David Linklater.

Are the simplest things still the best? Meet the new Octavia Style wagon. By

Want a new wagon that really stands out from the crowd? The answer might be something completely normal.

The Kiwi ‘‘wagon’’ (to use that term in its broadest possible sense) market is dominated by SUVs. And the ones that aren’t still seem determined to be as much like SUVs as possible: jacked-up, plastic-clad crossover models like the Subaru Outback, Volkswagen Passat Alltrack and Skoda Octavia Scout.

Ah yes, the Octavia. Before Skoda went full-SUV with the highly acclaimed Kodiaq, Octavia was the brand’s hero car. It still is in a volume sense, at least for now: it’s the Czech maker’s biggest-seller, both globally and in New Zealand.

Think Skoda and you do you tend to think wagon, right? Think Octavia and you probably think of the high-performance RS or that Scout pseudo-SUV model.

So here’s something guaranteed to grab your attention: the $43,890 Octavia Style wagon, a completely conventional five-door estate car with a normal engine and normal ride height and normal styling. It’s classy and practical and just well, normal; the kind of car Kiwis used to love, but don’t really talk about any more.

That’s Style-with-a-capital-S, a specification level that’s part of the facelifted Octavia range. You can identify the new range by its rather odd split-headlight design; Skoda says it’s the product of a ‘‘clear-cut’’ styling ethos inspired by Bohemian glass crystal, but you could equally argue it looks like a 2009 MercedesBenz E-class.

The new front does give the Octavia a very distinctive face, because you get angular split-level daytime running lights/indicators. Hey, it grows on you.

Anyway, Style is not quite entrylevel – that’s the $37,990 Ambition – but it’s still very much in the spirit of the practical family wagon that we all used to know and buy. Our test car has the 1.8-litre turbo-petrol

DAVID LINKLATER/STUFF Octavia Style is an utterly conventional family wagon. That’s quite unusual these days.

Interior is no-nonsense and functional. Apple/Android phone projection is standard.

Recognisably Skoda ‘‘folded cardboard’’ tailgate design. And as much luggage space as a Kodiaq SUV.

This is the 132kW petrol version, but you can save yourself $2k by opting for the 110kW engine.