Suzuki Across review: Brilliant, spacious and filled with tech – but also frustrating

THE Suzuki Across is a fantastically frustrating car.

It’s both brilliant and frustrating. You could say it’s a cross between the two.

It’s called Across because it is a cross between a Suzuki and a Toyota.

Toyota built it so Suzuki could get a foothold in the family hybrid SUV market. It’s basically a rebadged RAV4.

While Toyota benefits from Suzuki’s small car expertise in the other direction.

So why is it brilliant?

Well, the tech is good – Apple Car Play and more buttons to press than you need (no satnav on the £45k model I drove though, which was a surprise given its generous 9in touchscreen).

It sticks to the road nicely and you feel safe, even when driving on the “wrong” side in stair-rod rain, as I found myself doing when I took it over to France.

It’s spacious inside and in the boot, with enough room for all the kit you’ll need for a week’s self-catering in Normandy with two kids in tow – and space left for a raid on the hypermarché on the way home.

But none of the above is why this car is brilliant.

It’s brilliant because when you drive it as an electric car it is such a joy.

The torque feels immense and it glides with a supreme confidence I’ve only previously experienced in SUVs above £60k.

In its powerful silence it actually feels like a totally different car. And you want to drive it like that all the time.

But you can’t. And that’s the frustrating thing about it.

On a full charge you get a range in the high 30s (the brochure says 46.6 miles but I never managed that) but it’s never enough.

So you have that age-old hybrid problem of slipping back into petrol mode and the irritating wait for it to charge up again while you drive in what now feels like a very boring “normal” mode.

Oh and don’t even think about trying to charge in Eco mode.

The car drives like it’s got a lawnmower engine.

You have to put the radio on loud so you don’t hear the excruciating revs.

I’m sure the Suzuki Across will do well. It’s a trustworthy name, it’s not too pricey and everything else I say above.

Yet for me it’s a bit too much of a tease.

It’s two quite different cars in one. I really like them both. But one of them is so much better.