THE latest Ford Focus hatchback raced to the top of the sales charts when it was launched back in March and already there is an estate version.

Better-looking and more upmarket than its predecessor the new Focus Estate is also more practical.

The comprehensive standard kit and optional extras such as self-parking are all there but it's the space in this model that really stands out.

The Focus now offers the same kind of room that you used to get only by buying the larger Mondeo.

The new estate is some 20cm longer than the five-door hatchback and offers a massive 1,502 litres of space with the rear seats folded flat.

There's no wheel arch intrusion like in the previous generation, so all the space is useable and as a bonus the boot tonneau cover opens with just a single touch.

Ford expect the stylish estate to account for 18 per cent of all Focus sales and its good looks may even take that figure higher.

The estate is available with the same choice of engines as the five-door and the car I drove featured the super 1.6-litre TDCi diesel with auto start-stop and CO2 emissions of just 109g/km.

There are 17 models available in the estate line up with a variety of engines and  different trims.

Prices range from £17,095 to £25,445 while the car I tried - the 1.6 TDCi Titanium - came in at £20,945.

The 1.6 diesel offers a great drive and it is only marginally slower than the hatch version - taking 11.1 seconds to reach 62mph. Top speed in this model is 120mph.

While offering lively performance and premium class ride and handling it is also superb on the economy front.

The claimed combined fuel figure is a staggering 67.3mpg but during normal driving and on a variety of journeys I averaged nearer 58mpg which is still excellent.

Every car comes with Bluetooth and voice control, USB connection, DAB, category one alarm, aluminium roof rails, driver lumbar adjust as standard. There is also torque vectoring control which results in great handling.

As with the hatch, the estate can be ordered with a number of high tech features. For £750 extra you get a Driver Assistance Pack which gives you blind spot alerts, automatic high beam, traffic sign recognition and a lane departure warning system.

Spend another £525 and you get the incredible automatic parking system which enables the car to slot in to roadside spaces as if by magic.