So there we were, driving back from the hospital with our new addition to the family in her child seat in the back and The Brunette (still recovering from "major surgery" as she calls it) had to suffer the journey with her knees jammed against the glovebox in order to accommodate her.

Damn, I thought, not only is my Xbox time and 'gallivanting around the world testing supercars' time likely to be severely curtailed for a while, we're going to have to buy a new car...

Which was a real shame as the car in question was a rather splendid Prodrive Subaru Impreza Sportwagon. I always had to refer to it as a Sportwagon as The Brunette is even more allergic to the term "estate car" than I am to the term "diesel". But when we got our first additions to the family (two four-legged ones from Battersea Dogs Home) five years ago, she had to ditch her beloved lipstick red Mazda MX 5 for a practical car as I was definitely not parting with my Ferrari.

The Prodrive had served us proud, taking us to the Lake District most summers, Cornwall, Devon and France twice, including during a white-out that blanketed most of France from Val d'Isere to Calais. It was a faultlessly reliable car and when the luggage and dogs had been dropped off at the destination it magically transformed itself into a 240bhp turbocharged rally special. We both really, deeply loved that car and it was with a heavy heart that we realised it simply wouldn't be able to hack it as family-of-five transport.

The quest for a replacement was remarkably short. Neither of us could contemplate owning any sort of MPV and I didn't like the driving experience of an SUV. So that meant another "estate car" but clearly not one that had that actual moniker. My 550 Maranello-owning neighbour has an Audi A6 esta- sorry Avant and that certainly seemed spacious enough, particularly in the rear legroom department where a rear-facing baby seat takes up a lot of space. However, there were two problems with us buying an A6 Avant. Firstly it would look like we were copying Harry and Helen, and secondly the badge wasn't enough to fool The Brunette; it was still an estate car!

Ideally I would have loved an RS6, but they were still a very pricey proposition and perhaps 450bhp would be too much of a temptation with a newborn onboard. Besides, the suspension is a tad firm for baby carrying and a little low for doggy trekking. But, I have always admired the chunky, rugged good looks of the A6 Allroad and it seemed to offer us most of what we wanted in a family car. I very briefly considered considering a turbo-diesel, but quickly came to my senses and started looking exclusively for 2.7 V6 twin turbo petrol engined ones.

As The Brunette was not allowed to drive for several weeks (they really do make a big deal about these 10 inch long incisions don't they?) I went to have a look at one on eBay, but was put off by the rather green interior. I then found an Atlas Grey one advertised in Autocar, not somewhere I would usually think of looking for a car for sale. It was down the M3 from us in Southampton and I went to test drive it on a sunny late September morning. My first impression was that it was huge. I knew that was the point, but I was not used to driving something that gargantuan. Allroads are very nearly 16 feet long and 6 and a half feet wide and at first I thought it simply wouldn't fit down the average suburban street. However the surprisingly direct and accurate steering allied to reasonable body control soon increased my confidence in guiding the behemoth.

The twin turbo V6 certainly had plenty of pick up and worked smoothly with the Tiptronic automatic transmission. The interior, as with most modern Audis, was exceptionally well put together and designed and this one benefited from full leather two tone seats and black aluminium dash inlays. The exterior was smartened up immeasurably by the "Optic Pack" that specifies matt chrome finished roof rails and running boards that nicely match the Allroad's signature front and rear "skid plates" and optional chunkier-looking double spoke alloys. Most significantly, this car had an almost unique colour coding option on all the panels that are usually painted (yes, painted) matt dark grey on standard Allroads, namely the bumpers, massively flared wheelarches and lower side cladding.

The car was exceptionally tidy, had 48,000 miles on the clock, full Audi service history and even a few months balance on the manufacturer's warranty. New, with options it would have cost about £45,000, but due to the wonderful depreciation we enjoy in this country, I managed to blag it for £15,750. A few days later, Harry drove me down in his A6 to pick it up and was gratifyingly envious when he saw it.

The Brunette loved the looks when she finally got to see it and as soon as she was able to drive it, delighted in jacking the air suspension up to Maximum Intimidation Mode to compete with all the Surrey yummy mummies in their BMW X5's and Merc M classes. I prefer the discretion afforded by lowering it down to Handling Mode, unless I am on my daily outing to the local heath to take the mutts out, when one of the three higher settings is ideal for dealing with muddy potholes and tree roots on the unmade paths.

I originally harboured dark thoughts about taking it to DMS and getting their remap which raises the power from an acceptable 250bhp to a more interesting 300+. But maybe it's early middle age catching up with me, so far I honestly haven't felt the need for much more grunt; I suppose the fact the engine produces its maximum 260 lb·ft of torque from only 1,800rpm helps.

Incidentally this is the only other five valves per cylinder engine I have owned apart from the one in my Ferrari F355 Spider and 0-60mph in 7.5 seconds and 145mph is not bad going in an 1,850kg, automatic. It is, for example, considerably faster than my first performance car, the justly-lauded Peugeot 205 GTI 1.9.

Obviously it's no Prodrive Impreza around the corners, but in its two lowest ride settings, it does grip remarkably well, especially considering the semi off-road tyres it wears. Handling is resolutely safe with an ESP safety net for when Quattro four wheel drive isn't quite enough. Annoyingly the ESP cannot be fully disengaged, just reined back by a dashboard switch. However 260 lb·ft isn't really enough to send a heavy 4wd car like this sideways anyway.

The ride, in standard mode, is easily the best of any modern Audi I've tried; compliant yet well damped. It does pogo on the higher two settings though. Little luxuries like the heated seats and restful red dash lighting are all soothing reminders that this is a quality luxury car that just happens to serve exceptionally well in the role of rough and tumble family car.

We love it. All five of us.