New Grand Vitara, a sturdy beast

Twenty-four years after launching the Vitara and inadvertently creating the SUV market in the process, Suzuki have released details of the latest incarnation. The SZ-T is a special edition based on the Grand Vitara 1.9DdiS with only 500 cars hitting the road.

On the road, the SZ-T looks very similar to the Vitara already driving around. Suzuki have made changes with a new front grille, new 18-inch alloys, silver roof rails and bonnet vents, indicators in the door mirrors and a spare wheel on the tailgate but honestly, you’d have to know to notice. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad looking car. The interior doesn’t achieve elegant status but it’s well laid out, practical and uncluttered and you do get the benefit of cruise control and keyless entry/start as standard. The SZ-T looks big and sturdy enough to give you a bit of presence on the road without requiring an HGV licence and the new chrome trim and alloy wheels make it look a little more expensive than the £22,315 Suzuki expect you to hand over in exchange.

Off road the SZ-T won’t be discovered at dawn on a mountain top in Snowdonia but the switchable High/Low gear ratios mean it’s going to be perfectly happy parking in a field at the local car boot sale and still have the grunt to get past the occasional caravan, at least when it isn’t towing one. The 1.9-litre DDiS engine delivers 127bhp and 221lb/ft of torque so it’s got plenty of power without costing the earth – 41.5mpg is more than respectable for a car this size and emissions of 179g/km will keep company car drivers interested at tax time.

The SZ-T is a good car and it’s no secret that reliability isn’t going to be a concern if you buy a Suzuki. No, it won’t set your hair on fire but don’t let that distract you from the astonishing fact that the car that created the SUV genre is still pulling its weight 24 years later.
 
www.suzuki4.co.uk











By David Young

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