9. Kia Sportage

A good family car needs to be competitively priced, practical, good to drive and stylish. The Kia Sportage is all of these things so if you want a crossover style model it should be on your shortlist. Its classy and well-equipped interior is spacious and the raised body boosts visibility.

The Kia Sportage is available in 2WD and 4WD derivatives and the 1.7 CRDi 2WD EcoDynamics model with Intelligent Stop&Go (ISG) is the pick of the range thanks to its gutsy performance and low running costs – with CO2 emissions as low as 135g/km and 50mpg a realistic target, it makes a mockery of its high-riding SUV looks. Kia’s attractively-priced Care-3 pre-paid servicing packages also remove uncertainty from the cost of scheduled servicing.

Equipment levels are generous across the board, with kit like Bluetooth and iPod connectivity fitted as standard, and while it doesn’t drive as well as a Ford Kuga or Skoda Yeti, the Kia’s combination of value and style demand attention.