New Vauxhall Frontera Electric Extended Range can travel 253 miles on a charge
A new variant of the Vauxhall Frontera Electric promises more miles between charges from a larger battery...
On sale Now Price from £27,495
You can never have too much of a good thing. One of those things is electric range – the more you have, the further you can go without being forced to stop to recharge. That’s why manufacturers are constantly updating their EVs to cover more miles, and the Vauxhall Frontera Electric Extended Range is the latest example.
The new Frontera Electric Extended Range features a 54kWh battery – up from the 44kWh unit in the regular version. Thanks to its increased capacity, it offers a longer range of 253 miles on top-spec models, which is 67 miles more than what the 44kWh version offers. Opting for entry-level trim with the Extended Range model sees a slight drop in the official range, but only by four miles.
So, you’ll get more official miles out of a Frontera Extended Range than a Jeep Avenger Electric, but if you regularly cover more ground, you’d be better off with a Kia EV3 or Smart #1.
Power remains unchanged at a rather pedestrian 111bhp. Due to its larger battery, the Frontera Extended range is even more sluggish than the regular model to get to 62mph from zero, but only by 0.2sec. You’ll find a lot more pace in the Avenger Electric and EV3.
All versions of the Frontera Electric can accept maximum charging rates of up to 100kW. For the larger battery, that means a 20-80% charge should take around 28 minutes. If you’re charging at home from a 7.4kW wallbox, that same top-up should take just over five hours.
Inside, the Frontera Extended Range gets two 10.0in digital instrument and infotainment screens, a redesigned steering wheel and a number of physical buttons for key controls. You get a sat-nav as standard, but Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity is also included in case you’re not a fan of the Vauxhall system. That said, we can’t imagine you’ll have too many issues with it – we found it clear and easy to use, and it responds quickly to a light pinch or prod.
Like the regular Frontera, the new Extended Range comes with a choice of two trims: entry-level Design or top-spec GS. Standard kit includes LED headlights and daytime running lights, rear parking sensors, a rear-view parking camera and cruise control, but you do have to put up with 16in steel wheels and manual air-con.
Stepping up to GS gets you 17in alloy wheels, a black roof, tinted rear windows, LED rear lights and electronic air-con.
If you like the look of the Frontera but don’t want to go fully electric just yet, there are also two mild hybrid versions you could opt for. They both combine a 1.2-litre petrol engine with a 21bhp electric motor, tuned to produce either 99bhp or 134bhp. At low speeds, they can travel on purely electric power for short distances, which should keep your fuel bills low.
Prices for the Vauxhall Frontera Electric Extended Range start at £27,495 when you opt for Design trim, and jump up to £29,895 in GS trim. That means you’ll pay less for an entry-level Frontera Extended Range than a Jeep Avenger Electric and an MG S5 EV.
It’s also worth noting that the cheapest Vauxhall Frontera Electric comes in at slightly cheaper than its mild hybrid equivalent.
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