LIKE many thousands of car owners, I for one just love the load-lugging abilities and added convenience of a family-sized estate car.

With some cracking examples about from a raft of mainstream manufacturers, it's the Ford Mondeo, Volkswagen Passat, Audi A4 and Vauxhall Insignia that are meantime showing the way ahead in both the private and business sectors.

But that won't last for very much longer. For come autumn, a new player will join the fray which will leave the executives of all the other major brands scratching their heads wondering where they went wrong.

Enter the brand new Skoda Superb Estate which offers the ultimate in style, practicality, comfort, space, build quality ... and more importantly ... value for money, which is available to order from dealers now.

For those familiar with the outgoing Superb model, space and comfort was always the name of the game, but even its cavernous loading area has been increased in the newcomer by nearly five per cent to 660 litres. Fold the back seats down and this increases to a massive 1950 litres.

But this is the mind-boggling bit: this new concert hall-sized machine sits on the same MQB platform as a VW Golf.

Just how the designers have done this is a piece of magic in itself ... and speaking of magic, the new Suberb Estate has an abundance of tricks up its sleeve that could give any magician enough material to fill a matinee show.

Take for instance the virtual pedal system which will open the boot with just the wave of a foot underneath the bumper. Hey presto, pull a handle in the boot and a hidden towbar reveals itself and then with just a tap of a shoe, locks into place ready to hitch up a caravan of trailer.

Or how about an ingenious, yet simple, cup holder design that allows the driver to single-handedly open a screw-top bottle without the need to take both hands off the steering wheel.

Then there's the two hidden umbrellas housed in the front doors waiting to appear with just the slight of the magician's wrist and a magnetic torch which is always fully charged and ready to shine ... for up to 48 hours if need be.

Drivers can also programme just how far the rear tailgate will open ... essential for those with low garage roofs.

And in another little piece of ingenuity, to stop cases and smaller items from moving about in the boot, plastic stoppers with their Velcro base stick to the boot carpet, helping keep everything firmly in its place.

The new Superb masterpiece comes with the choice of four petrol and three diesel engines, mated to either manual or DSG automatic gearboxes, and as before, it also offers the choice of two or four-wheel-drive.

Five specification levels make up the 32-model range, with prices starting at £19,840 for the entry-level 124bhp 1.4-litre TSI petrol engined machine in S trim.

And don't think Skoda have skimped in order to keep the price under the £20K mark, for there's enough goodies on board to meet the needs of even the most demanding of owners.

Alloy wheels, air conditioning, Bluetooth, front fog and LED rear lights, DAB digital radio, leather multi-function steering wheel and touchscreen infotainment system are all fitted as standard.

Safety features include Skoda's impressive ESC system, which along with anti-lock braking system, encompasses traction control, electronic stability programme, hydraulic braking assist, engine torque control, electronic brake force distribution, dynamic steering response and electronic diff lock.

Moving on, spec levels include SE, SE Business, SE L Executive and top out with the all-singing, all-dancing Laurin and Klement 187bhp two-litre turbo diesel 4x4 DSG, which comes in at a highly-competitive £35,040.

Along with all its bells and whistles which include all-round heated seats, 10-speaker Canton sound system and tri-zone climate control, it also features blind spot detection, lane assist, park assist, TV tuner and dynamic chassis control.

The car itself is beautifully put together with fittings and fixtures straight from the Volkswagen-Audi group's top drawers. All the models drive as well as any of its segment competitors, being quiet and silky smooth on the hoof.

However, one model worth noting is the 1.4-litre 147bhp TSI ACT - or Active Cylinder Technology - a first in any Skoda. The system automatically shuts down two of the four cylinders whenever possible, resulting in owners getting two engines for the price of one.

The end result is that combined fuel consumption works out at a diesel-like 55.4mpg. Now that really is magic!