Jeremy – I’ve just dropped off three friends at Heathrow Airport. They’re heading to their French home for six months and I was a bit worried that madam would not get her suitcase full of exotic English fare – Marmite, baked beans, porridge – in the boot of the Beetle.

The last generation ‘new’ Beetle admittedly had a crazy small luggage area but this latest one has grown considerably, a full 50 per cent bigger in fact. The only problem with our test car is that the subwoofer for the Fender sound system does eat up a large chunk of space by the wheel arch.

We managed four suitcases in the back, plus coats, hand luggage and other kit. Only one, carry-on size case had to be squeezed in the middle of the back seat. Impressive.

So the latest Beetle really is a lot more practical than you might think. The retro flip-up glovebox is actually big enough to use – the last version had a flat dash – and there’s plenty more space for long legs in the back.