Suzuki Vitara Review (2015-present)

What is the Suzuki Vitara?

The Suzuki Vitara has been around for ages. Well, its name has, anyway. In fact, it’s graced a series of SUVs since as long ago as 1988, which is why you might have heard of it. But this latest version took a considerable step down in size from its predecessor when it was launched in 2015, landing it at the larger end of the compact SUV class.

There’s no shortage of rivals for the Vitara to fend off, such is the popularity of this class. The Renault Captur, Nissan Juke, Seat Arona, Skoda Kamiq, VW T-Cross and Ford Puma – plus many others – will all be competing for your cash.

How practical is it?

There’s enough space and adjustment in the front of the Vitara to let drivers of all shapes and sizes get comfy, and even if those up front are reasonably tall, there’s still enough legroom in the rear seats to allow similarly tall passengers to get comfy. Headroom is also pretty good, but do bear in mind that you get less of it in the range-topping SZ5 model due to its panoramic roof.

The narrow cabin means that the rear seats are better suited to carrying two passengers rather than three, and anyone being squished into the middle will have to straddle a bulky transmission tunnel, and will be even shorter on headroom due to the raised cushion that they sit on. And, while the rear seats in some rivals will slide and recline to aid versatility, there’s none of that in the Vitara.

The boot offers either 362 litres of luggage capacity if you go for the mild hybrid or 289 litres from the full hybrid, and there’s not much of a load lip that you’ll need to muscle heavy items over. You can boost space by dropping the rear seats in a 60/40 split, although they lie at a slight angle when you do.

Regardless of which trim level you go for, you’ll notice some fairly disappointing-looking plastics in the cabin, giving a rather low-rent feel. Many of the Vitara’s rivals feel a good bit posher and more substantial. The dashboard design is generally logical, but the touchscreen system you get on all but the entry-level car looks and feels decidedly old-fashioned, with dated graphics and slow responses.

What's it like to drive?

The Vitara was originally available with a choice of three engines – a 1.6-litre petrol, a 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol, and a 1.6-litre diesel. That was until 2018, when both of the 1.6s were ditched in favour of a 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol turbo. All of them provide reasonable performance, although the 1.0-litre turbo perhaps isn’t as responsive as you might hope, and can get quite noisy. That’s why we reckon the 1.4, or even the earlier 1.6, is probably a better bet.

Unusually, you could add an automatic gearbox to every one of those engines, and although the changes can occasionally be a bit slow, but it operates smoothly enough to be unobtrusive. Nevertheless, we’d still advise sticking with the slick-shifting six-speed manual gearbox.

Even more unusually for this size of SUV, you could also have your Vitara with four-wheel drive, although keep in mind that both the auto’ ‘box and all-wheel drive will sap fuel economy, so you might be best advised to choose a diesel if that’s what you need.

It’s fair to say that most of the cars in this class provide a rather dull driving experience, and judged against that backdrop, the Vitara provides a very reasonable amount of sizzle. Regardless of the amount of driven wheels your car has, there’s plenty of grip and traction, and the tall body stays fairly upright in corners, giving it an agile and alert feel. The steering prevents it from feeling sporty, though, because it feels rather vague and the weighting is decidedly light, which is as disconcerting in bends as it is handy during parking manoeuvres.

Bear in mind, too, that the firm suspension that delivers the Vitara’s sharp body control also delivers a certain sharpness to the ride. It can feel jittery over broken up surfaces, and bigger bumps can thump into the cabin. For most people, it’ll stop short of feeling uncomfortable, but many rival cars will be more relaxing to pootle around in.

Those who choose the Vitara will also be subjected to a fair amount of wind- and road noise, further limiting how civilised it feels beside rivals.

Technology, equipment & infotainment

Early Vitaras come in two different variants – SZ-T and higher-specification SZ5. Later, the lower-spec SZ4 was added to the range, as was the sporty S version, which came exclusively with the 1.4-litre turbo engine and four-wheel drive.

All are well equipped, and the SZ-T feels like the sweet spot, as it provides alloy wheels, air-conditioning and a touchscreen infotainment system with satnav and a DAB radio.

Suzuki Vitara running costs

The most economical Vitara, the 1.6 DDiS, should be able to achieve around 55mpg out on the road. The petrol 1.6-litre can’t live with that, though it should still get around 40mpg, and you can expect similar fuel economy from the 1.4-litre turbo petrol. The 1.0-litre turbo petrol, meanwhile, should achieve somewhere in the region of 45-50mpg. Keep in mind, however, that automatic gearboxes and four-wheel drive both shave noticeable slices off the Vitara’s economy.

If you’re taxing a Vitara built after 1 April 2017, tax costs should be simple, as they come under the new flat rate system, so all Vitaras cost the same, no matter which version you choose. Before that date, however, the 1.6-litre diesel will cost you quite a bit less than the petrols to tax thanks to its lower CO2 emissions.

Suzuki servicing costs are about average, and some Suzuki dealers offer fixed-price servicing packages for cars aged three to 15 years old, which means you get the benefits of a main dealer service at a discounted price for older cars. The costs of these services are quite competitive.

Only the diesel models have a timing belt, and this requires changing every five years or 60,000 miles at quite a high cost – you won’t get much change from £1,000, which could mitigate any savings you’ve made on fuel. Petrol Vitaras instead come with a timing chain, which should last the life of the car.

Suzuki Vitara reliability

A number of Vitara owners have reported problems with the Radar Brake Support, which is the Vitara’s automatic emergency braking system that also controls the adaptive cruise control if it’s fitted. The usual symptom is an error message on the dashboard; Suzuki has effected a recall which should take care of the problem.

Some Vitara owners have also reported uneven or excessive tyre wear on the rear wheels, so it’s worth checking the tread depths not only on the outside, but also on the inside of the rear wheels’ treads.

Those issues aside, the Suzuki Vitara is building up an excellent reputation in terms of reliability.