Review: Vauxhall Grandland Hybrid

In a world rapidly becoming dominated by electric vehicles, or at least hybrids in different guises, the Grandland Hybrid SUV fits right in.

It’s only a five-seater, but it’s a spacious one, and all five occupants will enjoy plenty of leg and headroom.

At 4,650mm long, the New Grandland is the largest model in Vauxhall’s SUV line-up.

Although a hybrid, it is of the mild kind, and you’ll not get very far on electric power alone. It’s also a bit sluggish, taking 10.2 seconds to get to the magical 62mph.

That said, do you want a five-seater family SUV that goes any faster? It’s comfortable to drive and be driven, which is the main priority.

It’s also very good looking with the front end featuring Vauxhall’s new 3D Vizor face with a prominent Griffin emblem in the centre of the grille - available in the top two trims.

At the rear, the brake light bar goes all the way across and links up with the vertical brake lights on either side.

The load area is also roomy. With the seats up, you get 550 litres, and if you drop them down, that increases to 1,655 litres of usable space.

Official fuel consumption figures are 51.4mpg - we managed in the middling 40s over a week of mixed driving, much of it urban stop-start.

There are three trim grades on offer: Design, GS and Ultimate. We drove the GS petrol hybrid, and there is also an all-electric version if that’s the road you want to go down.

Equipment levels are good with features such as adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist and traffic sign recognition, LEDs front and back and automatic wipers, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, electric parking brake and front and rear parking sensors.

Pleasingly, climate control and other oft-used functions can be operated with physical buttons as well as through the screen.

Our GS added a bigger touchscreen (up from 10in to 16in) with wireless smartphone charging, and built-in navigation.

It also benefits from ergonomic front seats with the Intelli-Seat feature, which has a slot that relieves pressure on the tailbone. These seats are heated, as is the steering wheel. Rear USB-C sockets in the rear are a welcome addition.

The GS also looks a bit swankier with a gloss black finish on the roof, rear spoiler and bumpers. The ambient lighting can be changed to one of seven shades, depending on your mood. If you have the inclination to go up to the top specced Ultimate, you can benefit from a more advanced suite of safety aids (360 degree camera, lane changing assist and head-up display, among others), a large sunroof and a powered tailgate.

Prices start at £34,700 rising to £38,400 for the hybrid and £40,995-£45,195 for the full electric version.

Specification

Vauxhall Grandland Hybrid GS Price: From £36,650 (as tested £37,380 Engine: Three cylinder 1199cc petrol turbo Power: 134 bhp Torque: 169 lb/ft Transmission: Automatic 6-speed Top speed: 126 mph 0-62mph: 10.2 seconds Economy: 51 mpg (45 mpg in testing) Tank: 55 litres CO2 emissions:124 g/km