UDAIPUR: Maruti Suzuki has already retained the numero uno position in the compact crossover class with its Brezza and is now going all guns blazing in the mid-size SUV or crossover segment with the Grand Vitara. Its design ticks most of the right boxes. Its overhangs are fleshed out to give it more of an SUV stance and the bonnet is flat, especially when viewed in profile.
Up front, the block-like nose is full of interesting details – like the high-mounted LEDs and a massive grille. The copious amount of chrome is a bit much and perhaps glossy-black treatment would have looked better with the overall design. Along the side, the strong shoulder line throughout gives the Grand Vitara a masculine form and the squared wheel arches reinforce the SUV-like feel. But the 17-inch wheels look a bit small for the overall stance and size of the vehicle.
The Grand Vitara is a result of the first real collaborative engineering venture between Maruti Suzuki and Toyota. This is largely the same vehicle that retails at Toyota showrooms as the Urban Cruiser Hyryder.
What comes from Toyota is its exceptional part-electric, strong-hybrid system, something Toyota will eventually make fully in India. The system offers a massive jump in fuel efficiency to an official 27.97 kilometres per litre under test conditions. From Maruti Suzuki comes the relatively affordable Global C platform, complete with an optional four-wheel-drive system. Production takes place at Toyota’s plant outside Bengaluru. So, as expected, fit and finish levels are quite high.
The feel of the cabin is robust and that’s exactly what you want from an SUV. Though the quality of materials used for some parts is just average, overall, it feels much better than any other Maruti Suzuki car which are currently on sale. The seats are especially good – well designed and they hold you in the right position with good support all over. The driver seat as well as the steering wheel offer enough adjustability to offer you a commanding driving position. The Grand Vitara also offers an immense amount of room for all the passengers and has humongous boot space, too – but, expectedly, that gets a bit compromised in the strong hybrid variant due to the battery pack.
The padded dash, partly finished in leather, looks upmarket and both the glass panes of the massive panoramic sunroof slide back. The cloth sunshade of the sunroof, however, is quite thin and transparent, and that can also affect cooling in extreme summers.
Coming to the features, the Grand Vitara is extremely well equipped, with powered and ventilated front seats and other useful bits. Over the dash, you get a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system that has some lag but it’s not infuriating and you’ll get used to it. The screen layout looks a bit cluttered, and the approach to the menus could have been designed more simply. But to compensate for the messy real-estate management, the system comes loaded with Android Auto and Apple Carplay support, which can be used as a wireless connection in the top trim.
The 360-degree camera is quite useful in maneuvering such a big vehicle in tight parking spaces. The top trims of the Grand Vitara also get wireless charging, head-up display and connected car tech with remote aircon start. In terms of safety, the Grand Vitara gets all four disc brakes, electronic stability control, hill hold assist, 3-point seat belts for all seats, and ISOFIX child seat mounts. Dual airbags are standard while higher-spec versions add side and curtain airbags.
The Mild Hybrid Grand Vitara is powered by Suzuki’s 1.5-litre Dualjet engine, which puts out 103 horsepower and just 135 Newton-metre of torque. The engine is clearly tuned for fuel efficiency, and you can feel the need for some extra torque, especially on steep inclines. And that struggle from the engine can be felt more with the torque-convertor automatic transmission, which otherwise feels okay in city confines. This engine works slightly better with the five-speed manual, but again you always feel the need for a sixth gear on open roads. This engine is quite smooth and refined to drive at low speed and offers a steady progression. But try and up the pace, and the response drops down, so there is no real sense of urgency even when you press down harder.
The strong hybrid or the Intelligent Electric Hybrid Grand Vitara, as Maruti calls it, does accelerate with more energy. Electric propulsion from a standstill is pleasantly smooth, and it responds well to a tap on the throttle. But don’t expect a strong punch of speed build up with the 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine.
With roughly 80 horsepower of the electric boost and additional electric torque to aid the combustion engine, the Grand Vitara responds very sharply. But only till the battery has enough juice. After that, it takes a bit longer to respond when you stomp on the right pedal. Also, with mechanical CVT running the show, there’s a bit of wait before you get full thrust. Once the power arrives back, the change in pace is gratifying. But the most impressive fact is that you can expect over 20 kilometres per litre from the strong hybrid version in real-world conditions, and more if you drive with restraint.
What Maruti has got spot-on is ride and handling. Bump absorption in general is excellent, even over really bad roads. And while the set-up is supple, there isn’t too much wavey motion either. The steering feedback is also decent. While it feels a bit sticky in returning, the effect is much less than other Maruti Suzuki cars.
We tried the off-roading capable AllGrip variant as well over a prepared set of challenging courses and we can say that this variant of Grand Vitara qualifies as a truly capable SUV. We drove through slush and over slippery inclines. Here the four-wheel drive ‘lock’ proved its worth along with the more tractable snow mode. The hill climb and descent assist functions make it easier for the Grand Vitara to execute all the steep climbs quite effortlessly.
The 210-millimetre ground clearance further helped to secure the base along with great approach and departure angles. And with all that, the Grand Vitara feels like the right SUV at the right time, which is going to fill the gap between usual mid-sized crossovers and other capable SUVs in the higher segments. There are some minor issues or drawbacks for sure but the Grand Vitara is ready to offer many useful features and technologies that have been missing in this segment for quite a long time. And the best part is that there are many options to choose from based on your requirements. The Creta and Seltos finally are going to have some real competition in the Indian market – about time, too!