Living with a Vauxhall Grandland Electric: Cheap and cheerful, or just cheap?

One of the things which may be putting you off switching to an electric SUV is price; a lot of them can be very expensive. For example, a petrol-powered Peugeot 3008 will cost you around £35,000, whereas the electric version is £10,000 more.

This is where the new Vauxhall Grandland Electric starts to look quite tempting. It’s built using the same collection of parts as the Peugeot, but it’s nearly £8,000 cheaper. You can save even more when you buy through Carwow, because average savings on a Grandland electric stand at over £4,000 at the time of writing.

So what’s the catch? Well we’re going to find out if there is one by living with the Vauxhall Grandland Electric for six months. At first glance though things are looking promising.

It certainly looks more striking than the old Grandland. Vauxhall’s familiar “Visor” nose job has translated quite well onto this large SUV, and the sleek LED lights look good as well. It may not be as exciting as a Peugeot 3008, but it’s still a handsome SUV.

Our car sticks out more than some thanks to the “Impact Copper” paint job. It sort of looks like the rose gold colour you get on an iPhone, and it’s a £700 option. It’s split opinions in the Carwow office, but it’s definitely not boring.

This is the top-spec Ultimate trim, meaning it’s fully loaded with standard equipment. We have a 360-degree reversing camera, a panoramic glass roof, heated seats and steering wheel and adaptive cruise control.

Powering this Grandland Electric is a single electric motor driving the front wheels with 213hp. This is paired with a 73kWh battery, and the claimed range is 325 miles. We’ll see how close we can get to this figure in reality over the coming months.

All-in, our car will set you back around £39,800. That’s over £6,000 cheaper than a base-spec E-3008 with exactly the same motor and battery, and it means it avoids the expensive car tax. So should you save yourself some cash and buy the Vauxhall instead? Keep an eye on this page for updates on our experience over the coming months.

Car change? Carwow!

Looking for a new set of wheels? With Carwow you can sell your car quickly and for a fair price – as well as find great offers on your next one. Whether you’re looking to buy a car brand new, are after something used or you want to explore car leasing options, Carwow is your one stop shop for new car deals.

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*Prices correct at the time of writing