07/07/08

• Price22,495
• We like...Big cabin, comfy ride
• We don't...Load bay is on the small side

Good-looking estate is smooth on the move. But if you want the biggest, it's not the bestSpace and a smooth, smooth ride. The estate version of the previous C5 built from these two key strengths. And the old estate looked more right where the saloon looked awkward, was more composed to drive, while its load carrying abilities made it special.

The latest one takes a fresh direction. Where the old car looked as huge as it was, the new one carries its size well, appearing slim and neat. Mind you, where the old one was vast, the latest C5 can’t match it for load-carrying space. The ‘Tourer’ name is new, adopted to keep pace with its keenest rival, the Renault Laguna, and also to promote the idea of a car that’s as much ‘lifestyle’ as it is baggage-hauler. And so it is that the boot’s nothing special: it dsn’t have clever storage solutions like Volvo’s V70 ds – just the bag hooks and lashing eyes you’d expect.

The rear seats drop easily enough but the load space available, seat up or down, is only middling – for the biggest, go for a Ford Mondeo. But at least it has a long flat loading floor and, if you go for the top-level Exclusive model, its tailgate opens and raises at the click of a button on the keyfob.

That’s great if you return to the car with an armful of shopping. Closing it again is by clicking a button in the edge of the tailgate door. There’s also suspension that keep everything flat and level, even if you chuck in a heavy load.

Inside, every model has excellent head, shoulder and leg-room, front and rear. They’re all well equipped, our Exclusive having a want-for-nothing equipment list. You even get an electronically operated handbrake, so a push-pull flap ds the work of the more usual lever and button. This, frankly,is more fiddly than a conventional set-up and something we’d just as soon do without.

The 2.2-litre diesel has 173bhp and, as you’d expect if you know diesels, its power comes in at low revs, just where you appreciate it most. It combines with the squishy suspension to waft you along in fine comfort. However, despite the suspension having a ‘sport’ setting to stiffen things up a jot, it isn’t a car you’d push hard by choice – its soft ride and remote-feel steering sees to that.

Should you buy one? If you like its looks, the way it rides and Citrn’s pack-‘em-in approach to gadgets,

Then it’s for you. First check, though, that it has enough space for your needs. Think carefully, too, about whether you need to splurge on a top-spec model like ours. To our minds, the SX has all you need for a lot less than the range toppers.

• Engines2.2 HDi
• Power173bhp
• 0-60 mph10.4sec
• Economy42.8mpg
• CO2g/km175
• Insurance groups
• EuroNCAP
• Airbags9
• Seats5

Motors.co.uk value verdict: