A STRETCHED version of Citroen's new C4 Picasso MPV will be on sale in January making the model even more family friendly.

The seven seat Grand C4 Picasso will be priced from around £19,000 - some £2,000 more than the five seater which went on sale in August.

Not only does the Grand Picasso offer more room it also marks the debut of a new family of clean diesel engines which will be used by Citroen and its sister company Peugeot.

The two-litre BlueHDi engine develops 150bhp and mated to a manual gearbox has emissions of 110g/km and an average mpg of 67.2 - class leading credentials for a two-litre diesel.

There's also a new automatic gearbox arriving on the Grand Picasso which Citroen claims is good enough for 62.7mpg with a CO2 figure of 117g/km - impressively low for an auto.

The BlueHDi engine has advanced particulate filters which make it one of the cleanest on the market and will join Citroen's existing 1.6-litre petrol and diesel engines which are also available in the newcomer.

The new diesel will be fitted only to the higher grade versions of the Grand Picasso and in Exclusive+ trim it is expected to cost from just under £28,000.

It is going to be up against the likes of the Ford Grand C-MAX, the Renault Grand Scenic and even the larger Ford S-MAX and VW Sharan - stiff competition but the Citroen has plenty going for it.

Sharp styling has become a feature of the latest range of Citroens and the standard C4 Picasso has already proved a hit notching up almost 3,000 sales in a matter of weeks - outstripping Citroen's expectations.

The Grand Picasso is expected to be even more popular and has subtle design changes making it look a little sleeker than its sibling.

The nose is more rounded, there's a pronounced roof line which swoops down to the base of the windscreen and stand out lamp clusters, especially at the rear.

It's more than six inches longer than the standard C4 Picasso but sits lower while inside sliding middle seats create substantial leg room.

Cargo space is also plentiful ranging from 632 to 793 litres which is enough to stow a family's luggage with ease.

Fold down the seats and it can carry as much as a van and even with all seven seats in use there is more luggage space than in a MINI.

The rear seats are stowed flat below the boot floor and can be deployed in seconds while the cargo blind, which is positioned immediately aft of the middle row, can be slid to the back of the car and remains onboard when operating as a seven seater.

User-friendly it is but the rear seats are really only for youngsters and the likelihood is they will be used only occasionally.

With a high tech interior featuring two colour display screens the new Picasso is one of the more futuristic cars on the road and with the ability to hook up to the Internet it delivers the sort of on-the-go connectivity a modern family demands.

It is also comfortable and roomy and the models we tried were fitted with a comfort pack which included a massaging front seat with an extendable leg rest.

Other techno features includes a lane departure warning system which alerts the driver to any drifting by vibrating the seat belt, automatic parking and a 360 degree camera system to help manoeuvring.

The tailgate is electrically operated and has a clamshell design which makes loading larger items more convenient.

On the road the new diesel impresses and the six speed auto is surprisingly fuel efficient in real world conditions.

We managed to average 54 to the gallon which was better than the 46mpg we recorded in the manual over a similar 150 mile route.

Paddle shifters are fitted as standard on the auto and the changes are smooth and slick.

For a largish MPV the Grand Picasso handles well and any roll in corners is well checked, helped by a wheelbase of 9ft 2ins - two inches longer than the standard C4 Picasso.

All five diesel versions and the two petrol models come with stop/start as standard and the 90bhp 1.6 diesel fitted with an electric gearbox has emissions of just 98g/km making it tax exempt for private buyers.

With class leading space and economy the Grand Picasso has an obvious edge but its fashionable feel inside and out make it the most appealing of all the current seven seaters by some margin.