WHILE IT'S not exactly setting the heather on fire these days, there are a lot of positives surrounding the Volvo brand at the moment, led in an upwardly mobile and off-road fashion by the stunning new award-winning XC90 SUV.

Further down the scale, there's some nifty smaller contenders, too, to take your fancy in rural areas.

The V40 has recently been updated and that includes offering the useful little crossover look-alike, the V40 XC, which, apart from having a bit of a compromise in the luggage department, is an ideal vehicle for those who want too look as if they have off-road capability.

While this is essentially a two-wheel-drive model – all-wheel-drive is only available in the most powerful version – and it is no Land Rover off the beaten track, it will take you to a surprising number of places, given that it is slightly loftier off the ground (40mm) than its counterparts and has some hard metal protecting its underpinnings, both at the front and rear. That kind of security can be had for just £1000 more than its siblings.

A styling kit also sets it apart, with side scuff plates, rear diffuser and 16-inch alloy wheels, plus silver roof rails. Get the 'Pro' designated XC and there's a move up to 17-inch alloys, leather-faced upholstery, SatNav, rear park assist and cruise control.

For the XC versions, there are three diesel engine choices and two petrol units. All come in two litre format, with a 1.5-litre petrol also available.

For those who want to tow anything, then then D4 is the boy for you. This is rated at 190hp, though, to be fair, if you're not pulling anything behind you, then the 150hp D3 version of the same engine is not too far behind in terms of straight-line performance.

A drive in the D3 certainly confirmed its credentials as a hard-working, yet frugal power unit. It does the timed 0-62mph run in a tad under eight seconds, yet the stats say it can achieve 70mpg-plus.

A more achievable and believable figure is in the mid-60s mpg and that's quite a feat for a two-litre with some pretty smart times off the block.

Go for the miserly D2 version and you're looking at 120hp and an achievable 70mpg plus. Though it's more than a second slower than the D3 engine.

Petrol engines are things that are creeping back into the psyche slowly, given some of the problems with diesel cars and those with diesel particulate filters in particular. Volvo's offers a de-tuned 2.0 litre of 152hp in the T3 and a bit of a rip-snorting 245hp in T5 format – the former manages a little over 50mpg on the combined cycle (surprisingly, this is less than the 1.5-litre petrol variant) and mid-40s on the T5.

It's the T5 that gets the 4 x 4 capability which makes it a bit of a flier and adds a lot of security, especially in the XC variant which sits that bit higher off the road. That costs £33,975 though, which is at least £4500 more than any other model in the range.

The Cross Country diesels start at £23,808 and range to £26,405. You can add about £3000 to each to upgrade the the 'Pro' model, with the T5 only coming in that spec'.

One of the downsides is there's a lack of boot space. There's just 335 litres available with the rear seats in place and its high load sill and narrow width, thanks to Volvo's preference for bulky rear lights on the D-pillar, mean it's not that practical either.

My choice:

V40 Cross Country Pro

Engine D4 2.0-litre diesel

Power 190 hp

0-60mph 7.3/7.1 (auto)

Combined mpg 70.6/65.7 (auto)