Summary
When the European Union introduced new average CO2 limits for car manufacturers, with stiff fines for each gram over, Suzuki was set to take a big hit. The simple answer, sign a deal with hybrid experts Toyota.
This has allowed the launch of the Suzuki Swace – basically a Toyota Corolla – and the Suzuki Across, the brand’s first plug-in hybrid but actually a Toyota RAV4 – The Sun describes the car as “unashamedly a copy-and-paste RAV4.”
Like all PHEVs the official eco figures of the Across (Ay-cross, not Ah-cross, Top Gear tells us) are flawed, but as reviewers point out mpg of 282 miles and CO2 of 22g/km is a boon for tax-strapped company car drivers. Particularly as Suzuki offers just one range-topping version of the Across with lots of equipment – but a price to match.
You can get a cheaper RAV4 hybrid in self-charging form, but with equipment taken into account the Suzuki is a slightly cheaper version of the top plug-in model, combining a 2.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor for 302hp. Also, the motor drives the rear axle, so you get all-wheel drive. And as Parkers highlights, the 46-mile electric only range is useful but not restrictive.
Differences between the Toyota and Suzuki? Very few, effectively a restyled grille and a badge, plus some slight variations in equipment levels. So buyers get all the Toyota good bits, but also the not so good, Autocar highlighting the interior finish as “lacking somewhat in material richness” for a car costing close to £50,000.
However reviewers add that the cabin is robust and functional, adding to the car’s potential appeal as a PHEV with proper off-road capabilities.
As of August 2021, the Suzuki Across currently holds an Expert Rating of 68% from 13 reviews. That’s three points better than its donor, the Toyota RAV4.
Across highlights
- Excellent official eco figures
- Toyota reliability and build
- 46-mile electric-only range
- Swift acceleration and refined roadholding
- Extensive specification
Across lowlights
- Official mpg figures don’t equate to real life
- Expensive range-topper model only
- Low-rent interior finish
- Toyota offers cheaper hybrid model
- Less impressive warranty than Toyota
Key specifications
Body style: Medium SUV/crossover
Powertrain: petrol/electric plug-in hybrid
Price: From £45,599 on-road
Launched: Autumn 2020
Last updated: N/A
Update due: TBA
Image gallery
Media reviews
Reviews, road test and comparisons from across the UK automotive media. Click any of the boxes to view.
Auto Express
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 7 / 10
“Suzuki has used its relationship with Toyota to good advantage with the Across. It’s quick, well built, easy to live with and spacious. But we found the ride a bit too firm for us, while the forthcoming identical Toyota version will certainly beat it on warranty, if not price.”
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Auto Trader
Model reviewed:
Score: 8 / 10
“The Suzuki Across delivers practicality and efficiency paired with a surprising turn of speed.”
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Autocar
Model reviewed:
Score: 9 / 10
“Not only does Suzuki’s first plug-in hybrid, the Across, arrive with a class-leading claimed range, but it’s also capable of making good on its claims for electric autonomy, which makes it something of a collector’s item.”
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Model reviewed: 2.5-litre petrol/electric plug-in hybrid
Score: 8 / 10
“If you can reconcile yourself with the idea of a near-£50,000, 300bhp-plus Suzuki, there’s little to be disappointed about here. Although faintly uninspiring inside, the Suzuki Across is (just) plush and distinctive enough to justify price parity with cars like the Land Rover Discovery Sport P300e.”
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Carbuyer
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“The Suzuki Across is a practical plug-in hybrid SUV with an impressive electric range.”
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Carwow
Model reviewed:
“Plug-in hybrid SUV based on the Toyota RAV4 offers super-low running costs with great performance.”
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Company Car Today
Model reviewed: 2.5-litre petrol/electric plug-in hybrid
“The Suzuki Across is not a cheap option, but the running costs certainly stack up thanks largely to the excellent powertrain that offers an EV range figure of 46 miles.”
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Eurekar
Model reviewed: 2.5-litre petrol/electric plug-in hybrid
“Despite its upright stance and brick-like aerodynamics plus four-wheel-drive, the Suzuki Across is a seriously rapid bit of kit. For example, it dispatches the 62mph benchmark sprint in six seconds, putting it on a par with the more nimble got hatches.”
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Honest John
Model reviewed: Range overview
“The Suzuki Across combines an 18.1kWh battery with a 134kW electric motor and 2.5-litre petrol engine, while it’s capable of covering up to 46 miles under electric power alone.”
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Parkers
Model reviewed:
Score: 8 / 10
“The Suzuki Across offers low BIK and 46 miles of battery power.”
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The Sun
Model reviewed:
“If you’re a company car user, you’re quids in because CO2 emissions of just 22g/km mean you’ll pay only six per cent BiK.”
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Top Gear
Model reviewed:
Score: 7 / 10
“For a cost-conscious user-chooser company car customer, the Suzuki Across ticks the boxes. Lots of kit, easy-going gait, and low running costs: check.”
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What Car?
Model reviewed:
Score: 6 / 10
“As a company car proposition, the Suzuki Across stacks up well; its low emissions bring low tax bills, and its very good all-electric range and punchy performance sweeten the deal. But an extremely high list price narrows its appeal.”
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Safety rating
No safety rating
In theory, the Suzuki Across should carry a five-star safety rating from Euro NCAP as it’s simply a rebadged Toyota RAV4, which scored a five-star rating back in 2019. However, Euro NCAP’s rating does not currently apply to the Across.
This may be an administrative delay, or it may be that Suzuki has not provided evidence to Euro NCAP to show that the changes made from the original RAV4 design would make no difference to its rating. If Euro NCAP issues a safety rating for the Across, we will publish the results here.
Eco rating
No eco rating
The Suzuki Across has not yet been lab tested by Green NCAP, and neither has the Toyota Corolla upon which it’s based.
This is a new initiative, launched in 2018 as a sister organisation to Euro NCAP. As yet, very few new cars have been tested for environmental impact by Green NCAP, and inevitably the testing programme was halted in early 2020 by the coronavirus pandemic before resuming later in the year.
Similar cars
If you’re looking at the Suzuki Across, you might also be interested in these alternatives
Citroën C5 Aircross | Hyundai Santa Fe | Kia Sorento | Land Rover Discovery Sport | Mitsubishi Shogun Sport | Nissan X-Trail | Peugeot 5008 | SEAT Tarraco | Skoda Kodiaq | SsangYong Rexton | Subaru Forester | Toyota RAV4 | Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace
Rival PHEV SUVs are not that plentiful and reviewers see many of those early-adopters of the surprisingly mass-selling Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV progressing to the Across. Obviously its Toyota donor, the RAV4, is a rival as well, while others could include the Ford Kuga PHEV.
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