Classy Mazda estate proved its worth on a two-week trek across the UK.

Pros:

+ Handsome design

+ Upmarket interior

+ Agile for an estate

Cons:

- Other estates have more space

- Sluggish auto box

- Engine needs working hard

Verdict: Stylish estate made was an excellent, practical companion to cover more than 1,000 miles on a hectic cross country trip

Once upon a time, the default choice for the family who wanted that little extra in practicality was the estate car. But times have changed. Estates have a bit of an image problem. They are not cool. Driving one marks you out as an embarrassment to your kids, like a drunken dad dancer at a wedding. That’s why manufacturers bestow them with names like Touring, Avant and Wagon. The ‘e’ word is no longer welcome.

Instead, the world and its dog wants to drive SUVs. When it comes to practicality, the SUV is the hip choice for families who have what marketers like to call ‘active’ lifestyles. They are fashionable and functional. And because of that, they have taken over the road.

I, for one, think this is absurd. Because a good estate has many advantages over an SUV, as a recent 1000-mile return trip from north London to the north-east of Scotland, via the Lake District, demonstrated. My choice of transport was the Mazda 6 Tourer, an excellent car but, like many estates these days, a relatively rare sight, as was proven by the first leg of my journey, from N14 in Barnet to the coastal town of Montrose in Angus, broadly equidistant from Dundee and Aberdeen on the east coast of Scotland.

The sum total of Mazda 6 Tourers I encountered on my travels? Rather astonishingly, zero. To give you an idea of how rare it proved, there were more sightings of the Rover Streetwise (1), Lotus Esprit X180 (1), Bentley Bentayga (2) and Nissan Qashqai (about a million). To be fair, there was also a fair smattering of Mazda CX-5s to be seen, and that is the car that I suspect has been more responsible for declining 6 Tourer sales than any other.

The car I had the pleasure of driving was a really rather lovely 2.5-litre 194ps GT Sport Auto, which weighs in with an on-the-road price of £33,710. The only option fitted was Deep Crystal Blue Mica paint (£580), which was a classy complement to the car’s handsome lines. There has been a major focus on design at Mazda in recent times, and the 6 Tourer is one of its more striking creations, managing to look both elegant and sporty.

It’s inside, though, where it feels particularly impressive. If you haven’t been inside a Mazda lately, you may well be in for a surprise because it’s all decidedly posh, confirming the brand’s upward trajectory. While many makers are talking about moving upmarket, Mazda is backing it up with stylish designs both inside and out.

Admittedly my car came in top-spec GT Sport trim, which meant it wanted for nothing. Among the highlights were leather seats (brown Nappa in case you’re wondering), heated front and outer rear seats – particularly appreciated by my kids on one especially cold, wet day in the Lakes – Ultrasuede and real wood trim, and an 11-speaker Bose surround system. This proved a real hit when hooked up to Spotify with wireless Apple CarPlay (which worked seamlessly) and meant I had relatively little use for the Mazda’s own infotainment and nav system, which is perfectly competent but perhaps isn’t the sharpest in terms of graphics. Whichever you choose to use – CarPlay or the built-in system – the rotary controller is a better option than the touchscreen operation you’ll find in most mainstream rivals.

One of the major advantages an estate has over an SUV is the driving experience – it simply feels more like a conventional car to control, and this is facilitated by the lower driving position. Of course, the more commanding view of the road an SUV affords is exactly why many people prefer them, but if you want to feel more involved in the drive, an estate will prove more satisfying. Certainly, there was little to complain about regarding the 6 Tourer’s driving position with the powered seat tilting, sliding, reclining and adjusting for height, and lumbar adjustment available as well.

The drive itself? As most of the time was spent on fast moving motorways or dual carriageways, the experience was dominated by the 2.5-litre engine, which provided comfortably enough acceleration for my requirements – 0-62mph is delivered in a claimed 8.1 seconds – but needed to be worked harder than I expected. To be honest, it wasn’t helped by the occasionally sluggish six-speed automatic gearbox, which sometimes struggled to keep up with sharp bursts of power, with the result that the 6 Tourer revved a lot more noisily than I anticipated.

Generally, though, refinement and comfort couldn’t be faulted with the controlled ride coping with the M1, M6 and M73 perfectly well and also acceptable, if not exceptional, on poor town roads.

Off the beaten track, it handled well enough on the tight rural A and B roads of rural Angus and Cumbria, emphasising Mazda’s desire to deliver satisfying drivers’ cars, even on family-friendly estates. It was in this environment, in particular, that I felt relieved not to be in an unwieldy SUV, leaning its way through the many bends. Fuel economy was acceptable, if not quite achieving the claimed 42.2mpg.

Of course, one of the reasons I was keen to take an estate on this particular trip was because of the practicality on offer, particularly given that my wife and two daughters were travelling with me.

On that front, the 6 Tourer didn’t disappoint. Sure, on sheer numbers alone, it falls behind some rivals – compare its 522-litre boot (with all the seats up) to the 660 litres of the Skoda Superb, for example, and you might feel a little short-changed.

But numbers aren’t everything. On my two-week excursion it swallowed three cabin-crew cases and one large one, plus a variety of softer bags, with ease, and the reality is that the luggage capacity should be more than acceptable for any normal four-strong family. (A trip to the tip before I left for Scotland also showed how easy it was to extend to 1664 litres by folding the 60/40 split rear seats, simply by pulling two levers).

Indeed, my only real quibble with the space on offer was the legroom available in the rear seats. While my kids (11 and 8) were comfortable enough, I found it a little tighter than ideal, with my knees touching the back of the seat in front. I am six feet-plus, though.

Of the abundance of equipment available, unquestionably the most useful bit of kit was the 360- degree view monitor shown via the eight-inch colour screen which made parking such a big car – the 6 Tourer is 4,805mm long – straightforward. Cameras front and rear ensured there was no possibility of mishaps.

My verdict after two weeks in the Mazda? Family estates may not have the social cachet of SUVs anymore, but they still make a great deal of sense, particularly if the driving experience retains any importance to you (it does for me!). And as far as estates go, the 6 Tourer is one of the better all-rounders out there, providing a compelling mix of style, comfort and agility.

Price: £33,710

Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder

Power: 191bhp,

Torque: 258Nm

0-62mph: 8.1 seconds

Top speed: 139mph

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