Test drive Suzuki Vitara
How do you like the front-wheel drive Vitara, a competitor to the Nissan Juke and Opel Mokka? Everything was confused in the Suzuki house. Now the SX4 is big and the Vitara is small ...
How do you like the Vitara with front wheel drive? Or Vitara - a competitor to Nissan Juke and Opel Mokka? Everything was confused in the Suzuki house. Now the SX4 is big and the Vitara is small. Moreover, both cars are also built on the same platform.
A small company Suzuki lives in its own rhythm and produces rather unusual products: what is only one tiny frame SUV Jimny worth. You can also remember the "classic" SX4 - in fact, the first B-class crossover, released long before the rampant fashion for such cars. Or take, for example, another model - Grand Vitara, also an SUV, with permanent all-wheel drive and a reduction gear. Who else can suggest something like this? However, the Grand Vitara has been produced for a long time and requires at least modernization. But there is no money for this, because the car has remained relatively popular only in Russia, and probably in South America. Suzuki's personality did not succeed and the company had to follow the trend. As a result, the new SX4 joined the crossover company at the head of Qashqai, and in the junior B-segment it was replaced by the new Vitara, which lost the "lower", the previous dimensions and, as a result, the Grand prefix.
The body is now load-bearing, but retained the traditional chopped style of its predecessor, although now the Vitara is more reminiscent of the Range Rover Evoque. The similarity with the "Briton" is enhanced by the two-tone color of the crossover with a white or black roof. By the way, there are many possibilities to individualize Vitara: bright shades, “white” or “black” variants of the radiator lining, plus two packages: a city one with chrome lining and an off-road one with unpainted ones.
The front cover, the bezels of the watch and the air ducts can also be ordered in a bright orange or turquoise color. Unlike black or silver, they will revive the gloomy interior, the echoing black plastic of which - like in some Renault Sandero - looks too budget for a bright and stylish car.
There are no complaints about the fit, the profile of the seats is comfortable, and the steering wheel can be adjusted not only in height, but also in reach, although the range of adjustments is small. The main complaint is the straight slot of the "automatic machine", because of which, instead of "drive", you get into manual mode.
The top variant of the GLX has Bosch multimedia with Nokia Navigation Maps. Estonia, where the crossover test took place, she does not know. At the same time, the character of the multimedia turned out to be unhurried in Estonian: he pressed the icon, pressed it again, did not wait for a reaction, removed his finger, and only then received a reaction. Low beam in the "top" LED. But even in the maximum configuration, leather and suede chairs are still manually adjusted. At the same time, ESP and a full set of pillows and curtains, a USB connector are available in the "base", but instead of an analogue clock on the front panel, there is a plug.
The basis for the new "Vitara" was the New SX10 platform shortened by 4 centimeters: McPherson struts at the front and a semi-independent beam at the rear. Having lost in length, the car turned out to be wider and taller than the "esix". The new Vitara has a high ceiling, and a large sunroof also adds a sense of spaciousness. The trunk of the crossover is quite voluminous for this class - 375 liters, it was also possible to carve out legroom for the rear passengers.
The engine for Russia is still one - an atmospheric four with a capacity of 117 horsepower. The Japanese say that the car turned out to be very light - only 1075 kilograms. But this is front-wheel drive with "mechanics", and the all-wheel drive crossover and "automatic" adds a hundred kilograms in weight. The six-speed automatic transmission does not require the paddle shifters to work and itself seeks to keep the engine in good shape, easily and without hesitation going down a few steps. At the same time, the average consumption turned out to be less than 7 liters per 100 kilometers. Passport acceleration - as much as 13 seconds, but in unhurried Estonian traffic, the car seems quite nimble, and the loud engine adds enthusiasm. The Japanese assure that they have carried out serious work to reduce noise and even show diagrams, however, sounds and vibrations penetrate into the cabin through the enhanced sound insulation of the engine shield.
The crossover is tuned surprisingly well, the electric booster has good restoring force and intelligible feedback, the dense, energy-intensive suspension. In tight corners, the rather tall car rolls moderately and does not go off course on bumps. On a bad road, the 17-inch disc car does not shake passengers on the comb and allows you to ignore small holes.
The Allgrip all-wheel drive system for Vitara is similar to that of the New SX4. It is one of the most advanced in the class: when the driving modes are selected, along with the degree of clutch actuation, the stabilization system and engine settings change. The Auto mode saves fuel and engages the rear axle only when the front axle is slipping, and the stabilization system chokes the engine at a hint of drift or skidding. In Sport mode, the clutch is preloaded, accelerating throttle response and increasing engine revs. On slippery and loose ground, the Snow mode will help: in it, the engine begins to respond more smoothly to the gas, and the electronics transfers back even more thrust. Here's an example: when passing a gravel corner in Auto mode, the rear axle is connected with a delay, and the rear axle drift is caught by the stabilization system, in Sport mode it sweeps less with its tail. In Snow mode, the Vitara's steering is neutral.
At low speed and only in "snow" mode, you can block the clutch so that the traction is equally distributed between the front and rear wheels. This will help to storm the snowdrifts and, in our case, sand dunes. However, in Snow, the crossover moves on the sand of the off-road special stage quite confidently, follows the track and storms steep climbs. In Auto and Sport the same obstacles are given to Vitara with difficulty, or not at all. The automatic transmission also adds complications, which, even in manual mode, does not allow to keep high revs and switches from the first to the second, because of which the car loses speed and can get stuck on the rise almost reaching the top. The hill descent assistant helps to safely go down, it is set up as a standard, but during the passage of the route it has time to warm up the brakes. And after a couple of extra laps on the off-road track (in excess of those planned by the organizers), the multi-plate clutch in the rear axle drive is also turned off - overheating.
Vitara, despite the fact that it held itself with dignity on the special stage, the SUV seems more than it is. The ground clearance is 185 mm, but the front overhang is long, and the angle of entry is small, even by the standards of the class. The housing of the multi-plate clutch hangs low and can be vulnerable, and a plastic boot covers the motor crankcase. It's not scary to lay on the sandy soil, another thing is on the stone.
It is not how far the Allgrip all-wheel drive will take the car, but how effectively it works in different conditions and on different surfaces. And for off-road outings, the Jimny remains in the Suzuki lineup, which is still on sale and is cheaper.
In Europe, the new Vitara has already entered the list of contenders for the title of Car of the Year. Suzuki plans that this model will be a success in Russia as well. It is expected that initially the share of the new Vitara should make 40% of the total sales, and later it will grow to 60-70%.
It might seem odd that the Vitara was priced higher than the larger New Suzuki SX4. But those crossovers were brought in last year, the price tags for them are old and, in addition, with discounts. Against the background of classmates, prices are quite competitive - even for all-wheel drive "Vitara" with "mechanics" and "automatic": $ 15 582 and $ 16 371. respectively. Is that the maximum configuration looks unreasonably expensive - $ 18. However, the company is relying on more affordable front-wheel drive cars, which can be purchased at least $ 475 with "mechanics" and from $ 11 with "automatic".
Perhaps the Grand Vitara fans will be unhappy with this turn of events, because half of the name remains from their favorite model, and the chopped lines dear to the heart. But how often do they use the lowering and load the roof rack? The new Suzuki Vitara is a completely different story, with a completely different semantic color, albeit under a familiar name. It's about the city, not the village. This is a car, albeit not so passable and roomy, but it has obvious advantages: handling, economy, small dimensions. Against the backdrop of competitors, the crossover does not scare away either with a pretentious design or a complex device: a conventional aspirated, classic "automatic". And the bright colors of the body and interior panels will definitely be appreciated by women.
The first Vitara was even shorter than the current one - 3620 mm, and the only 1.6 petrol unit developed only 80 hp. Initially, the model was produced only in a short three-door version. The elongated five-door appeared three years later - in 1991. Later, more powerful engines and diesel variants appeared.
Evgeny Bagdasarov
The second generation car was introduced in 1998 and received the Grand prefix. And for its rounded design this "Vitara" was nicknamed "inflatable". She retained the frame structure, dependent rear suspension and all-wheel drive. The car was still produced in "short" and "long" versions, and especially for the US market, the car was presented in an even longer seven-seater XL-7 version.
The design of the third generation car (2005) became chopped again. The structure remained framed, but the frame was now integrated into the body. The Grand Vitara suspension is now completely independent. The simple all-wheel drive with a plug-in front end was replaced by a permanent one, but the three-door version was equipped with a simplified transmission. The motors became more powerful, a version with a V6 3.2 engine appeared.
