Living with a… Vauxhall Grandland Electric (Month 2)

Vauxhall has never been the sexiest brand on the block but seems to be flourishing within the wider Stellantis family and benefitting from the economies of scale that come from shared tech with Citroën, Peugeot, DS and others within the group. The fact its traditional domestic rival Ford has seemingly given up and left the field only helps its case, Vauxhall seizing this opportunity to reinvent its line-up with a new generation of sharply-styled models like this Grandland Electric. As a brand it’s also doing some worthy stuff, working with local authorities for its Electric Streets campaign to improve access to on-street charging for those without a driveway to install a home wallbox and highlighting the under-reported accessibility challenges faced by disabled drivers wanting to go electric . It’s also worked hard on making electric versions of its cars more affordable, pricing them in line with petrol and hybrid equivalents to make the switch look less intimidating. If less flashy than the Citroën C5 Aircross and Peugeot 5008 it shares its foundations and tech with this latest Grandland is way more stylish than previous versions but just as family-friendly as it always was. Also available as a hybrid, we’re testing the full electric version in its glitziest Ultimate trim which, even with all the toys, looks great value for money.
Skip to: Month 1 – Greyer than a February day? Month 2 – The honeymoon is over!

Yorkshire-based family guy with early teen kids, outdoorsy lifestyle and mixed driving routine of local errands, a commute over the hill to Manchester and longer runs to airports and far-flung family. With previous petrolhead passions now catered for with a new-found love of motorbikes the family car is free to be a bit more sensible and practical, the electric SUVs and crossovers that might once have been sneered at now welcome on the family fleet!

Dan says: “I’m liking Vauxhall’s recent rebirth and acceptance that sensible pants usefulness doesn’t have to mean boring”

How much has it cost you?

Erin’s eyes will be rolling again for the fact I still haven’t embraced the future with a smart meter and EV-specific home energy tariff to really score the savings on charge costs. To be fair, even on my existing rate a typical 10-80 per cent top-up only costs £13 or so.

Where have you been?

Nothing more glamorous than a few local errands so far, but it’s still very early days and the new-car smell has yet to fade!

What have you been carrying?

Kids, shopping and … that’s about it so far. The boot is nice and big, though, so I’m hopeful it’ll take my bike when the weather improves.

Delights?

Per the introduction, I’m liking Vauxhall’s recent rebirth and acceptance that sensible pants usefulness doesn’t have to mean boring. It sounds like damning with faint praise but there’s an understated confidence and competence about the Grandland in everything from the styling to the build quality and driving style that just feels reassuring. So, I like the lack of gimmickry, the fact it understands the job it is built to do and that it does it really well. In that respect it’s perfectly suited to the hectic phase of family life I find myself in.

Frustrations?

Too early to really pick up any particular frustrations, though I’m yet to get my head around the menus and features. For instance, there seems to be some sort of ‘Pure’ mode for dimming the screens for night driving, which is something I really appreciate at this time of year. But I haven’t quite figured out how to switch it on yet. See above about hectic family life but I think I just need to set aside some time on the driveway with the manual to figure out a few things. And download the supporting app for managing charging and other EV-related features.

This month in a nutshell

Paint as grey as the February weather we find ourselves in isn’t exactly inspiring, but I get the feeling there are hidden depths to the Grandland I’ll be coming to appreciate over the coming months.

Mileage: 293 (on delivery) Fuel consumption: TBC!

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Dan says: “Credit to Vauxhall and its ‘Pixel Box’, which puts the charging mat behind a translucent panel so you can still see your phone but can’t reflexively grab it”

How much has it cost you?

£25 for a parking ticket when I left it charging overnight at the small council pay-and-display up the road. Which is annoying. They’re only slow chargers and relatively cheap, meaning they’re useful if I want to need a receipt against a charging session for business miles – something you can’t do when plugged in at home. It’s free to park overnight but I wasn’t quite quick enough on the app to pay my way when the charging period starts in the morning. Bah.

Where have you been?

I’m pretty sure the Grandland will be able to get itself from mine to Manchester airport and back on its own before the loan is out, given how frequently I’m there to catch flights to launch events.

What have you been carrying?

Per previous, and nothing out of the ordinary routines of kids, shopping and the rest. I’m sure my mum would have loved to have tried her dog for size in the boot when she was over and had a go with it recently. But, lovely as he is, I didn’t want the whiff of wet sheepdog in my nostrils for the rest of the car’s time with me. So he went in her old Yeti.

Delights?

I’m all for the strong penalties that exist for using a handheld device when driving but too many modern cars put their wireless charging pads high on the centre armrest within easy reach. A lot of this will be down to the driving culture and laws where they are made, and as Catherine found out on her recent trip, Chinese drivers are on their phones all the time. Which explains why so many cars from that part of the world make it so easy to grab your device any time an alert flashes up. Credit to Vauxhall and its ‘Pixel Box’, which puts the charging mat behind a translucent panel so you can still see your phone but can’t reflexively grab it as you might if it were right next to you. A subtle behavioural nudge that speaks volumes of the sensible thinking informing all aspects of this car’s design.

Frustrations?

It’s literally part of my job to be able to figure out the menus and control systems for in-car tech but even a month in there are things I can’t work out in the Grandland, like how to initiate that Pure mode I mentioned last month, or how to adjust the height of the head-up display so I can see it. Also, I should have learned from the Renault 5 but I got burned by the over-optimistic range projection, which said I had plenty of charge to get to Manchester airport and back in one hit … then decided it didn’t after the frosty conditions murdered the battery. It only needed a quick top-up to get home but 70 per cent charge SHOULD be enough for a 90-mile round trip. Turns out not when it’s cold outside.

This month in a nutshell

Parking tickets, tech confusion and lack of winter range … let’s hope things pick up now spring is springing!

Mileage: 846 miles Fuel consumption: Not great … but it has been cold!

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