Alternative review of Chevrolet Lacetti Station Wagon

For me, 'Station Wagons' are essentially American in origin. So not surprisingly, large, spacious and thirsty visions filled my mind when the prospect loomed of a Chevrolet Lacetti Station Wagon filling my driveway for a week. As it turned out, this couldn't have been further from the truth. Well, the thirsty bit anyway. As far as 'large' and 'spacious' are concerned, well, you could argue it either way. On one hand, there's no point in imagining space for grandfather clocks. But then, as an estate based on what is essentially a Ford Focus-sized Family Hatchback, you wouldn't expect that anyway. On the other hand, this is a surprisingly large and spacious car given its underpinnings. And the affordable £11,395 price for the SX model I tried. In fact, I couldn't imagine that many people needing anything much larger. Would it suit me? If I was in the market for, say a Mondeo or a Vectra Estate, then realised I could have one of these with nearly as much space for £4,000 less, then yes, I think I could well be persuaded into one.

Why does this car make so much practical sense? Because someone has sat down and thought about how it's going to be used and made the best of the dimensions available. The rear lamps are stacked vertically for example, thus ensuring a decent wide hatch. The loading bay is generously proportioned, this most modern of estates subscribing to the old school 'more is better' philosophy when it comes to hauling ability. There's 400 litres of space available with the rear seats in place but a whopping 1,410 litres available should you drop them down. Like most good Family Hatchbacks, the rear bench features a 60/40 split for added versatility and there's an auxiliary 12v power supply to top up the kids' Nintendos in the luggage bay. Chevrolet told me that there were no fewer than 25 individual storage spaces but I confess that I couldn't be bothered to search for them all. I did test the 'generous' headroom for the driver and front seat passenger and would agree that the legroom in the rear is among the best in class.

Under the bonnet, I found an unremarkable 109bhp 1.6-litre petrol unit - but a 1.8-litre 122bhp petrol engine is offered with the Sport variant for people seeking more power. No diesels apparently for some time though, which might be a drawback for some. On paper, the 1.6-litre unit will get the car to a respectable 116mph and yet will also return a combined fuel economy figure of 34.5mpg. The ride and handling were OK, but it wasn't the kind of car I looked forward to driving to be honest. Still, few buyers in this sector will want more than competency in this regard.

I came away feeling that Chevrolet have found a useful niche in the market somewhere between the Korean 'cheapie' value brands and the more conventional mainstream models. It's a niche that will interest many, in the case of the Lacetti Station Wagon, offering everything you need and nothing you don't. I can relate to that.