The Essentials

• Price from £18,455
• What Car? says:
• Fuel economy: up to 57.6mpg
• What is it? Built with family life in mind, it's supremely practical and comfortable, if not that thrilling to drive.

• Drive

  Easy to drive and comfortable - not the place for seat-of-your-pants driving fun

• Inside

  Innovative features like the fixed steering wheel hub are rather fun

• Safety

  Everything we'd expect is present and correct

• Reliability

  We'll keep our fingers crossed that recent improvements continue

• Space

  Three independent rear seats make this a practical car for three in the back

• Standard and extras

  Plenty of them, even at entry-level. Top spec C4s get all the bells and whistles

• What's it like to drive?

  The C4 Picasso is easy to drive, and a comfortable way to transport the family. Light steering makes low-speed manoeuvres easy but there's a little too much body roll in corners and at lower speeds the ride isn't as cushy as we'd like. The engines are quiet and we'd pick the 1.6 diesel for the best balance between power and low running costs. The manual gearbox isn't particularly precise and the automatic with its Formula 1 style paddle-shift gear change can be jerky.

• What's it like inside?

  It's quirky and rather fun. The centre of the steering wheel remains static while the wheel turns around it. Steering-wheel mounted buttons control many of the car's major functions which is fine once you've worked out which does what (it's not all that intuitive). When you're not admiring the interior design, the view through the enormous glass windscreen is excellent. All three rear seats tilt and slide back and forth individually and have Isofix points, making this a practical car if you've got three small children. Folding the seats down is a doddle; you just pull a loop at the side and creates a huge flat load area. There's no shortage of storage space to hide clutter, either. Entry-level Edition cars provide most of the kit you need, including air-con, cruise control, rear parking sensors and four electric windows; Bluetooth is an affordable option. Platinum trim brings Bluetooth as standard plus climate control, automatic lights and wipers, tinted windows and a child surveillance mirror.

• How reliable is it?

  The interior looks and feels well-built and owners rated reliability as 'average' in the latest JD Power survey. Safety kit is comprehensive with stability control and six airbags fitted as standard, plus curtain airbags that extend to the rear seats. In Euro NCAP crash tests the car scored a maximum five stars overall all, including 87% for adult protection and 78% for child protection, making a Ford C-Max a slightly safer option (it scored 92% for adults and 83% for kids).

• Should I buy one?

  The C4 Picasso's list price is competitive but it's worth pushing for a big a discount to compensate for its dismal resale value. Running costs are family friendly and the eHDi models are particularly efficient and clean.