a more focused appearance and matched by a lower, wider front bumper and distinctive new fog lamp housing. These changes give the front of the car a smoother, yet more purposeful appearance, imbuing it with a more confident stance on the road. All models now feature new full LED headlamps with integral running lights. As before, the grille is integrated with bi-function headlights, sculpted for a sharp look and featuring a U-shaped LED daytime running light signature. In profile, a relatively lengthy, balanced stance is achieved with a long bonnet and long front overhang, a thin quite upright C-pillar and a relatively short rear overhang.
Inside, the main update is a larger 8.0-inch centre-dash touchscreen, plus there's a higher-resolution 4.2-inch digital display in the driver's instrument cluster. This improved Rio is also now available with a new interior customisation option in the form of a blue colour pack. This adds a dash of colour and flair to the cabin, with coloured seat bolsters, dashboard and door arm rests, matched with contrast stitching.
And in the rear? Well as usual with a car of this kind, you'd certainly struggle to fit three fully-sized folk across the rear bench, though if that was ever necessary, the low centre transmission tunnel would make things a little easier. Let's finish with a few words on bootspace. The tailgate is light to lift and reveals a 325-litre luggage area that's still one of the very largest in the supermini segment. The load bay is well shaped too, with little intrusion either from the wheelarches or the suspension turrets. With the rear bench lowered, the area provided isn't quite flat but it is reasonably spacious with 980-litres of fresh air on offer.