More miles from Vauxhall’s SUVs

A SUPER-ECONOMICAL diesel engine is being fitted to Vauxhall’s latest breed of SUVs courtesy of new owners PSA.

It is the French car group’s new 1.5-litre unit and which first appeared in Peugeot and Citroen models earlier in the year and is now making its way into Vauxhall’s Crossland and Grandland X.

With the two Vauxhall SUVs based on Peugeot platforms it’s an easy switch and the new engine replaces the 1.6-litre block used in earlier models.

Not only is the 1.5 engine more powerful – it develops 130bhp in the Grandland and 102bhp in the smaller Crossland – it also results in more usable performance.

We have just tried the Crossland X fitted with the new diesel and it does a splendid job of pulling the car and the fuel return is an eye opener.

Officially it is rated at 70.6mpg with a CO2 figure of 105g/km and our run saw figures not far from that, averaging a splendid 67.1 to the gallon.

Such economy was easy to achieve in everyday driving and all but the lightest-footed of drivers are likely to benefit.

Moreover, the new engine also feels more refined. It’s noticeably quieter and performance is also improved with the Crossland X 1.5 accelerating from 0 to 60 in 11 seconds. Top speed is 111mph. This car was in high grade Elite Nav specification and as such cost from £21,710 – more than £2,000 above the 1.6 version – and with extras such as automatic parking, safety and winter packs and a special paint job the on the road price was £24,160.

The 1.5-litre diesel can be had in Crosslands from £19,405 and that makes the diesel £2,300 more expensive than the basic petrol model.

Standard kit at Elite Nav level includes an eight-inch touchscreen, sat nav and a forward facing camera system that provides traffic sign recognition and lane departure warnings.

The car was front wheel drive and fitted with stop/start to help economy and that worked well in traffic.

However, a grip control system is not available leaving Vauxhall’s other compact SUV, the Mokka X as its 4x4 offering.

Nevertheless, pitched against the likes of the Renault Captur and Nissan Juke that is not a real negative and the Crossland X is highly competitive given the price.

Boot space ranges from 410 to 1,255 litres and for a compact model it is nicely roomy inside with good amounts of space front and rear.

Like Vauxhall’s larger Grandland X, it is a good looking car and looks the part – all plus points for a model