IAN LAMMING hated the Mercedes Vaneo until the snows came - and suddenly its strengths were revealed

WHAT a difference four inches of snow can make. In fact Mercedes can count its lucky stars that blizzard conditions hit North Yorkshire the week I have its weird Vaneo.

Collecting the vehicle on a cold but dry, sunny day, I hate it from the word go. Parked in the compound it looks awkward with its A Class front end and ill-proportioned rear.

Climbing high into the driver's seat, it feels just as awkward. The seating position feels strange, the windscreen hurtles back towards me so acutely that I have to move my head to put the sun flaps down and I'm perched so high I feel like I'm driving a bus.

And the engine! Oh...my...God. Never have I driven such a gutless wonder. It clatters, it rattles, but no matter how hard I try it can't dredge up enough power to pull the skin off a rice pudding.

It's going to be a long week - but then it snows. The roads of North Yorkshire become an icy wilderness designed to test reserves that many motor cars simply do not possess.

And as my partner's Vectra SRi slithers and slides its way towards a certain bump, as it veers out of control along country lanes, as the low profile sports tyres fail miserably to grip the ground below, the Vaneo takes everything in its stride.

In bad weather the little Mercedes people carrier is an absolute star. The relatively skinny tyres cut through the snow to lock on to asphalt below.

The vehicle's electronic aids work in tandem to ensure the Vaneo always goes where it is pointed and the high-set driving position gives the feeling of being on top of the job and away from the worst the weather can throw at me. For some bizarre reason the Vaneo embodies the same level of security you normally only feel in a large 4x4.

Impressed? It's like someone flicking a switch. All of a sudden all the things I'd hated about the car melt away, along with the snow.

The ugly duckling aesthetics become cute and quirky. The awkward driving position feels lofty and imperious.

The ill-proportioned back end becomes functional and practical. And that under-powered engine is pleasingly tractable on the slippery stuff. It's also very frugal and I swear the motor even starts to loosen up.

No longer blinded by prejudice, I actually start to notice how well thought out the Vaneo is. After walking through blizzards in the Yorkshire Dales, we return to the car cold, wet, muddy and tired.

Getting changed is generally an unpleasant affair that involves hopping around on one foot while the other one is naked and, in the most extreme cases, falling over as my ill-fitting waterproofs tie me in knots.

Not so with the Vaneo. There's a moveable floor in the load bay that slides out to greet you. It makes the perfect perch for a tired traveller.

If it had still been snowing I would have simply climbed into the load bay and shut the door. There's room for a little one to stand in the back and the surfaces are all wipe-clean jobbies so it doesn't matter how much mess you make with your muddy boots.

Warm and dry, it's time to head home - the snowiest way possible, of course, with my new-found husky friend.

The Vaneo is a multi-purpose vehicle of the highest order. You can get three rows of seats to carry more passengers or take them all out to produce a van. Even with the seats in place the load area is huge and there are anchor points for mountain bikes and other out door pursuit equipment.

The ride is superb and the handling excellent, making it a very pleasant vehicle to travel in. It's amazing how the vehicle can be thrown around without any protest from tyres or passengers.

It's not going to win any sprint challenges - Mercedes doesn't even quote a 0-60mph time in the press pack - but then it's not that kind of vehicle, so does it really matter.

Once cranked up it cruises happily at motorway speeds and you can raise a family in the time it takes for the fuel gauge to move from full.

More power would be nice so you could actually overtake other, even slower, vehicles without having to give them three months notice in writing. But at least you benefit from the Vaneo's excellent forward visibility to give you more time to plan.

So don't be too harsh - like I was - on the Vaneo if you do take it for a test drive on a perfect sunny day.

Take it from me, it has talents, hidden by its quirky nature, that only need a snowy day in North Yorkshire to bring to the fore.

Updated: 12:24 Friday, February 07, 2003