YOU need only wander into any supermarket car park to see the advance of the four-by-four off-roader.

There they stand, head and shoulders above all others, some aggressive and pushy, others large and showy. And, generally, their pristine condition confirming that they are more likely to carry a flatpack sideboard from the DIY store than a snow-board or bulky equipment for serious mud-plugging.

Nissan recognises this fact and so its new compact five-door X-Trail is designed more for the road than the ruts. But if needs must it is quite capable of zipping across the nearest field.

All the models in the range, designated S, Sport and SE+ (plus), come with roof rails, The Sport also has a roof-mounted rear spoiler, and together with the SE versions it rides on 16-inch alloy wheels.

One of the reasons people buy a four-by-four is for its high-drive position, and the X-Trail offers this together with plenty of glass for all-round viewing. Also every model has a powered sunroof (Nissan prefers to use the word "skyroof" presumably feeling the word "sun" is over-stepping the mark in this country), and it is bigger than most.

A novel feature (and Nissan says it is particularly proud of this idea) is the introduction of two lidded tubes, both capable of taking a 500cc water bottle or standard-sized drink can, which can be cooled by the air conditioning. Alternatively, the containers will hold sun glasses, mobile phone and other similar shaped objects (although the air-conditioning is not then necessary!).

On-the-road prices start at £16,750 for the 2.0-litre 16v S matched to a five-speed manual gearbox, with the Sport version coming in at £17,995. The four-speed automatic is £18,995. The manual SE+ (plus) is £19,895 and the automatic £20,895.

The 2.2-litre diesel injection range are all fitted with six-speed gearboxes, the S at £17,750, Sport £18,995 and the SE+ £20,895.

Optional equipment is extensive, including a Birdview satellite navigation unit for £1,500, 16-inch alloy wheels with tyres at £910, a six-disc CD changer for £410 and a rear parking system for £310.