Last year’s class winner was still on the shortlist when the judges debated this year’s result.The huge cabin is the Skoda’s stand-out feature. There’s more passenger space than in the Ford Mondeo, and we loaded all our holiday gear with space to spare.

However, it took a very firm pull before the handbrake would hold the outfit on the 1-in-6 test hill, although there was no problem driving uphill in first gear or reverse.

The Superb performed well, hauling the caravan from 30-60mph in just 12.3 seconds. Although stable, it didn’t quite match the Mondeo in the lane-change test, and isn’t quite as solid at speeds over 60mph.