Drive any car for ten miles and it is difficult to form any useful opinion; drive it for 100 and you get a much clearer picture. Cover 1,000 miles and you know whether parting with the car is sweet sorrow, or a much-awaited relief.

Eleven hundred and thirty eight miles after we met, the A4 Avant left having soaked up a variety of punishment which would have left lesser vehicles wanting.

From cruising effortlessly along the still-smooth Midland Expressway towards Stena's high-speed HSS Explorer Holyhead ferry to Dun Laoghaire and on to the slowly-improving, but still challenging, roads which thread their way through the west of Ireland, the A4 did not miss a beat.

Quiet, refined, spacious, yet comfortably manoeuvrable, the A4 Avant blends the best of svelte saloon style with estate practicality.

With the 140 horsepower, 2.0-litre turbodiesel engine fitted it combines safe, fast motorway cruising with the pleasant prospect of near 50mpg consumption.

Add the superb £1,450 option of multitronic transmission which combines a seven-speed automatic gearbox and semi-automatic steering wheel-mounted paddle controls and you have a long distance cruiser par excellence.

It is small wonder the designers built in a dashboard display that flashes a take-a-break warning when you have been driving for two hours otherwise you might never notice. The A4 was given a makeover last year and the range now stretches to no fewer than 24 models with prices ranging from £18,765 to £28,725.

Four engines new to the A4 range a 200 horsepower 2.0 T FSI, blistering 3.2 FSI with 256 horsepower, 2.0 TDI and 204 horsepower 3.0 TDI were added at the same time. The car was given a styling transformation, with every body panel bar the roof section new, along with new seats and seat fabrics, new steering wheel design, latest DVD satellite navigation and MP3 option.

The seats also feature slimmer, active locking head restraints that automatically minimise the distance between the restraint and the head in a rear crash situation.

New two-stage intelligent' airbags are now fitted for the driver and front passenger. Their sensors are capable of assessing the intensity of an impact in fractions of a second and activating only the first phase of the airbag deployment in less severe crashes.

A seatbelt reminder chime for driver and front passenger is also standard.

The SE package also adds an Audi Concert II radio with single CD player, cruise control, electric rear windows, aluminium window trims and the Audi Driver's Information System. All in all, a grand touring package.

Auto facts Model: Audi A4 Avant 2.0 TDI SE

  • Price: £24,115
  • Insurance group: 12
  • Fuel consumption (Combined): 47.9mpg
  • Top speed: 124mph
  • Length: 458.6cm/180.5in
  • Width: 177.2cm/69.7in
  • Luggage capacity: 15.6 cu ft
  • Fuel tank capacity: 70 litres/15.4gallons
  • CO2 emissions: 169g/km
  • Warranty: 3 years/60,000 miles