Photo: screenshot from Youtube
It’s been a while since we reviewed a car as balanced as the 2015 Suzuki Vitara. The Japanese carmaker, which had lost ground on the SUV market despite making such vehicles before they become popular, is back in force.
Instead of betting on tricks to grab customers, Suzuki stuck to refining its ways of building a compact SUV with the Vitara. Despite being slotted below the SX4 S-Cross both in terms of size and pricing, the Vitara is a better car.
The compact SUV battle is getting fiercer and fiercer and everybody is trying to come up with something new - the Mazda CX-3 bets on the sportiness card, the Dacia Duster on the affordability one and the Nissan Juke is the appealing oddity.
Aside from the compact dimensions, an important part of the credit goes to the lightweight construction of the car, with the Vitara tipping the scales at 1,160 kg (2,557 lbs) in petrol, all-wheel drive trim.
The visibility is good, the steering is light and it all adds up for a positive urban driving experience. Don’t imagine the 2015 Vitara has anything against long trips though.
We spent most of our time in the 120 hp naturally-aspirated petrol model gifted with AllGrip all-wheel drive. The car feels stable even when you turn off the electronics - these never fully go away.
Then there’s the soundproofing, which contributes to the overall solid feel of the Vitara. The only issue we encountered though was the five-speed manual gearbox. The engine is asking for a sixth ratio out on the highway, while at times you can feel the need for shorter ratios.
You can opt for a six-speed automatic, while the other engine option, a diesel that also delivers 120 HP, is only offered with a six-speed manual transmission. Speaking of which, the petrol is good enough to make the diesel an option reserved for those whose annual mileage enters the serious zone.
While the new-age design means the Vitara isn’t as happy as a Jimny when taken of the road, the newcomer does a respectable job at tackling rough terrain. We went pretty deep down that offroad, as well as stepped on other paths in our 2015 Suzuki Vitara review.
The compact SUV battle is getting fiercer and fiercer and everybody is trying to come up with something new - the Mazda CX-3 bets on the sportiness card, the Dacia Duster on the affordability one and the Nissan Juke is the appealing oddity.
Swift city driving (no pun intended)
As we said, the Vitara does away with such tendencies, offering a versatile and dependable character instead. It all starts out in the city, where the Vitara feels just as agile as a supermini.Aside from the compact dimensions, an important part of the credit goes to the lightweight construction of the car, with the Vitara tipping the scales at 1,160 kg (2,557 lbs) in petrol, all-wheel drive trim.
The visibility is good, the steering is light and it all adds up for a positive urban driving experience. Don’t imagine the 2015 Vitara has anything against long trips though.
We spent most of our time in the 120 hp naturally-aspirated petrol model gifted with AllGrip all-wheel drive. The car feels stable even when you turn off the electronics - these never fully go away.
Then there’s the soundproofing, which contributes to the overall solid feel of the Vitara. The only issue we encountered though was the five-speed manual gearbox. The engine is asking for a sixth ratio out on the highway, while at times you can feel the need for shorter ratios.
You can opt for a six-speed automatic, while the other engine option, a diesel that also delivers 120 HP, is only offered with a six-speed manual transmission. Speaking of which, the petrol is good enough to make the diesel an option reserved for those whose annual mileage enters the serious zone.
While the new-age design means the Vitara isn’t as happy as a Jimny when taken of the road, the newcomer does a respectable job at tackling rough terrain. We went pretty deep down that offroad, as well as stepped on other paths in our 2015 Suzuki Vitara review.
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