So... is it worth it after all?

Big can be beautiful but, on the whole, our five testers have found that smaller cars nowadays have much of the space and flexibility offered by their current, bigger cars.

With the rising cost of fuel, insurance, road tax and potential future congestion charges, it's sensible to work out the real cost of running a big car.

Next time you're deciding on the perfect car, it really can pay to try something new for size.