Edmunds.com | Inside Line | Auto Observer Your Account | Help | Directory
You are here:
![[F]](http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com/media/townhall/webxicons/site.gif){kind=small}
Forums
SUVs Suzuki Grand Vitara/Vitara Suzuki Grand Vitara 2006 through 2008
998 messages, Last post on Jun 27, 2009 at 11:55 PM
You are in the Suzuki Grand Vitara/Vitara Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & tidester
|
|
|---|---|
|
Replying to: steve_ (Nov 05, 2008 10:13 am) What I've always loved about Suzukis is the endless supply of standard features that at base levels are far superior to their competitors. Dollar for Dollar, they are a premium value (where VWs are not). What has always set Suzuki back is uncompetitive engines and mediocre performance. With the updated engines and transmissions, the GV has gone from a back of the pack performer, to a class front runner. Why am I looking at a GV? It's for a few reasons... 1: Value - Best Value in class 2: Styling - It's the best looking SUV in this class both inside and out. The interior well designed and the exterior is rough and masculine. The interior in particular is well organized and they put in a sliding arm rest for the '09 model. Panel gaps are very tight and the interior materials are top notch for the class. It's a very handsome SUV. 3: Performance - Specifically, I am a outdoor person. I need something that can tow, go through rough terrain, and up steep inclines. The optional 4-Mode 4WD (not AWD) is of particular interest. What most people don't realize is that the GV is actually RWD and not FWD. As far as I know, it's the only one in its class with that distinction making it a more pleasing vehicle to drive. With the optional 4-Mode 4WD, the 4High mode keeps the vehicle in RWD while only putting power to the other wheels when needed that is excellent for every day service. Off road, you can put it two 4-Lock (Full-time 4WD) and 4-Lo (for rock crawling). This makes it better than every vehicle in its class. If you want better off-road capability, you are probably going to be driving a Jeep or Hummer (and those are more expensive). The V6 is also of particular interest to me, but that's because I'll be needing the additional towing capacity and if I'm not mistaken, provides a bigger radiator that is an asset no matter what driving conditions you're in. One of the biggest improvements to the GV is that the new V6 has 50 HP more than the outgoing V6 while achieving better fuel efficiency even with the 4WD. Quite excellent. Compared to the other vehicles in class with V6 options (or additional turbo'ed fours) they do not provide as much towing capacity and are more expensive than the GV. I believe the only vehicle in the class that you can get with better mileage numbers than the GV V6/Power is the Rav4. Dollar for Dollar, the GV is a better value than the Rav4 and overall less expensive with a better warranty. Combine all of that with the reduced noise and excellent handling of the RWD and you've got my attention. 4: Warranty - Excellent warranty. Better than most manufacturers. Overall that's why I'm interested. I want a rugged vehicle and not a cute-ute. To me, Rav4s, CR-Vs, Vues, Rogues, and Outlanders fit this mold. The only vehicle that really has my attention right now is the Forester, but for the additional power, you're going to paying much more than you would for a GV. Plus, Subaru uses AWD and not 4WD for the Forester limiting its ability on tough terrain. As I said, I camp, hike, rock climb, and kayak, so I need something that's going to get me to those destinations and perhaps beyond. To me, between the Forester and GV, the GV has more prowess for adventure based on everything that the vehicle offers both for the price and based on its performance. When my house sells, I will be probably upgrading to the GV from my '93 Grand Cherokee. As for your concerns for the wife to get her interested in the GV. Women in general care about the interior of a car more than anything. I find their exterior tastes to be rather dubious and erratic. Women care about safety, interior feel/design, and noise. The reduced noise on the GV with the handsome interior should be the selling point. Combine that with superior standard safety features (ALB, ESP, Every kind of airbag, increased structural rigidity for '09) and you should get some interest. It's a handsome vehicle to be sure, but I understand it's not for everyone. If none of that gets her, than don't bother. I'd almost say don't even try if she's only going to be commuting from point A to point B. Most women don't like RWD cars anyway and would never appreciate the superior nature of RWD to FWD or 4WD to AWD. To me, I find the GV to be a better value and the better vehicle. Good luck with your choice and I hope I gave you some insight to why someone would be interested in the Grand Vitara.
|
|
|
Replying to: WookieOnRit (Nov 28, 2008 8:45 am) Take a second look at everything. Trust me. Sit in the back seats, fold them down, open the tailgate and shut it. You'll soon see that the GV is cheap all around. I forgot who it was but the carpet was referred to as "rat fur". Just wait till you try and clean the carpet, it won't happen. Plastic is cheap and brittle. Stereo is mediocore. Warranty IS the best and you WILL use it. Nothing major but silly things that you shouldn't see in this day and age. If you do more searching here, you will find paint defects, vibrations, electrical issues, etc. Yes, you may get quite a bit for the money but wait for the resale value. OUCH! Don't look at a KBB blue retail value or similar, look at real market value. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Good luck.
|
|
|
Replying to: budman3 (Nov 28, 2008 10:04 am) I bought the GV for the same reasons as you WookieOnRit, and I haven't been disapointed yet. It is now 3 years old 43 000km, and never had any problem yet. I'm not soft with it and it still ride as good as when it was new. My previous one was a Jeep Cherokee Country 96 and for me the GV was an improvement (comfort, handling, fuel economy, fun to drive). I cannot claim that the GV is a better off-road performer as the Cherokee, the latter having twin solid axles and probably more rough, but still the GV fulfill my needs and it has better handling on snowy roads, better towing handling for my pop-up trailer. The safety of the GV is better than the Cherokee. About the tailgate the noise is coming from the plastic shelf around the spare, it doesn't mean that the tailgate is flimsy, but yes if someone hits me in the back I'll get more damage than the Cherokke would have had, it was a tank. Up to now the GV is "aging" better than my Cherokee did, I kept the Cherokee for 10 years, so I guess that I will do the same with the GV, by then if it is still a safe vehicule to drive, it will go to my older kid as its first car, so I don't worry about resale value, I would have rent it instead of buying it, you buy new when you think you'll keep it for a long time, if not rent or buy used. Buying a used 4x4 ? Sometimes it can be risky, but this is what I did with the Cherokee, it had 1 year of use, 20 000km and was almost trouble free for 10 years and I saved 10000$. I like that "rat fur" carpet, so easy to clean, most of the asian cars have that. Anyhow it always comes down to the individual, did you make a cleaver choice so it fulfill your needs and expectation for the price you paid ? It did for me.
|
|
|
Replying to: WookieOnRit (Nov 28, 2008 8:45 am) Hopefully they added a power drivers seat in the luxury model. Also keep a few hundred dollars in your pocket when you replace the tires around 16,000 miles. And you'll get to know your front end alignment tech. Buy some oil drip pans for your garage floor. And of course the GV is going to age better than a Jeep. The Jeep is probably one of the lowest rated vehicles out there. And now with Chrysler behind them, it will be the 1st company to go belly up. GM also sold all of it's interests in Suzuki. Hmm, wonder why that was? No need for more junk other than their stock status. Maybe Suzuki made some good changes over the years, just be careful. |
|
|
Replying to: bm000092 (Nov 29, 2008 12:42 pm) If you're happy with your GV, post a positive reply instead of calling me out on my negative comments. This is all about opinions and freedom of speech. If you don't like what I say, turn the page. I want future buyers to be aware of what they may or may not be getting themselves into. It's their choice to determine if my bad experience was contributing to their decision. If you like the carpet, I'm happy for you. So far, it seems you're the only one. At least wookie or anyone else might give it a second look. Just wait till anyone tries to use the warranty. DENIED! Vitara4me was another perfect example. I drove his GV and can't imagine why Suzuki didn't take care of his vibration issue. It was BAD. After looking at your plethora of cheap american cars that you've purchased in the past, I wouldn't take your opinion for any future purchase. And being in telecommunications, I would learn how to spell and be grammatically correct.
|
|
|
Replying to: WookieOnRit (Nov 28, 2008 8:45 am) While as an owner of an '06 GV, I hasten to support your views, I must say a few things. Other than the rwd GV sold in the US, the 4wd GV is always in 4wd. You can't drive it in 2wd even if you wanted to (to save gas, for instance). The North American spec GV had a sliding armrest right from the '06 introduction. Annoyingly, it did not have an alarm, remote gas flap release, and the rear center armrest provided in other markets. The Jeep Patriot is available with one low gear, skid plates and raised suspension. Other than it's heritage, I'd say the low prices make it a competitive vehicle, although a little downmarket. Even with the new engines, I believe the GV is still at the lower end of the class for mileage. There's not much you can do about the extra weight, relatively low gearing biased for off-roading, plus the cost of being in 4wd all the time. The latest Forester is an equal to the GV in everything except drivetrain, as you said. Oh, and price. The outgoing Forester, which everyone loved so much, was just not in the same class as the GV. As for the warranty, my personal experience is that Suzuki dealers are sometimes reluctant to honour it. I don't know if this is true for all GV owners, and if it is better or worse than other manufacturers. We had an oil leak caused by a loose transmission oil cooler hose. Since it was fixed the garage floor under the GV remains spotless. Our original tires are less than half worn out at 32,000km. The GV has never had or needed an alignment. Tire wear is slow and completely normal. A few people got '06 GV's that can only be descibed as lemons. I don't understand how that happens, but our friend bm000092 definitely got one. My wife had never been in a GV or even seen one when we went to pick up ours. She really likes it. Thanks for taking the time to describe your reaction to the GV. We're always hungry for new perspectives. Hopefully your house will sell soon. |
|
| I should add that being in 4wd alll the time translates into a safety and cost savings in that you are less likely to lose control. Accidents, though uncommon, are very costly. So on average, the superior control would translate into more savings than the extra gas cost for the average owner. This also applies when comparing the GV to Rav4's, CRV's etc. with their slip&grip systems. | |
|
|
|
Replying to: xostnot (Nov 29, 2008 9:39 pm) I guess it's good that I live in the US huh? As the 4-Mode 4WD is described from a multitude of sources, the 4-high mode only sends power to the front tires as needed making it primarily 2WD. It says this on both Suzuki's website and other reviews of the system. Even with the new engines, I believe the GV is still at the lower end of the class for mileage. There's not much you can do about the extra weight, relatively low gearing biased for off-roading, plus the cost of being in 4wd all the time. The lower end? I wouldn't say that. They're all extremely close. Here's some the mileage numbers for its competitors. GV: 19/25 (18/24 V6) Forester: 20/26 Vue: 19/26 CR-V: 20/27 Outlander: 20/25 Patriot: 21/25 Rav4: 21/28 Rogue: 22/27 Tiguan: 17/24 From my perspective, you're fussing about 17-34 miles per tank. Added up, that might be savings of $500-$600 a year? More if gas goes up again. I don't have a lot of frivolous expenses so the extra savings would not mean that much to me. I tend to save money for the basic elements of living in our world. I don't buy the latest techno-gadget and I don't waste money shopping for expensive things. To me, if I get more enjoyment out of the vehicle than the others, isn't that the point? Frankly, that's more than worth the extra cost which really isn't that much considering I've been averaging around 12-14 mpg for the last 3 years. If I can survive with that right now, I'll be actually losing less money by upgrading. A few people got '06 GV's that can only be descibed as lemons. I don't understand how that happens, but our friend bm000092 definitely got one. Being that we will be entering the 4th model year of the vehicle, the dependability of the vehicle should actually increase. It takes what, 2 years to get out the kinks for most new vehicles? It happens even to the best of manufacturers. I honestly believe that if you take care of a vehicle, it will take care of you. My 93 Jeep GC has over 300k miles on it. Two owners. My dad and then when I bought it from him. We have taken care of it. If you take care of the vehicle, it runs. It might not sound pretty after 300k, but it still runs. Thank you for the honest review as an owner yourself. I think when you compare the vehicle to the rest of the class, you can see why I am enthused.
|
|
|
Replying to: budman3 (Nov 29, 2008 8:53 pm) After looking at your plethora of cheap american cars that you've purchased in the past, I wouldn't take your opinion for any future purchase. Cheap? I agree, they were basics and if you think about buying cost and maintenance, the fact that I never got any problem with them, they have been cleaver choices (exception of the Phoenix, but I didn’t choose this one, it was given to me), they made me save a lot of money, even made some with the Dart. I would learn how to spell and be grammatically correct. Try to write me in French and see what you can do…but I don't want to be nasty, be it if you want.
|
|
|
Replying to: xostnot (Nov 29, 2008 9:39 pm) 
|
|
You are here:
Forums
SUVs Suzuki Grand Vitara/Vitara Suzuki Grand Vitara 2006 through 2008
New? Join Now!
Forum Tools
Search Forums
Browse by Vehicle
2009 Suzuki Grand Vitara
Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
Today's Chats
