STEVE HOWARTH’S TEST DRIVE

There are two versions of the S-Cross Hybrid available. Motion trim starts from £26,749 and features front-wheel drive or there’s our top-spec Ultra Allgrip model which is £32,649.

The Ultra spec also adds leather seat trim, sat-nav and a twin sliding sunroof which means it undercuts rivals like the Nissan Qashqai, Peugeot 3008 and Kia Sportage on price for the same level of equipment.

I spent a week with the S Cross and despite lots of short and medium range trips I only managed to use just under half a tank so that claimed 57mpg looks very possible – the car told me I had managed 49mpg overall in ‘normal’ mode.

There is lots of room despite it being a compact SUV and with the seats down taking a large glass cabinet to the tip was no problem.