Peugeot 206 SW Estate

It's quite amazing what a designer can do with a basic car, and the latest iteration of the Peugeot 206 is a classic case in point. With the 206 SW, the original hatch that was followed by the sweetest hard-top cabriolet in the business - the cc - now has a ‘wagon’ big brother.Meantime, for my money it is the most stylish car in its segment, and particularly in its niche. And in the fact that the SW has the same wheelbase as its hatch sibling lies the first clue to the wagon’s stylistic success. That extra 19cm of overhang behind the wheels adds the balance the metalwork needed. And the extra lengths of glass do too, not to mention the very strong rear lights treatment that visually supports the whole rear back frame.It’s bold and it’s beautiful. For some reason, Peugeot’s design people are seriously improving their key lines - first 307 and now 206 - with innovative wagons that are so much more than an addendum to the core vehicles.But back to the 206SW. What you’re looking at in the pictures includes a complete new roof and revised rear doors and side panels. What is slightly less evident until you sit in is that the SW puts the 206 spacewise almost a class up. And the seating/loading flexibility is getting close to MPV standards.The very flat load area runs 1378mm (more than 4.5 feet) with the rear seats folded, and if you need some extra length, flip the front passenger seatback and you’ve got 2336mm (7.75 feet) to carry the surfboard on the inside. Getting stuff into that area is made easy with a lower load floor than in the hatch.The polypropylen