Peugeot 407 SW

Our verdict

A more interesting proposition than its saloon sibling, the Peugeot 407 SW somehow manages to look far better in estate form. The catch is that there’s not very much room in that nicely styled boot.

Comfort

The ride in the 407 is actually pretty good, although in order to match the increases in size and weight it seems a bit stiffer, and therefore more prone to amplify any surface imperfections you encounter.

Performance

Diesels are the way forward with Peugeot, and it offers a 2.7-litre V6 in the 407 saloon and coupe. It's a lovely unit that whisks this barge along with both pace and serenity, although 33.6mpg takes the smug edge off a bit.

Cool

The French would like us to believe that the 407 is the epitome of understated chic, but truth be told it's just a bit drab. Not much fun to look at, nor to drive. The new Citroen C5 has moved the goalposts too much.

Quality

All new Peugeots have a veneer of improved quality. Posher plastics, bits of slightly unnecessary chrome trim, jazzier design ideas. Whether any of it bears up better than the last generation cars did only time will tell.

Handling

Getting bigger and heavier as all contempo cars are doing, the 407 has definitely lost some of the agility of previous Pug saloons. It's still quite a good chassis though, and steering, although heavily assisted, provides enough feedback.

Practicality

Despite the inherent advantage the SW has over the standard saloon, there is, somewhat unbelievably, less room in the back of this than there is in the 207 SW. So on paper this is a bit of a joke.

Running costs

Highly economical diesels with impressively low CO2 emissions ratings make the 407 a good company car, but private owners should anticipate a giant kick in the balls when they come to sell, especially the big V6.