REVIEW | Vauxhall Grandland - Part of the Family
Cars and dogs are man’s best friend
Dogs. I come from a family who have always had them. I grew up in a small rural village alongside a couple of Dobermans. They had a load of bark, lots of teeth, looked threatening (especially when there were two of them), but were the biggest softies you could ever meet. We had a Jack Russell and a greyhound from a rescue centre.
I currently have a Labrador, a chocolate one, and he follows me around like a shadow. He’s getting on a bit and I suspect the day when I take him to the vet and he doesn’t come back with me isn’t too far away. I’ll miss him, as he’s certainly part of the family.
Cars are similar. I like estate cars and SUVs because they are so versatile. They’re a tool that you rely upon.
A bit like this Vauxhall Grandland. It will do everything that a family would sensibly want their car to do - holiday outings, school run, weekly shopping, going to the tip, belting along the motorway or pootling around town. Either loaded to the gunwales or as a single person commuter-mobile, it ticks the boxes.
It also looks different and, once you step inside, you’ll see that Vauxhall (part of the massive Stellantis mob) has upped its game in terms of interior quality and gizmos.
Welcome to the second gen Vauxhall Grandland
This is the second generation Grandland. The original version, launched in 2017, replaced the Zafira. It’s a tad bigger in all dimensions and certainly looks distinctive, especially up front with the now-trademark motorcycle visor styling and a crease up the centre of the bonnet. Oh, and the Vauxhall name lights up on the rear hatch. Lovely.
Powertrain choices
In terms of power options, you can either go for a 1.2-litre petrol self-charging hybrid or a full 100% electric. Prices for the hybrid kick off at £35,655 while the electric comes in at £37,355 (June ’25). If you intend to use the Grandland as a shuttle bus and don’t travel too far from home (and have a home or company charger), then the electric version will be fine. For everyone else, especially if you intend covering a decent mileage, go for the hybrid option and avoid any range anxiety when you’ve got a car full of family, dog and a fortnight’s worth of clutter.
The hybrid is the one I tried. Under the bonnet, you’ll find a 3-cylinder 1.2-litre petrol engine developing 134bhp, so it’s no flying machine. There’s mild hybrid assistance (only 28bhp worth though) which is really designed to get you moving from a standstill, although Vauxhall say in their blurb that around 50 per cent of driving at town speeds can be done on battery power alone.
Driving experience & range
The tiny battery recharges as you go along. Once you’re up to speed (0-60mph in 10.2 seconds, top speed is 126mph), it moves along nicely. Quiet too…in fact, everything is so well insulated that you barely notice whether the car is running on battery power alone or using the petrol engine. This is refined travelling. The economy is decent at an estimated 51mpg, and power goes via a sweet shifting 6-speed gearbox to the front wheels.
For the record, if you fancy the electric Grandland, Vauxhall reckon you’ll have a range of about 425 miles, which is mighty impressive.
The one thing you will notice is that the ride is a tad on the firm side. This is fine on the quicker stuff, but at town speeds it can make for rather unsettled progress. The upside of this is that the Grandland handles nicely if you hustle along a country lane.
Trim levels & interior
There are three trims - Design, GS and Ultimate - each one adds around two grand to the price, topping out at £39,355 for Ultimate trim with the hybrid engine (June ’25). As I mentioned at the start, the interior is a really smart place to be. Everything looks good, feels good and works well. All of the materials in the upper part of the cabin have a nice soft touch feel.
The party piece is the central touch screen and driver info display. You’ll need to avoid the entry level Design trim to get the neat 16-inch screen, which, hurrah, also has physical buttons and menus that are easy to follow. It’s worth the extra couple of grand to step up to GS trim, which I reckon is still pretty good value for money. The trim also adds smart 19-inch alloys, wireless charging, sat nav, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, HD headlights (they’re terrific), rear spoiler and redesigned bumpers. Front and rear sparking sensors and a rear view camera are standard.
Ultimate trim adds stuff like a panoramic roof, powered tailgate, head-up display and a heated windscreen, which is nice but hardly vital.
A quick word of praise for the seats in both GS and Ultimate trims. They’re comfy and supportive and, if you’re interested, have been fully approved by AGR, which is a German organisation that promotes how we look after our backs.
I don’t know whether there was a problem with the central touchscreen on the car I had, but after about 20 minutes or so, the top of the screen was seriously hot. You couldn’t keep your hand on it.
As for interior space, you can tell that the latest Grandland is longer than the outgoing model. Adults can now sit in the back without having their knees pushed against the front seat. The luggage capacity has gone up by around 40 litres, which is handy for a car that’s designed to be a family holdall.
Concluding thoughts
The Vauxhall Grandland is one of those cars where everyone can find positives. It looks good outside and has a premium feel inside. You get loads of kit and plenty of room. Okay, it’s not the most thrilling car you’ll ever drive, but does that really matter when it will spend most of it’s time doing mundane jobs really well?
And that’s why it can very easily become part of the family
words: Graham Courtney
pictures: Vauxhall - Stellantis
