WITHIN a year of being launched in Ireland, Suzuki has gone full hybrid with the new S-Cross.

Unlike the vast majority of manufacturers, the Japanese car giant veered away from the plug-in set up – opting instead for the self-charging option.

That means a 1.5-litre petrol engine that is hooked up to a 140V battery and inverter (which sends electric power when needed) that combine to generate 113bhp.

Those not familiar with this system will see every journey begin with full EV power and depending on the driving conditions like traffic, the engine only kicks in when more grunt is needed.

This combo twinned to an automatic gearbox sees the emissions drop to 118g/km and a claimed 5.2litres/100km or 54.3mpg.

Now, we always take these figures with a pinch of salt, but little Suzuki power plants have a bulletproof reputation so they shouldn’t be too far off the mark.

We took to the country roads outside Athlone, where myself and a very dear friend embarked on a trip to see Clonmacnoise – a heritage site in neighbouring Co Offaly which is nearly as ancient as the two of us.

It seemed only fitting considering the ruins are home to three high crosses including the magnificent 10th century Cross of the Scriptures – on display in a visitor centre.

The site also features a cathedral, two round towers, nine churches and more than 700 early Christian grave slabs.

It had almost as much crammed in as the standard kit on this new SUV, which has LED front lights, keyless entry and heated front seats.

There are two trims to choose from — Motion, full hybrid and Ultra, mild hybrid — while all-wheel drive, leather upholstery and a panoramic sunroof also come on the latter.

It’s seriously loaded with safety tech as standard including adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, blind spot monitor, lane departure warning and rear traffic cross alert.

One piece of kit worthy of mention is the Suzuki Connect app.

This will prove a comfort for parents considering going half on a new car for the kids as it monitors driving history like speed and distance, has a car locator and features geofencing and curfew alert.

A text message or email will be sent if the engine is started within specific times.

Drive-wise, it’s a bit of a mixed bag and those not used to self-charging hybrids may find it a little noisy.

This is not helped by the combination of the automatic transmission and small engine, which is naturally aspirated (no turbochargers). Drop the hammer and you’ll know as the motor roars into life, but the gearbox lagged a tad behind and there is a split-second delay before both engage.

It’s not going to set your hair on fire either — 0-100kph takes almost 14 seconds.

​That said, tootling around town in moderate traffic is where the S-Cross is most at home and let’s be fair, that is the target market.

That market is about to get a whole lot bigger with Suzuki offering 0pc finance on the S-Cross with a PCP deal of €323pm.

Pound for pound the S-Cross just won’t be beaten on price or value for money, which in this cost-of-living crisis, is a rarity.

Suzuki brags that on fuel economy alone, it trumps its rivals in Nissan, Kia and Mazda by a country mile.

More equipment, more economy and a smaller price tag?

What’s not to like.

Prices for the S-Cross full hybrid start at €31,895.

THE Land Rover Defender has won the Irish Commercial SUV of the Year Award 2023.

A category award under the umbrella of the Irish Van of the Year awards in association with Continental Tyres, the Commercial SUV of the Year is voted by a jury of the most experienced light commercial vehicle journalists from the Motoring Media Association of Ireland (MMAI) – a group that brings together some of Ireland’s leading motoring journalists.

In deciding this category award winner, the jury took into account attributes such as load capacity, reliability, overall versatility, cost of ownership and driving comfort.

A combination of over 2,000 litres of flexible load space, a towing capacity of 3.5 tonnes and top technology won the day.

Pictured above is Tom Dennigan (left) of Continental Tyres, Eddie Kavanagh of Land Rover Ireland (centre) and Joe Rayfus, chairman of the MMAI.

IRISH customers can look forward to welcoming refreshed versions of the BMW X5 and X6 which will launched here in April.

The X5 sports slimmer headlights, illuminated BMW kidney grille (optional) and a pearl-effect chrome scoop in the lower bumper, giving the car a chiselled jaw line.

Vertical air curtains positioned to the outer edges emphasise the width of the car — at over two metres.

At the rear, new clusters illuminate the tailgate with an X-motif, while the aluminium skid plate in the diffuser gives it extra ruggedness.

Inside the cabin is heavily tweaked and now comes with the curved display (same as the iX) comprising of two digital screens, a new strip sporting the X5 badge plus a smaller crystal gear selector.

The facelift on the super sleek X6 coupe is a little more extensive with an entirely new front.

Arrow-shaped slimmer headlights, sharper creases and piano-black detailing that bleeds out from the kidney grille into the lower apron gives it a distinctive, more aggressive look.

Larger air intakes in the lower bumpers that flow into the upper wings add a huge dollop of sportiness.

High-gloss detailing continues at the rear with a sleek spoiler complimenting the rear diffuser and blacked-out clusters.

Inside, the X6 gets pretty much the same cabin as the X5 — curved screen et al.

Both X5 and X6 models are available to order now, priced from €96,500 and €123,640 respectively.