If you're buying a Coupe, then style will be pretty high up your list of 'must have' features. Not far behind will probably come the need for a high standard specification. Peugeot's 407 Coupe Bellagio aims to satisfy on both counts.

This extra value version of the recently announced HDi 136 diesel model costs little more than the standard variant, yet includes a RT4 Multi Media System that includes Colour Satellite Navigation (with European mapping), TMC (Traffic management information), an audible GSM phone (with inbuilt voice activated hands free controls) plus a MP3 30GB hard drive (for mapping and music storage function), 18" Galaxy alloy wheels (HDi 136 Sport models ordinarily take 17") and twin chromed exhaust pipes. There's also a choice of two new colours - Flamenco Red or the new Nera Black metallic. All for £21,995, at least £5,000-£6,000 less than a comparable specified BMW or Audi alternative.

And the engine? Well, it's true that 136bhp is a lot less than you'd find in diesel variants offered by German rivals: there's the 205bhp 2.7-litre V6 HDi model on offer for around £4,000 more if that's an issue (though you can't have that car with a manual gearbox). But should it be? After all, this car manages the rest to sixty in 10.1 seconds on the way to a maximum of 129mph. In a BMW or an Audi, you might find yourself yearning for more power. In a 407 Coupe, it's really about as fast as you want to be going.

Not that there's anything wrong with the handling balance of this car. It's just that it's intentionally been set up as a Grand Tourer than a B-road blaster. With some rivals, it's hard to know which of the two the designers and engineers had in mind, these cars falling between the two stools and achieving neither end. In the 407, you always know where you stand.

With the pressure off the need to drive like Lewis Hamilton, you can settle back and enjoy this car for what it is. You could spend three or four times as much and still come up with no more comfortable way of covering very long distances in extreme comfort. Just as well then that RT4 satellite navigation is fitted as standard. So, in addition to the 'Bellagio' kit already mentioned, are xenon headlamps, an electrochrome anti-dazzle rear view mirror, cruise control with a built-in speed limiter, rear parking sensors, laminated side windows, dual-zone climate control, central door locking, auto headlamps and wipers, tyre pressure sensors and ESP stability control. If you didn't know this car's raison d'etre, you could guess it from a glance at the specification list.

" Try one before you try something German in this class."

Coupes are brought more on aesthetic values than any other type of car. So what of the styling attributes of this one? As ever, beauty is in the eye of the beholder but few would call this car pretty. Equally well, few would object to the lines. It's certainly a complex shape. The relationship between the front and rear overhangs takes a little getting used to, weaned as we are on cars that use every inch of their wheelbase to pack in a massive passenger cell. The 407 Coupe is unashamedly profligate in its use of passenger space, offering just about enough in the back and little more. The rear three-quarter view is probably the most flattering aspect, the clean styling of the back of the car showing off the sleek glasshouse to best effect.

On the road, this car will hustle happily through a set of fast sweepers and its body control is always unflustered but, as we've said, this is not a sporty car. You'll know within ten yards of setting off that the quiet helm and velvety ride quality instead focus on refinement and civility rather than balls-out aggression. Such is the refinement of the 407 Coupe that you'll often find yourself travelling far faster than you at first imagined, something worth bearing in mind when coming into a hairpin bend!

Peugeot have set something of a precedent to follow with some very good previous Euro NCAP crash test results but the 407 again takes a big step forward. Active safety comes in the form of brake discs with a diameter of up to 330mm and next-generation ESP stability control which is standard on every model. As well as marshalling the anti-skid function, ESP also acts as a controller for the anti lock braking system, the emergency brake assist and the electronic brakeforce distribution to each individual wheel.

The chassis itself incorporates not only the highest level of torsional rigidity ever seen on a Peugeot in this sector - as you might expect - but it also features a device known as an impactor that anchors the engine to the subframe and prevents it being shunted into the passenger cell in the event of a crash. Pedestrian protection is a major design criterion these days and the 407 features foam padded bumper bars and a bonnet that deforms to absorb shock, the top of the engine a good distance below that sweeping bonnet line. Up to nine air bags can be specified - twin fronts, side, curtain and steering column units offer optimum protection.

The 407 Coupe has been something of a slow burner for Peugeot but this Bellagio variant looks like a decent deal on an under-rated car. Try one before you try something German in this class. Just to make sure..