IN THIS FEATURE Better late than never This is your pilot speaking V6 is a bit 'GM-corporate'

Starting at £17,995, the SportWagon will beat the competition on price, although it remains to be seen how well residual (resale) values will hold up. But if the saloon's depreciation history is anything to go by, the 9-3 Sportwagon should do well here.

And as with its competitors, this Saab estate is more about style than outright load capacity. That said, the relatively compact rear suspension design means the load area has little in the way intrusions and seats down, there's 1273 litres of space. With the seats up - they're 60/40 split folding items - there is still some 419 litres of space. There's another storage space under the boot floor, which you access by pulling a handle to hinge the floor up and back. In a bit of a self-referential aside, the handle is shaped like an aircraft, a feint towards Saab's aeronautic heritage (Saab was founded in 1937 as Svenska Aktiebolaget, which means Swedish Aircraft Company since you ask...)

Boot can swallow 1273 litres

The driving environment is familiar 9-3 fare and all the better for it with first rate ergonomics and all major controls angled toward the driver - it's that aircraft heritage again. We particularly like the Saab Information Display (SID) binnacle sited right near the base of the 'screen on top of the fascia. It displays info such as outside temperature, radio settings, warnings and directional arrows for the sat-nav, and because of its central position, drivers don't need to move their heads or significantly re-focus their eyes. Nice.

And the SportWagon arrives with a new flagship engine, a 250bhp 2.8-litre V6. This lightweight all-alloy engine develops a solid 258lb ft of torque, with 90 percent of it available from a low 1500rpm. So there's no question that the SportWagon Aero's performance is up to it, with 0-62mph in 6.9secs and a top whack of 152mph. The engine is available with manual or auto six-speeders. The automatic suits the car well, and if you want to press on a bit, there's a manual shift function. If you choose to leave the 'box in fully auto mode, sensors determine how the car is being driven to make sure you're always in the right gear. So if you're hooning around, for example, the gearbox will hold onto lower ratios and avoid hunting about.