Never been a big fan of plug-in hybrids due to the fact that the range has never been that good and there’s generally too much input from the petrol engine. The Across, however, gives almost 50 miles of range (47 indicated after a charge) and that’s pretty decent even for a rural location like mine. Most daily trips easily eat up 30-40 miles, so a quick overnight on the home charger is a good ‘un for daily use. Theoretically I would probably only have to visit a petrol station once every 2-3 months.
It’s certainly not as revolutionary as some of its rivals but there is an overall feeling of refinement. Along with silent running, high-speed road, tyre and suspension noise have been very well suppressed while the ride is not too soft in so far as you get a good feel of the road. The car is on the heavy side, mind, so you can expect some rock and roll if you get too ambitious on the bends.
As with the smaller battery model we tried recently, equipment includes the latest safety and driver-assist technologies, including ProPILOT with Navi link, the most innovative iteration of Nissan’s advance driver-assistance system in Europe to date. It features Nissan Safety Shield 360, the vehicle is available with Intelligent Around View Monitor, Intelligent Forward Collision Warning, Emergency Lane Keeping, Intelligent Emergency Braking and Rear Automatic Emergency Braking technology.
If you want one, be prepared for a lengthy wait as demand has been extremely strong.. Two versions will be available from launch, a five-seat ID. Buzz and an ID. Buzz Cargo commercial van with up to three seats across the front and the cargo box behind. Further versions are planned but not before next year – including a long wheelbase version with more seating and versatility.
It’s probably apt that it comes from the Nissan stable, a brand that has been leading the way in terms of the EV revolution, fast becoming evolution. It’s well known Leaf has been around for more than 10 years and is a pretty common sight on our roads now.
The Suzuki’s figures are better than rival full hybrids such as the Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage, and enough to put the S-Cross in a 2% lower company car tax bracket, being cheaper to buy and with more equipment as standard. At £26,749 for the 2WD Motion, and £31,549 for the AWD Ultra variants, the Suzuki S-Cross Full Hybrid is still a good value-for-money option.
