Estates are really where it's at for Volvo - the Swedish company might not appreciate the fact that it is famed the world over for being sensible and practical (who would rather be Margaret Thatcher over Madonna) but its estate cars are still the backbone of family life for many people.
Volvo has been working hard to make its cars a little more aesthetically pleasing, and the V50, which is based on the S40 saloon, is no exception. It is a handsome car and arguably looks better than the saloon that has sired it. The rear tailgate is quite steeply raked, though, so boot space is not all it might be.
As with the S40, the V50 is based on Ford Focus underpinnings, which lends it an agility that you wouldn't normally expect from Volvo. It is actually good fun to drive over a twisty road and yet still retains what is by now a traditional Volvo trait of excellent manners on the motorway.
The interior is nicely put together too, and feels like it has been built to last. But considering the car sells well past the £20,000 mark you would expect better quality materials to be used on the dashboard and around the cabin. It's not that it feels particularly cheap per se, but you would expect more from a manufacturer that has a clearly stated aim to move upmarket.
Neither is the car as capacious as you might expect - there is room enough for passengers inside, but the V50 doesn't have as big a boot as rivals and it is also less practical than the competition with its narrow load space. The more time you spend with the V50 the more it begins to look closer to a lifestyle estate than a true load-lugger.
The petrol engines for the car are mostly worth glossing over, but there is a good selection of diesel engines available for the V50 - the range-topper is a little crude in terms of refinement, but the entry-level 1.6-litre and 2.0-litre are impressively economical and the latter even has a decent turn of speed.
The V50 is a handsome enough car and its safety pedigree will mean plenty of sales, but Volvo lives in a premium/mainstream no-man's land that makes it a tough brand to call. The V50 is probably overpriced for what you get.