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Suzuki Grand Vitara
Review: Most of today's compact SUVs aren't SUVs at all. Instead
they're car-based crossover vehicles, which actually are nothing but
taller, hormone-injected versions of regular four-door sedans. Like the
Honda CR-V, for example, is really just a Civic with facial hair.
This is a good thing if
you like your SUV to drive like a car, with the kind of smooth ride that
won't jolt your cappuccino on the way to Bed, Bath & Beyond. If you
actually need to drive off-road in a crossover vehicle you're out of
luck. That's where the Suzuki Grand Vitara comes in.
Unlike the vast
majority of today's small SUVs, the Grand Vitara is actually designed
for driving off-road. It has a unibody shell, like a car, that rides on
top of a ladder-type frame, like a truck. The result is a vehicle that
feels like the love child of a Jeep and a commuter car.
You can tell the Grand
Vitara has an off-road backbone because of its rough, bouncy ride. It's
not as awful as, say, a Jeep Wrangler, but it's not nearly as comfy as a
crossover. The overall feeling is heavy, tough and truck-like.
The Grand Vitara offers
two engines for 2009, neither of which get particularly good gas
mileage. A 3.2-liter V6 is massaged this year to produce 230 horsepower,
which is plenty for a vehicle this size. With four-wheel drive and an
automatic transmission, it's rated for 17 mpg in the city and 23 on the
highway.
Unfortunately, the
four-cylinder engine isn't much more efficient. It makes 160 horsepower
and only gets 19 mpg in town and 23 at highway speeds, when equipped
with the automatic and 4WD.
On the bright side
Suzuki follows in Land Rover's footsteps by trying to combine luxury and
off-road capability in the same vehicle. Features like the SmartPass
keyless entry system, which has a small transmitter that lets you start
the car while the key is still in your pocket, make it feel more
luxurious than you'd expect in a low-cost compact SUV.
As a whole, the Grand
Vitara is an interesting species, with off-road capability and a decent
stab at on-road comfort. If you like that, you'd better act fast,
because this species is rapidly going extinct.
What was tested?
The 2009 Suzuki Grand Vitara XSport V6 with a base price of $22,999.
Options on the test car: None. Price as tested including the $750
destination charge is $23,749.
Why avoid it? It
doesn't get great gas mileage, even with a four-cylinder engine. And the
off-road suspension isn't as comfy as the kind you'll find in a modern
crossover.
Why buy it? It's
one of the few remaining SUVs actually designed for off-road driving. It
feels tough and rugged, and it is.
Bottom Line: The
Suzuki Grand Vitara has a truck-like ladder frame and a tough suspension
designed for off-road driving, and the interior of the Suzuki Grand
Vitara has improved dramatically in recent years. It has soft-touch
materials and precise build quality, which is especially impressive
given its off-road capability.
By Derek Price © AutoWire.Net - San
Francisco
Suzuki Review
provided by Tony Leopardo ©AutoWire.Net
Suzuki Home Page
Column Name: Suzuki
Grand Vitara has real off-road cred
Topic: The 2009 Suzuki
Grand Vitara
Word Count: 582
Photo Caption: The
2009 Suzuki Grand Vitara
Photo Credits: Suzuki
Grand Vitara Internet Media
Series #: 2009 - 46
Download
the Microsoft Word version here: 2009
Suzuki Grand Vitara
Download the Original Image File here:
2009 Suzuki Grand Vitara
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