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Vauxhall’s all-new Grandland is now available in hybrid and electric forms. But are both versions as capable as family SUV rivals? Lawrence Allan gets behind the wheel
Things you'll like
- Well-equipped and logical cabin
- Improved cabin space
- EV makes good financial sense
Things to consider
- So-so performance
- Some rivals ride and handle better
- No plug-in hybrid option
What is the Vauxhall Grandland?
The Vauxhall Grandland family SUV enters its second generation with nothing carried over from the previous model – a new platform, new technology and new power sources including the first-ever Grandland Electric.
It’s also now become the British brand’s flagship model, sitting above the also newly launched Frontera (remember that blast from the past?). That may be a bit of a worry, as Vauxhall’s range-toppers have a history of meeting an untimely end. We’ve had the Senator, the Omega, the Monaro, the VXR8 and the Insignia in recent memory – the latter, once hugely popular, followed the legendary Ford Mondeo off to retirement in 2022.
But the new, bigger Grandland occupies the big-selling upper-mid-size SUV segment, so don’t expect it to suffer the same fate. As before it shares its platform with a Stellantis bedfellow – the Peugeot 3008 – with both debuting an all-new platform.
The old Grandland may have been a somewhat forgettable also-ran, but the new car has, erm, grander plans. A much bolder look includes not just a lit up front logo but also illuminated Vauxhall lettering across the rear, which is claimed to be an industry first.
Is this new car all style and no substance, then? We’ll find out in this review.
Verdict: is the Vauxhall Grandland a good car?
Whether you’re still looking to cling on to petrol power or ready to make the switch to an EV, the Grandland is a family SUV that’s well worth considering. There may be other alternatives that are more desirable and more polished on the road, but the Grandland’s new-found practicality, comfort and technology advances make it a more competitive product than before. The electric version will be even more competitive with the Long Range version due in 2025, however.
Pricing, specs & rivals
List prices for the new Grandland at the time of writing (November 2024) start at £34,700 for the entry-level Design in hybrid form. That’s more than some rivals on paper, but comparable when you consider the equipment on offer.
Mid-spec GS Line commands a £1,950 premium, with the range topping out at £38,400 for the Ultimate model – crucially under the £40k barrier where the Expensive Car Supplement starts to apply.
Vauxhall has worked hard to ensure that the electric version is much closer on price terms to the petrol model than its previous EVs at launch. In Design form the Grandland Electric commands a £2,645 premium over the hybrid, at £37,345.
Interestingly the walk up to GS trim is less with the EV, at £1150, although the Ultimate version does breach the £40k barrier, adding £410 a year for the first five years of the car’s life to the road tax figure. At launch there are various offers including money towards a home charger or public charging, plus enticing PCP deals to incentivise the EV version.
In terms of standard equipment, Design trim offers more standard kit than an entry-level Skoda Enyaq. This includes 19-inch alloys, LED headlights, a 10-inch touchscreen, all-round parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, dual-zone climate control and puddle lights. The electric version also has a standard heat pump.
Stepping up to GS trim brings diamond-cut wheels, Matrix LED headlights with illuminated badging, upgraded infotainment with sat-nav, upgraded seats with heating, a heated steering wheel, wireless phone charging and ambient cabin lighting. Ultimate trim throws in a host of goodies include a panoramic sunroof,20-inch wheels, an electric tailgate, a heated windscreen, a sound system upgrade, a 360-degree camera system and enhanced driver assist tech.
Rivals
Key rivals for the Grandland include the related Peugeot 3008, plus the Kia Sportage, Hyundai Tucson, Nissan Qashqai and Ford Kuga. In electric form alternatives include the Skoda Enyaq, Renault Scenic E-Tech, Nissan Ariya, Toyota bZ4X and Tesla Model Y.
Vauxhall Grandland: Interior comfort, quality & technology
The Grandland’s glow up is just as evident inside as it is outside. It’s a substantial step forward in design, technology and quality over the old car – as it needs to be in its new status as the brand’s flagship.
Quality takes a considerable step forward. Yes, it’s not quite as visually appealing as this car’s Peugeot cousin, but the surfaces you poke and prod regularly have soft-touch finishes. Only the hard plastic strip across the dash, and the door-mounted air vents, feel a bit sub-par. All the fabrics found inside the Grandland are made of recycled material, too.
We’re also glad to see Vauxhall hasn’t lost its way with usability. Proper physical buttons feature for the climate controls, while there are also physical shortcut buttons, an old-school drive mode selector and a button that quickly disables unwanted driver assists. The only black mark is the fiddly steering wheel buttons – although these are a bit less of a pain than they are in the 3008.
The driving position is comfortable and widely adjustable, at least on the models we tried fitted with the upgraded seats certified by AGR (the German Campaign for Healthier Backs). Found on GS trim and above, these feature adjustable lumbar support and part-electric adjustment but also adjustable side bolsters – a rarity at this end of the market. These seats can be further upgraded with full electric operation, ventilation, massaging and heated rear seats.
Forward visibility gives no cause for complaint in the Grandland, but over-the-shoulder visibility is restricted by a somewhat small rear window. That’s the case for many rivals, though, and the Vauxhall’s rear window is far easier to see out of than the related 3008. To aid parking all cars come with all-round sensors, GS adds a rear-view camera and Ultimate adds a full 360-degree camera system.
Infotainment, sat-nav, stereo and connectivity
The tech advances of the new Grandland are less evident in entry-level Design, which is the only version featuring a more modest 10-inch central touchscreen without sat-nav. It still gets wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, however, so will be fine for those less bothered about having the latest thing.
GS and Ultimate trims feature a much more visually impressive 16-inch widescreen display with built-in connected nav. It’s a decent system with a bright and clear screen, easy to understand menus and responsive software. A chat GPT voice assistant also features
All versions also feature a 10-inch digital instrument cluster that’s also easy to get on with, if not as jazzy and customizable as some rival offerings. Ultimate trim takes things a step further with a head-up display, handily adjusted via the same switch that adjusts the door mirrors. Don’t want all that distraction? There’s a Saab Night Panel-like ‘Pure Mode’ that only shows essential info on all three displays.
All Grandlands get USB-C sockets in the front, but only GS and Ultimate trims get ones in the back. Those two trims also feature wireless phone charging. Expect acceptable sound from the entry-level audio system, but the 10-speaker Focal upgrade on Ultimate trim offers up excellent clarity.
How practical is the Vauxhall Grandland
The new Grandland is a considerably larger car than the outgoing model: with dimensions of 4.65m in length, 1.93m in width and 1.66m in height, it’s 173mm longer, 36mm taller and 49mm wider. That also makes it larger than the 3008 on which it’s based, and rivals such as the Hyundai Tucson.
That translates to an increase in space for passengers and luggage. A pair of six-footers will find loads of space to get comfortable up front, with enough cabin width for broader folk to avoid banging elbows.
Similarly-sized adults enjoy a good amount of space in the back, too, with no shortage of head, knee and legroom. Shoulder width is sufficient for three adults to fit across the back, too, although space to slide your feet under the seat in front is a bit lacking because the floor sits higher to accommodate the EV version’s batteries.
The hybrid mode doesn’t have a lower floor to compensate, either, but the upside is all passengers sit higher for a more commanding view out than some alternatives. The Grandland feels like a ‘proper’ SUV in this respect. A Kia EV6 or Toyota bZ4x have more rear seat space still, however, and the seats don’t do anything special like slide or recline.
Storage and boot space
There’s a good amount of oddment storage in the Grandland’s cabin. The door bins are usefully large, and although the glovebox is rather pokey you’ll find a deep refrigerated cubby below the centre armrest – perfect for keeping snacks and drinks cool.
Elsewhere, there’s adjustable cupholders in the centre console, a chunky storage space underneath the console itself and a further area under a cover below the dash. This serves as the wireless phone charging cubby which, where fitted, has a semi-transparent window (Vauxhall calls this the Pixel Box) allowing you to see that the phone is charging and hopefully avoid forgetting it when parked.
Moving to the rear, you’ll find decent-sized door bins, centre armrest cupholders and large pockets in the front seatbacks. Vauxhall has also taken a leaf out of VW’s book with smaller pockets higher up the seatbacks for phones.
We also like to see a proper 40/20/40 split for the rear seatbacks to enhance flexibility, allowing you to easily load long items through to the cabin while still carrying two rear passengers. These seats are easily folded via quick-release levers in the boot, too.
Speaking of the boot, the 550 litre seats-up capacity is 36 litres more than the previous model, if slightly short of the hybrid Hyundai Tucson. Still, it’s a usefully square shape, with a good-sized underfloor area as well as tie-down points and pockets. It’s also worth noting that the electric version has an identical boot capacity to the hybrid.
Performance & drive: What is the Vauxhall Grandland like on the road?
The Grandland’s powertrain line-up largely mirrors that of the Peugeot 3008, with one petrol hybrid option and one electric motor option in the EV. However, Peugeot has now introduced a plug-in hybrid 3008, whereas (for the moment at least) there are no immediate plans for the Vauxhall to gain such an option. That limits its appeal somewhat.
The Grandland’s ICE option is technically a mild-hybrid, blending a 136hp 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol engine and six-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox with a 28hp electric motor and 48-volt tech. It’s more advanced than most mild-hybrids, though, allowing you to travel one kilometer (0.6 miles on electric power alone at low speeds.
Vauxhall claims the hybrid system will run on electric power for 50% of the time in the city, and based on our experience this is believable. It’ll also allow the engine to turn off when coasting at higher speed.
That’s all well and good, but with a 1600kg car to shift performance isn’t exactly brisk. It’s fine when pottering about town and cruising, but you’ll be finding the end of the throttle pedal’s travel when accelerating out of a motorway slip road with a fully loaded car. At least the fairly slick gearbox does a decent job of keeping you in the power band, with a proper manual mode for full control via the steering wheel paddles.
The 213hp, single-motor Grandland Electric is a much stronger performer, and not just on paper. With no hesitation while a gearbox chooses the right cog and an engine reaches the power band you have instant acceleration on tap. It’s ample for most needs, and comparable to a Skoda Enyaq 50, but well short of the performance delivered by an Ariya, Model Y or IONIQ 5.
In terms of braking, the Grandland Hybrid has a noticeable (and non-adjustable) regenerative effect to help top up the mild hybrid’s small battery. It takes some getting used to at first, but it’s not dramatic. The brake pedal response can be a little inconsistent, however.
The EV, meanwhile, has three selectable regen modes via wheel-mounted paddles. This is ideal in theory, but in our experience with a UK example there wasn’t a huge difference between each mode, and even the most severe is nowhere near strong enough for proper one-pedal driving. The electric version gets much larger brakes than the hybrid, though, and seems to have better pedal response.
Power, 0-62mph times (H4)
Vauxhall Grandland Hybrid 136hp/10.2 secs
Vauxhall Grandland Electric 213hp/9.0 secs
Ride and handling
There’s a considerable difference between the hybrid and electric Grandlands when it comes to ride and handling, too. Mostly that’s down to the weight (the EV is a whopping 530kg heavier than the hybrid), but there are chassis differences too.
Whereas the Grandland Hybrid makes do with a simple torsion beam rear suspension layout, the EV gets a more sophisticated multi-link setup. Frequency Selective Damping (standard on the EV) also isn’t offered on the hybrid.
As a result it’s the electric version which has a slightly more settled ride on British roads. It’s not perfect, with a bit of fidget at low speeds, but smooths out at higher speeds to deliver decent cruising manners. Overall it’s less jarring than a Tesla Model Y, but an Enyaq or EV6 delivers a more composed ride.
The Grandland Hybrid feels a touch firmer and less controlled over broken surfaces, but never proves uncomfortable. Interestingly, both cars seem to ride more smoothly than the equivalent Peugeot 3008.
Both cars handle reasonably well, too, with the weight of the EV being mitigated by its more advanced setup. However, there’s very little fun to be found here. Both cars have light, feel-free steering that doesn’t inspire confidence on twisty roads, even if the body stays pretty level and grip is decent enough.
Overall, the Vauxhall is probably as good as it needs to be given the modest standards of the class, but on the ICE or electric side you’ll find some more dynamically sorted alternatives.
Noise and refinement
All versions of the Grandland are quiet and relaxing at a cruise, with low levels of wind and road noise penetrating the cabin even on poor surfaces. The suspension doesn’t thump noticeably over bumps, either.
Of course the Grandland Electric is the more refined option at lower speeds, with the electric motor emitting very little whine. The Hybrid, by comparison, is noticeably noisier. Its three-cylinder engine is much smoother than it was in the old model, but still sends more vibration into the cabin than four-cylinder alternatives.
Euro NCAP: is the Vauxhall Grandland a safe car?
Unfortunately, industry safety body Euro NCAP is yet to crash test either the Grandland or the related Peugeot 3008. As those are the only cars to be launched so far on the STLA Medium platform we have no indication their passive safety performance, although neither brands’ historic performance brings any cause for concern.
We can highlight the active safety kit that’s standard across the Grandland range, including automatic emergency braking, lane keeping assistance, lane positioning assist, a driver fatigue monitor and traffic sign recognition. Adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go tech also features.
Opting for Ultimate trim also adds the brand’s ‘Intelli-Drive 2.0’ assist package, which includes rear-cross traffic alert, Lane Change Assist (effectively blind spot monitoring) and Semi-Automated Lane Change. The latter allows you to instruct the car to change lanes on a motorway without the driver’s physical input.
Vauxhall also makes plenty of noise about its new ‘Intelli-Lux HD’ matrix beam headlights. Found on mid-spec GS Line and above, these adaptive beam LED lights are claimed to be industry-leading, with more than 50,000 pixels and faster cutting of the beam to avoid dazzling other road users.
Fuel economy and running costs
Let’s look at the running costs of the Grandland Hybrid first, as it’ll be useful to outline whether that or the electric model are more cost effective for you.
Design and GS versions promise 51.4mpg combined, with the bigger wheels of Ultimate trim dropping that down to 50.4mpg. Those figures are pretty much identical to the full hybrid Kia Sportage but a little behind the Nissan Qashqai e-Power, for example.
CO2 emissions of 124-126g/km are competitive, too, meaning a reasonable first year road tax (VED) rate at the time of writing of £220. For company car drivers it’s clearly less appealing, though, with Benefit-in-Kind rates of 29-30% until April 2025.
Contrast that with the Grandland Electric and it’s miserly 2% Benefit-in-Kind rate and its easy to see which makes the better company car.
Vauxhall Grandland Electric range and charging:
Every version of the new Grandland Electric at launch uses a battery pack with 73kWh of usable capacity. In 2025 we’ll see a Long Range model with a massive 97kWh battery that looks set to blow away most rivals.
For now, though, the Grandland isn’t outstanding in quoted range terms. With combined figures of between 325 miles for entry-level Design and 318 miles for Ultimate trim, it’s pretty much on a par with the e-3008.
Those figures are also similar to the Nissan Ariya (which has a larger battery) and slightly ahead of the Toyota bZ4x and BMW iX1 .But models such as the Skoda Enyaq, Renault Scenic E-Tech, Kia EV6 and Tesla Model Y all have versions that can eke out more miles from a charge on paper.
At least the Grandland proves to be a value proposition in list price terms, with pricing lining up more closely to lower-range versions of aforementioned rivals.
In terms of rapid charging the Grandland is also competitive, with quoted peak speeds of 160kW. With a theoretical 20-80% charge time of 26 minutes, it’s similar to the Enyaq and Model Y, if not capable of the impressive speeds of the EV6 and IONIQ 5.
All Grandlands come with an 11kW on-board AC charger allowing a 20-80% charge in four and a half hours. Of more use for most is the time that takes on a typical 7kW wallbox, which is closer to seven hours.
How much does the Vauxhall Grandland cost to insure?
Insurance costs for the Vauxhall Grandland are unlikely to break the bank, but could potentially be slightly higher than some alternatives. The entry-level Grandland Hybrid Design sits in insurance group 23, with the GS and Ultimate models in group 25. Meanwhile, the Electric version sits in insurance group 34 to 36 depending on spec. Those are fractionally higher than the Peugeot 3008, and on the petrol side the Volkswagen Tiguan.
Vauxhall Grandland FAQs
Is the Vauxhall Grandland a large SUV?
We’d categorise the new Vauxhall Grandland as a mid-size SUV, although it has grown in size over the old model. It’s 4650mm long and 1905mm wide, making it the largest SUV Vauxhall makes – for now at least.
Which Vauxhall Grandland is top of the range?
The most expensive Vauxhall Grandland is the flagship Ultimate model, which comes with an extensive equipment list and a price tag of £38,400 in Hybrid form. The Electric version, meanwhi;le, costs £40,495
How big is the boot on the Vauxhall Grandland?
The new Vauxhall Grandland has a boot capacity of 550 litres with the rear seats in place, and 1,645 litres with the seats folded down. That boot space figure is identical whether you go for the Hybrid or Electric version
