IF I was looking for a family car with space enough for teens, I would look hard at the VW Golf SV.

It's a slightly taller, overgrown Golf and drives just as beautifully but, spec for spec, it is pretty expensive.

I drove the 1.6 Bluemotion with 110bhp on tap and, while it's not the quickest, I rarely found it short of urge.

The plus sides are many. This new version of the VW 1.6 TDI is much smoother and quieter, pulling easily and smoothly from just above tickover.

The six speed gearbox has a sweet, slick change and the clutch is light and easy.

The level of comfort is brilliant, with the ability to smooth out all road surfaces at all speeds, and yet the road holding is superb, giving tremendous cornering speeds in safety. The handling, with marvellous front to rear balance, is almost perfect.

Add in 60-plus mpg in real driving and you have a car to be reckoned with.

Sadly, VW are still niggardly with the kit for the money. The Citroen Picasso is cheaper and comes with much more as standard.