The Ford Puma has long been the biggest star in the small SUV arena, but Toyota and Volkswagen are fighting for the limelight
Trying to pick from the current crop of small SUVs is like picking the best member of a pop group. Each has their own look, their own cheeky personality and an army of devoted fans. The group wouldn’t be the same without them.
And what would the small SUV scene be without the Volkswagen T-Roc? It’s very popular, with more than a million copies sold since launch, and it was recently treated to a facelift to help it retain a strong foothold in the charts. After style tweaks inside and out, and with a nicer interior and upgraded tech, the T-Roc is our favourite small SUV from Volkswagen. But what about the competition?
Well, the Puma is arguably the T-Roc’s biggest threat; it’s our reigning Small SUV of the Year and deserves the huge fanbase it has amassed. It’s a tough act to follow, too, with its balance of superb driving manners, practicality and low running costs.
The Toyota Yaris Cross is our third contender. It’s a dark horse, with relatively low-key looks that conceal clever fuel-saving hybrid technology. It sounds a bit left-field compared with the other two, but there’s a place for the slightly alternative, isn’t there?
We’re testing all three with engines and trim levels that represent the best value, and each has a list price of around £26,000. So, which is best? It’s over to the jukebox jury to find out.
DRIVING
Performance, ride, handling, refinement
Each of our contenders is powered by a three-cylinder petrol engine, but the Puma’s 1.0-litre unit packs the most power (153bhp). The 1.0-litre T-Roc and 1.5-litre Yaris Cross produce 109bhp and 114bhp respectively, so it’s no surprise that the Puma sprints ahead in the 0-60mph dash; its 8.9sec time thrashes the 10.0sec of the Yaris Cross and 11.0sec of the T-Roc.
Quicker acceleration isn’t the only advantage of that extra power. The Puma is also the most effortless to drive; it pulls harder from low revs, bolstered by mild hybrid electrical assistance. By comparison, the T-Roc’s engine needs working harder to keep up with traffic, but it rarely feels out of its depth. In fact, it does an admirable job of maintaining momentum on hilly roads.
The Yaris Cross, meanwhile, is the best at dealing with low-speed traffic. It leaps away from a standstill, thanks to the instant electric power of its hybrid system, and it can cover short distances using the battery alone. The petrol engine soon kicks in if you start pressing on, though, and accel
