Estate cars are designed for people who can't fit all the things they need to inside a conventional saloon or hatchback model, aren't they? Well, yes and no. You'd certainly imagine that an estate would have more space than the saloon on which it is based but, particularly in the compact executive sector where BMW's 3 Series Touring competes, it isn't always that simple.

It will be a surprise for most people to learn that many compact executive estate cars are only fractionally roomier than their saloon equivalents and some even have less space out back. Alfa Romeo's old 156 Sportwagon could famously cope with 18 litres less than a 156 saloon and the Audi A4 saloon and Avant have similarly topsy-turvy load volumes. This is strange because anyone can see the additional bulk around a tourer's hindquarters which suggests that there should be more space in there somewhere and it's also a little alarming because estate buyers in this sector are typically asked to pay around £1,000 more for the privilege. That's extra money for extra space that may not necessarily be present. The carrying capacity of BMW's 3 Series Touring isn't smaller than that of a 3 Series Saloon, it's exactly the same. Like the other load-luggers in this sector, however, it justifies its price premium on grounds of versatility with a soupcon of 'lifestyle' kudos thrown in.

By examining basic carrying capacities, we're not being entirely fair to these estates. You see, the practical advantages of the 3 Series Touring and its ilk over their saloon counterparts only really make themselves felt when there are less than four people in the car. You get a 460-litre void back there to fill with the paraphernalia of your choice and that doesn't compare at all favourably with the 460-litres you get in the saloon for £1,180 less. Fold the rear seats down, however, and the available space mushrooms up to 1,385 litres. Forget about taking garden rubbish to the council tip or shifting that chest of draws home from the furniture store, you could hold a wedding reception back there or have it converted into a squash court.

"The 3 Series Touring is heavier than the saloon by some 90kg but any variations in the driving dynamics are negligible"

The 3 Series Touring's 60:40 split-folding seats open up the possibility of seating a passenger in the back while still maximising the available loadspace and there are other practical features included in the package as well. Most notable is the split tailgate which opens up two different cargo access options by opening up in two sections. You can simply lift the standard tailgate to get at whatever you've got inside or release the rear window hatch which flips up to reveal a smaller aperture. Perhaps you've reversed up too close to something and there's no space to let the full tailgate swing upwards or maybe you just can't be bothered to open it. In either case, the hatch allows smaller items to be quickly and simply dropped inside. Under the floor, there's a waterproof container that can be used to house dirty items that might play havoc with the boot-floor carpet and the boot itself has a handy cargo net to keep unruly objects under control. If you had to pick fault, it'd be with BMW's build quality and no, this isn't a gripe about fit or finish. Rather, the German marque have surpassed themselves, producing a parcel-shelf-come-cargo-cover that's so substantial you need biceps the size of Bournemouth to lift it out.

The Touring is a substantially more practical vehicle than the saloon but it also has other, less prosaic advantages. Personal taste will obviously come into play here but you could definitely argue a case that the 3 Series Touring is a better-looking car than the saloon. It's certainly true of Audi's A4 and a number of others, that the estate derivative has more of a cohesive look and purposeful stance than the saloon. Many 3 Series customers may find themselves preferring the practical Touring option on aesthetic grounds.

What the Touring definitely does have is a 'lifestyle' edge to its image. A horrible marketing-speak word, 'lifestyle' has come to represent the kind of exciting, trendy activity-based existences that modern families with gleaming dental work are supposed to lead in their spare time. Even when you're packing the kids into the car to pop out and pick up something to shift the latest stain the cat has left on your carpet, it would be nice if the neighbours thought you were all off wakeboarding or paintballing for the day. With the 3 Series Touring, there's a slim chance they might.

BMW offer a typically formidable range of powerplants for 3 Series Touring buyers to furnish their vehicle's engine bay with. There's not a dullard amongst them. Ten main engines are available priced from £22,215. The petrol range runs from the 143bhp 318i, through the 170bhp 320i to the 218bhp 325i. Then things get really serious. The 330i manages 272bhp but if that's not fast enough, then there's a twin-turbo 335i flagship variant putting out a massive 306bhp.

If you'd rather go for diesel power, there's an entry-level 318d model which manages an astounding 60.1mpg on the combined cycle. Most however, go for the 163bhp 320d which returns 58.9mpg yet still manages to get from rest to sixty in just over eight seconds on the way to 143mph. If that's not fast enough, there are three other diesel variants on offer. First up is the 197bhp 325d, which sits just below the 231bhp 330d in the pecking order. Flagship of the diesel line-up is the 335d which ups the ante to a massive 286bhp - in return for a price tag of over £34,000.

The 3 Series Touring is heavier than the saloon by some 90kg but any variations in the driving dynamics are negligible. There's still that all-important 50:50 weight distribution and an advanced five-link rear axle set-up. This is quite simply the most rewarding driver's car in the compact executive estate segment and, sampling its poise through the bends along with its polished responses, it's hard to imagine an equivalent model eclipsing it until BMW themselves replace this car sometime in the distant future.

There will still be those that have their doubts over the styling direction of today's 3 Series but one suspects that as the cars proliferate out onto the streets, most lingering reservations will fade. The Touring could well be the looker in the line-up and its versatility should strike a chord with families but the key feature might be its comparative exclusivity. The Touring will be a much rarer sight than the fleet favourite saloon which sells in vastly greater numbers.