IF you were labouring under the illusion that you have to buy an MPV to get a plethora of innovative seating and boot combinations then think again.

With some clever design and so-called  ‘magic' seats Honda has produced in the new Civic Tourer a car that will give many a compact people carrier a run for its money in the versatility stakes.

Granted, there's no seven-seat option, but five adults will fit with comfort and with all the various interior layout permutations there won't be too many things you that you won't fit in - including the kitchen sink.

For a car which manages to stay comfortably compact on the outside, it has the same wheelbase and is just 235mm longer than the standard Civic hatchback, it boasts class leading boot space that is complemented by lots of practical touches.

With the 60/40 split rear seats up it offers 624 litres of volume, up to the luggage cover, or with them folded flat, and the cover stowed handily beneath the floor, there is a massive 1,668 litres of space up to the roof.

Included in that is a hidden compartment under the floor of some 117 litres which can hold two hand luggage-sized bags or, with the lid placed in it's base, accommodate items of up to a metre in height. The only caveat is that this extra storage space means there is no spare wheel.

Then there are those ‘magic' seats in the rear. When they are not needed the bases flip up individually, cinema style, leaving a huge space in the rear footwell to carry even more unwieldy tall and bulky items.

To cap it all the low floor and square shape of the boot, plus a flat lip on the tailgate opening, make it remarkably easy to load and unload heavy and large goods.

The Civic Tourer is definitely a car for which the dreaded trip to Ikea holds no fears, unlike the poor bloke driving who'll have to try to assemble everything packed into that Tardis-like boot back at home.

The Tourer shares the same distinctive and purposeful front end as the standard Civic while at the rear the roof is obviously higher and longer, improving headroom in the back.

The space-aged rear of the hatch obviously had to be foregone for an estate but the Tourer still boasts some muscular haunches and sweeping lines along the flanks.

The rear spoiler also sits across the top of the tailgate now not across the rear screen obstructing your rear view - although its still quite a small back window.

Engine choice is limited to just two, but both are proven performers in other Honda models.

The 142ps, 1.8-litre i-VTEC petrol unit in my car is paired with a six-speed manual transmission and has the automatic start/stop system featured in all Civic Tourers.

It is a smooth and refined cruiser but if you need to inject a little urgency then you will have to work that gearbox.

Average fuel consumption of 44.1 miles per gallon and carbon emissions of 149g/km are par for the course for a petrol but not spectacular. If economy is a prime consideration you'll be much better off with the 1.6-litre i-DTEC diesel which claims up to 74.3mpg and road tax-exempt emissions of 99g/km.

The set-up is focused on comfort rather than sportiness and any imperfections in the road surface are smoothed out nicely to offer a settle ride while the steering is light and accurate.

This SR trim car, sitting one below the range-topper, also benefits from a new adaptive damper system which helps stability when carrying heavy loads.

It also incorporates a drive mode selector with comfort, normal and dynamic settings and if you like a more involving drive than slipping it onto the latter improves things significantly. Throttle response becomes noticeably sharper and the steering weights up nicely for better driver engagement.

This system is not even an option on entry-level S and S-T cars though.

Equipment is generous across the range but SR trim gets more than enough bells and whistles for most tastes with 17-inch alloys, touchscreen audio and satnav with DVD player and DAB radio, leather upholstery with heated front seats, a cargo net, cruise control, front and rear parking sensors with reversing camera, dual zone climate control and Bluetooth.