Long-term test: Skoda Yeti 1.6TDI Elegance Greenline II

What do an oversized bean bag, electric drum kit and a mountain bike with flat tyres have in common?

They’re all fit for recklessly stuffing into the back of AM’s long term Skoda Yeti.

These neglected items didn’t make their way over to Cambridge in my house move and have been kindly held until the Yeti was back in my hands, ready to accept my pitiful attempts at arranging my random cargo like a surreal jigsaw puzzle.

This scenario embodies what the Yeti is all about. It’s dependable, spacious, ready to help and I’ll be sad to see it go in a few months.

So the Yeti inspires happy journalists, but more importantly it inspires happy customers too, taking the overall top spot in the 2012 Auto Express Driver Power survey which is built on views from drivers.

The crossover 4x4 beat last year’s champion the Superb (a Czech whitewash?) with an overall score of 92.47%.

It also won three individual categories: reliability, ease of driving and handling.

The only aspect owners criticised was ride quality, although it still performed well, with a 12th-place finish.

Questioning the ride quality is a slightly peculiar criticism as AM’s two-wheel drive variant is poised and comfortable on the road, easily absorbing bumps without crashing through them.

The Yeti was called in to action to transport five adults to the airport before a trip to Amsterdam recently and the extra heft didn’t pose a problem for the 104bhp 1.6-litre diesel.

The cost of fuel is becoming a slight issue with a full tank teetering scarily close to more than £80, but easily achievable fuel efficiency of more than 45mpg and a start stop system helps and it means it’s often possible to avoid a trip to the pumps for a fortnight at a time.

And it’s not the Yeti’s fault the price of crude oil keeps on soaring to ludicrous levels.