Peugeot RCZ safety is taken care of by driver and passenger front and side airbags, stability control, electronic brake force distribution (EBFD) and emergency braking assistance (EBA). There’s also an ultrasonic alarm and immobiliser plus locking wheel bolts for security.

However the RCZ hasn’t been crash tested by Euro NCAP, so it’s hard to say just how well it will stand up to a severe impact – though the firm’s other models generally score well.

If you want to carry rear passengers regularly, then that’s one area of Peugeot RCZ practicality that falls short. Unless they’re small children, you can strike the RCZ off your list of potential cars; that ever so stylish roofline robs the car of any rear headroom, and with a taller driver legroom takes a beating too.

Add to that a set of seats, in GT trim at least, that don’t automatically slide forward when tipped and then fail to return to their previous position when reclined again. At least standard-fit memory settings for the position can be pre-set to help here.

Otherwise the Peugeot is pretty good though; the door bins are long and relatively wide while the centre console’s adjustable armrest hides a small storage cubby with iPod or USB media device input.

And the boot is equally, if not more, impressive. With the seats in place there’s 384-litres to make use of, with extra storage underneath the floor. Drop the backrests and that expands to a useful 760-litres, though the shallow depth means it’s only really suitable for longer rather than much larger items.