THERE was a time estate cars were designed purely with the intention of creating as much space as was physically possible.

The idea was you could have a boot capable of transporting literally anything - from the proverbial kitchen sink to a small pack of dogs.

Think back to those oversized American station wagons from the seventies - where the estate bit seemed to be around the same size as the rest of the car - and you get the picture.

British cars of the same period adopted a similar, albeit less extreme approach - I'm thinking in particular of the Vauxhall Victor estate that was around from 1968 onwards.

Honda's seventh generation Accord Tourer launched in 2002 seemed to hark back to this approach, looking like the sort of cavernous load-lugger that could almost have passed for a hearse.

It seemed to defy a general trend for those curvy 'lifestyle' estates that are actually more of a halfway house between a hatchback and an estate than an estate (in the old sense of the word) proper.

I say all this because the latest Civic Tourer seems to be something that's in a similar mould to that traditional idea of an estate.

To my mind it bears little resemblance to the Civic hatchback on which it is based but is actually more like an all-new model in Honda's line-up.

And in many ways it is. It has the same wheelbase but is 235mm longer.

And although it's classed as a compact estate there's very little that's compact about it.

It's a league apart from many of its competitors, offering 624 litres of boot space (117 litres of which is below the false floor) and with Honda's 'Magic Seats' folded flat it boasts a whopping 1,688 litres of carrying capacity.

Space has been created in part thanks to that added length and a lengthy rear overhang, but also because of the fact the petrol tank is positioned under the front seats.

In addition, unlike some estates which aim to create space above all else, the Civic looks good too. It has a wedge-shaped profile that's certainly eye-catching and verging on the futuristic.

Space throughout the cabin is impressive too, with the capability to transport five adults in comfort.

Given the slightly avant-garde profile, the interior overall - and switchgear in particular - is a bit more traditional and not unduly inspiring.

Honda tends to sit in a kind of hinterland between mainstream and more premium marques and it can sometimes be a tricky position to occupy.

One might have expected a bit more in terms of bells and whistles here, though that said this was a more basic entry-level version that costs almost £6,000 less than the range-topper, which no doubt comes with lots more kit.

Comfort levels are good though and the front seats were supportive and offered good levels of adjustment.

The Civic Tourer offers two engine options, a 140bhp 1.8-litre i-VTEC petrol and a 118bhp 1.6-litre i-DTEC diesel.

When it comes to being a good all-rounder the diesel wins hands down, though it costs around £1,000 more than the petrol.

Both come with the same smooth and slick six-speed manual gearbox.

Judging by the capabilities of this diesel unit you'd never think Honda was a late entrant to the world of diesel engines.

It's a smooth, capable and refined performer that combines excellent economy, low emissions and impressive performance.

It accelerates with ease and pulls particularly well from low revs, even with a fairly full load, and does much to deliver a driver's car that's actually rather good.

As mentioned already, this was the standard S model, but it didn't feel like it was lacking in any way, even though it didn't come with the adaptive rear damping system, which is standard on SR and EX Pus models, and optional on SE Plus trim.

Occasionally when cornering there were reminders you were at the wheel of a family estate car but the handling overall impressed. While it might not quite be classed in the 'fun' handling category I certainly enjoyed a week at the wheel in a variety of road settings.

All in all this Tourer certainly fits the bill as a great and practical family car that looks good into the bargain and should offer reasonable running costs.