Off Road ‘Course’ can seem a little bit of a contradiction.

Surely if you’ve bid farewell to tarmac and gravel you should be saying hello to “no rules”?

Such forward thinking received its just desserts when I managed to ground my launch-day Daihatsu Terios atop a horse jump.

Daihatsu had arranged for journalists to test the all new SUV’s mettle on a 4X4 course on the west coast of Scotland.

Sunshine after rain had created superb conditions to check out its performance and the Terios brought a smile to my face as a full-time 4WD system and diff-lock saw it scamper around the course.

Directional confusion (what do you mean lost?) then saw the pair of us launch ourselves at what with the benefit of hindsight I’d have to call “a big loggy horse jump”.

Seconds later, beached atop the log, I was coached back to safety by the Daihatsu team, reversed off and ploughed merrily on. It was one-nil to the Terios, the “log” now more accurately going by the name of  “smashed log”.

It was a far cry from picking up my shiny, new car at Glasgow Airport and driving the hour-and-a-half to Turnberry on the west coast of Scotland.

The Terios is a neat, good-looking chunky off-roader with its size being the only external clue to an economical price, though the brightly-coloured canvas covering the outside-stored spare wheel reveals the crucial youth element to its target market.

Step inside and the chunky theme returns with the brash central console and rugged air-con dials. The driving position is nice and high while there is a serviceable amount of storage for cups and stuff.

The Terios comes with three different trims: S, SX and SE, the latter available as a four-speed automatic.

We drove the top-spec SX  and so benefited from leather steering wheel and gear knob, alloy wheels, privacy glass, heated windscreen and mirrors, though air conditioning, reverse parking sensors and electric front and wheel windows come as standard on the S model.

However, this suite of extras couldn’t disguise the need for plenty of driver involvement and accelerator-prodding to get the most out of the Terios on the road where it is liable to lag otherwise.

At its weakest and noisiest on the motorway (its top speed just fails to top a ton), the Terios gets better the less traffic there is and, as expected, deals with country corners with aplomb.

However, it’s when its off-road capability is being used that the Terios comes into its own – it can even get you off a horse jump y’know?

While there are probably more demanding courses, Daihatsu’s star car’s claim of “genuine off-road ability” seems, well, genuine.

Storage-wise, with all seats in place, there are 380m litres of space to play with, and while you probably wouldn’t fancy having to occupy the “fifth” seat, there is plenty of room for four – Daihatsu claim it will accommodate a mountain bike once the rear seat has been “folded and tumbled”.

There are plenty of nice touches too: rear passenger doors which open to 41, 60 and 77 degrees to make sure you can get the little ones out without bashing the neighbouring car’s paintwork when you go shopping. The floor is also designed so there is a small drop between the carpet and sills, making it easier to brush out dirt during cleaning.

The Japanese firm hope to claim the entry-level SUV market with their revamped Terios.

Whether you want one depends whether your 4X4 aspirations are genuine or cosmetic. The Terios is quite a demanding drive for those only interested in the pose factor.

But if you’re looking for your first off-roader then this is one model which won’t leave you high and dry.

Key facts

Model tested: Daihatsu Terios 1.5 SX manual
Price range: £12,995 – £14,995
Date tested: June 2006
Road tester:  Adrian Higgins