SUBTLE UPGRADE

T'S not been the best kept recent motoring secret but Suzuki has now officially confirmed that its first, fully all-electric model will hit these shores later this year marking a significant change for what is comparatively speaking one of the smallest Japanese car makers.

- BY DAVID WARD

It will be called the e-Vitara and it will certainly have something to live up judging by the high standards set by the latest petrol powered Vitara which has been around since 1988 and remains a popular SUV in its own right.

The latest fifth generation Vitara remains basically the shape of that original version but it as has seen several subtle changes over the years with the current one given a tidier facelift with a redesigned front fascia and obvious upgraded onboard technology along with a more user-friendly larger infotainment screen.

Crucially too they have much improved fuel economy with both the 1.4-litre petrol engine mild hybrid and the 1.5-litre petrol engine full hybrid so much so that with the former power train (tested here) it clocked in at over 58mpg on some 500 miles of varied driving, easily beating the official combined figure of 52mpg.