Do you believe in love at first sight? If you don't, Skoda's Fabia has never been the car most likely to persuade you otherwise. Despite being almost spookily competent when it came to things like practicality, build quality and value for money, the Fabia has never been a supermini to set your heart pounding and your bottom lip drooling after the briefest encounter. The latest model follows along these low key lines and as you'd imagine, grafting on an estate bodystyle does little for its charisma quota. You discount the Fabia Estate at your peril though. This highly user-friendly car might have the capacity to seduce you on the sly.

Being too straight-laced was the only criticism that the old Skoda Fabia received with any regularity. Otherwise, it was a fine supermini and in estate form it had even more practicality to call upon. There was even the suspicion that the car's lack of obvious sparkle could be attributed to Skoda's Volkswagen Group paymasters wanting to protect sales of the Polo. The latest Fabia addressed this to an extent with its curvier lines and distinctive blacked-out A and B pillars. The Estate version inherits this look but still lacks the verve of rivals like the Renault Clio Tourer, Peugeot 207 SW and MINI Clubman.

In the main, power options for the Fabia Estate mirror those of the Fabia hatch. 70bhp is the starting point as the amount delivered by the 12-valve 1.2-litre HTP engine and from there, petrol buyers can step on to a 1.4-litre 16-valve with 85bhp or the 1.6-litre 16-valve with 105bhp. Anyone after rip-snorting performance shouldn't really be looking at a Fabia Estate in the first place but if you want a bit more muscle for getting heavy payloads off the line, on of the 70bhp 1.4 TDI, 80bhp 1.4 TDI or 105bhp 1.9 TDI diesels should suffice. These direct injection oil-burners lack refinement not being the supermini sector's most advanced units but they don't come up short of mid-range urge. Even the 70bhp option turns in 210Nm at 1,600rpm. The petrol engines are smoother but the 1.2-litre has to work hard to get a fully loaded Fabia Estate moving. Thankfully, Estate does with out the weedier 60bhp 1.2-litre unit offered in the hatchback.

"The strengths of Skoda's Fabia supermini are its interior space, build quality and value for money."

The Estate is only 20kg heavier than the hatch, so it drives much the same - that's pretty darn well, for those unfamiliar with Skoda's supermini. The Fabia's suspension handles rough surfaces with some grace but remains composed through the corners with far less body roll than you'd experience in a taller supermini-based MPV. The pointy steering also helps the car deliver a pleasant driving experience. It's no ball of fire regardless of the engine you pick but it has the basics nailed down making it an amiable companion across the full range of UK road conditions.

If room is your thing, the Fabia is a good supermini to go for so it follows that the estate isn't short of capacity. It's actually nearly 24cm longer than its hatchback relative and viewing the two cars side by side, you can believe it. The estate looks altogether lither and less stubby with its extra side window and the shallow angle of its tailgate. The extra dimensions have helped Skoda engineers achieve a 480-litre boot capacity with the seats up, some 180 litres more than you'll cram into the hatchback. Fold the 60/40 split rear seats flat (a less than straightforward operation that involves removing the headrests) and there's an Albert Hall-esque 1,460 litres. That's 297 litres up on the hatchback.

The styling of the Fabia Estate follows on from the hatch. It's more distinctive than Fabia models past which just looked like the budget Volkswagens they, in essence, were and today's car has evolved its own themes and character. The Fabia Estate does classy about as well as a small estate car can with its chrome grille and the roof bars on the plusher models but it's palpably no MINI Clubman. The looks should be engaging enough for what will be bought primarily as functional vehicle and the Fabia Estate is more impressive still on the inside. The Volkswagen influence is in evidence in the cabin with an upmarket element to the switchgear and the materials. Again, the Fabia isn't exactly brimming with that elusive wow-factor but there are elegant touches including aluminium finishes for the door handles and air-vent surrounds.

There are three trim levels available with the Fabia Estate, conveniently called 1, 2 and 3 by the ever pragmatic Skoda. All models get central locking, electric windows at the front, height adjustment for the driver's seat, height and reach adjustment for the steering wheel and a CD stereo with MP3 compatibility. Safety equipment includes ABS along with front and side airbags. For a vehicle starting at £9,360, that isn't a bad haul. The step up to the Fabia 2 yields 15" alloy wheels, air-conditioning, body coloured exterior parts, remote central locking, a trip computer and those natty roof rails. Meanwhile Fabia 3, which starts at £12,205 for the 1.4-litre petrol model, gives you climate and cruise control, front fog lights, 16" alloys, parking sensors and curtain airbags. The 1.6-litre petrol engine is offered with the tiptronic clutchless gearbox otherwise, it's a 5-speed manual.

The market for small estate cars has suffered in the wake of the small MPV sector's growth. Where vehicles like the Fabia Estate are basically superminis with extra boot space, MPV models tend to offer passenger-orientated features like clever folding seats and additional storage solutions. The taller shape of the MPVs tends to produce a higher driving position but the estate options usually retain the sharper driving dynamics of the lower, sportier superminis that spawned them. If you want a supermini with more room out back, the Fabia will be ideal but you'll also have alternatives like Renault's Clio Touring and Peugeot's 207 SW that do sporty more convincingly than the spacious Skoda which may just have the edge on build quality and value.

The engine range in the Fabia estate definitely errs towards economy rather than performance. The absence of a high tech diesel engine means than none of the units can dip below the 120g/km barrier for emissions but the 80bhp 1.4 TDI unit lands right on that mark. You can also order this unit in eco-friendly 'GreenLine' guise where, for a premium of around £200, it will deliver you around 69mpg and emit just 109g/km of emissions.

The entry-level 70bhp diesel is actually slightly less economical and heavier on the emissions even than the standard 1.4 TDI 80bhp unit, so consider this before taking the cheaper option. The range-topping 1.9 TDI diesel is well-suited to the Estate's load lugging role and its 57mpg economy just about makes it the pick of the line-up. You'll get 61mpg from the 80bhp 1.4-litre TDI, 48mpg from the 1.2-litre petrol and even the 1.6-litre petrol manages 40mpg with the manual gearbox.

Fabia models have always held very firm when it comes to residual values, used buyers valuing the Volkswagen Group input and resolute build quality. Insurance is unlikely to break the bank and all models come with a 3-year 60,000-mile warranty.

The strengths of Skoda's Fabia supermini are its interior space, build quality and value for money. All of which bodes well for the Estate version which grafts on additional practicality courtesy of its extended boot. A potential capacity of 1,460 litres with the rear seats folded is not to be sniffed at and neither are the high quality cabin and the lengthy equipment list. The latest Fabia drives well and the Estate version inherits that poise on the road along with a better defined styling direction that Fabia models of yesteryear.

A Skoda Fabia Estate isn't the most exciting ownership prospect out there but it does what it sets out to do very efficiently. The styling may seem bland in comparison to some rivals but the extra bulk of the Estate is well integrated and as you climb the range, the addition of roof rails and larger alloys improves matters. The diesel engines lack refinement but the whole range is strong on economy and pricing is competitive, particularly at the lower end of the line-up.