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SUVs Suzuki Grand Vitara/Vitara 2009 Suzuki Grand Vitara
68 messages, Last post on Nov 17, 2009 at 12:10 PM
You are in the Suzuki Grand Vitara/Vitara Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & tidester
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We regularly use a road that climbs from sea level in Squamish, up to 3000'. It's a popular place to go backcountry skiing and snowshoeing. The road's lower half is 2-lane gravel, and the upper half is 1-lane gravel. It twists and turns as it climbs, and in the winter, you cross the snow line somewhere during the climb. Usually you also cross a temperature transition from above to below freezing. The road is cut into a steep mountainside, and the road surface is cambered toward the dropoff. There is a ditch on the uphill side and a dropoff on the other. (Take your pick.) Obviously a recipe for trouble. To put the icing on the cake, a snowplow/grader with a dull blade had left a glazed greasy slick layer of hard snow. Sanding would have been the only solution, but it wasn't done. During 30 years of using varied vehicles on that road, I have had many vehicle challenges. Including a couple of cases of sliding backwards downhill. Fortunately none resulted in damage. But the GV has never failed to make it all the way up, and has never lost its composure. In fact, it romps up and down the road. On the way down that road last Sunday many people lost control. We saw: one 4-Runner rolled and wrecked, one 4-Runner with chains mounted slid into a ditch. One Ford Freestyle slid over the embankment and crunched against a tree. One large tow truck with dualies, on the scene to remove the 4-Runner and extricate the Freestyle, slid over the embankment and crashed into the side of the Freestyle. I have never felt as grateful for a cuv with a low range to allow slowly engine braking down the steep slippery sections - rather than use the brakes. I was also extremely grateful for the new Bridgestone Blizzak DMZ-3's. Not to mention a vehicle with excellent weight distribution (and lots of air bags). We were unaware of the degree of the problem until after we stopped in the middle of one of the steepest hills to await clearance of car-nage below. It was at that point I discovered it was very difficult to stand on the road without falling. After seeing the vehicle behind us go off the road (fortunate since he would have hit us had he gotten much farther), I decided to put our chains on. With or without them, we were able to stop anywhere, while these other vehicles could not stay on the road. There simply was a vast difference in how the vehicles handled the conditions. Numerous fans of other suv's and cuv's challenge the wisdom of buying a Grand Vitara. This fiasco certainly reinforced my belief that the GV was the right choice. Note to suv owners: the very popular BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A tires are useless on slick snow.
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Replying to: norwoodsmn (Mar 16, 2009 12:09 pm) I know, "Hey Bud, go away and quit bothering us Zuke owners."  I did purchase one for all the same reasons you current owners have one. I just fell out of love and won't consider getting back together. There are some great points as xostnot has pointed out in driving conditions. Then there are those with vibration and tire problems. Since Suzuki didn't address my problems, I feel I'm justified and pointing out the not so good points to potential buyers of any Suzuki. Then there are reviews such as this, that doesn't help out the Zuke brand. http://autos.yahoo.com/articles/autos_content_landing_pages/908/jaguar-buick-det- hrone-lexus-in-reliability-study/;_ylc=X3oDMTEyMGJyNHYyBF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEc2VjA2ZwL- XRvZGF5BHNsawNhcF9qYWc- |
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Replying to: xostnot (Mar 17, 2009 9:01 pm) And we drove our Samurai right up on the N/W flank of Mt. Garibaldi till we could go no further. Gotta luv 'em. Still, bud strikes a useful cautionary note by advising they, (Zukes), frankly require "more care and feeding", (so to speak), than the main stream softies do. I don't think anyone can argue that point. Ya, again, apples and oranges, but... However speaking from experience now actually owning a CR-V, (2005), and having td'ed the similarly equipped (loaded but for leather), '09 GV JLX 4 cylinder, well, I thought it was a great rig. NO not the same ULTIMATE sophistication/on road performance as the CR-V, but hey, with the low range, that fine new suspension, those short stopping new rear discs, the quiet new cabin thanks to the sound proofing refinements, well, but for the intractable, TOO STEEP intro prices of 'em when we HAD TO move to replace "RUSS", (the rapidly oxidizing! Sidekick), well we would have been happy as clams to have one parked in the driveway here. So seems the moral of the story is, if you need that rough country performance margin, think Suzuki. If you find on the other hand you can scale back the outdoor adventures a bit, well then the other choices are obvious. No one's right or wrong here, it all just comes down to what [do you] need?, and how willing you are to put up with the extra care and feeding that comes along with owning a more complex to service [Suzuki] true 4wd vehicle. There are going to be some happy fortunate folks who end up with very good deals on these new '09's between right now and December. The new 4 cyl JLX is as close to a CR-V in general feel as I think Suzuki can possibly make 'em. That's a real tribute given it's considerable capabilities as duly noted by xostnot. You're welcome [again] Suzuki... Nwdsmn.
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Replying to: norwoodsmn (Mar 19, 2009 4:41 pm) ) your replies and thought you said the crv was boring. When I drive my daughter's 08, it can be a bit underpowered and no frills and yet it is a Honda. Trouble free so far. Curious why you chose an 05 CRV over an 06 or 07 GV? Seems like there are some great deals to be had. BTW, the zuke dealer in town closed it's doors. As well as a major boat manufacturer. The economy sure is taking it's toll on everything.  Hope it's warming up for you. We've only had a couple 90* days and rain today. Have a Happy Easter!
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Just picked up a new 4 cyl 2.4 gv model JA 5 speed manual this month. Wow pretty refined little machine. I have owned suzis all my life I have had an x90 and 2 trackers, This machine is an entirely diferent beast quite smooth rides nice not bad on gas. I have put 1000 km so far in 2 weeks. Very impressed now time will tell as far as maintaining goes. If there are any questions people may have fire away I will be as honest as possible about the vehicle. Cheers.
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Replying to: budman3 (Apr 10, 2009 4:33 pm) So well ya, why'd ya do what ya did then, (you may well ask?) First we TDed a brand new '09 full base awd CR-V. In full base trim it came "equipped" with ACRES, (HECTARES up here), of unending dull grey plastic. And wow though there was a, (well, ya, it's about time you got competitive in the marketplace, HONDA!), year end $7,000.00 internet factory deal!, (internet buying service figures, we'd signed up...), even with that it just didn't wind my crank. It didn't feel right in the sense that you were so fully isolated from what was going on there at the road interface(es) with the tire contact patches... IE: just making you feel too "oh so comfortably remote" from the driving experience. Enter maybe two months later, our chance finding of a fully loaded low mileage, (22 thou MILES), '05 AWD [prior gen] ex lease one on the local lot, (good as Gold in color, at about twelve grand less than it's original selling price!), AND including it's vastly more involving [prior gen] feeling of yr. being actually invoved in the driving process, (vastly more road feel in the handling department vs. the isolation from same a new '09), and hey, we were left only with the question, what time does the bank open up Monday morning? Actually we went with Honda finance which with our Cr. Rating, readily gave us an acceptable deal, the next business day. But without totally spillin my guts here, (this aint a short one so far, is it?), we had other issues on the horizion too, including aging parents down south of the border. In fact just two months after scoring the CR'V, my dad "crapped out", (so to speak), and I can tell you it was a real godsend to be down there for almost a full month recently, with out having to worry about, (for instance), the chance my gas gauge might suddenly quit working. My heater core would suddenly disgorge its contents onto the floor of the passenger foot well, the seat belt fasteners were found to have been mfg'rd deffectively, and, but I wouldn't know about it, the this, the that... Or that the insulation beneath my cat converter might "smoulder?" as I drove over the mountain pass I had to traverse while heading south, (sendin fumes into the cockpit?), or, or, or and or......... Still again this very morning ya, I recommend with out reservation the new 4cy GV to my best bud. How/why? He has a ski cabin just down the hill from were we grew up, (almost, we're still workin' on it), skiing together as high school kids, (still go way too fast on 'em yet, Atomic GS race skis though we graduated to the Nomad Crimson ti's this season), AND because his cabin is also immediately adjacent to one of the finest alpine wilderness parks in the lower 48, AND ya, you need a 4wd w/low range to get in there on some of the key access roads, so I HAVE TO influence him to buy one FOR US TO USE while I am visiting, (please?). Don't even think about with your CR-V, on the other hand... Nuff said? Ya, probably more than, but maybe you can discern some path of logic in these ramblings? Yrs. Nwdsmn. |
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Replying to: theguy (Apr 11, 2009 6:26 pm) Please keep yr. input coming, that's chiefly why we're here I think, to hear from you new '09 owners. Just a few items re: my "War and Peace" length, (sorry), last post. Correction: our new CR-V tester around the first of the year was an '08 on clear out, (with that 7 grand internet factory discount). Think you can do about 5 grand now on a new '09 awd, (have had no reason to check back any more now). Did see the spring deals are starting to blossom just a bit on the '09 Zukes though. But for he or she who can wait til the frost is on the pumpkin, or the snow is on the yule tree, well, the deals oughta be killer then... Just hope the brand doesn't suffer too much in this economic climate as wary folks continue to contribute to "deflation". Further, sure don't see those Equator's flying off the lots, (at least not here). Would be interesting to know the sales figures on the other '09's. Have not seen any recently. What's happening back east there now on the lots in eastern Canada, (other bud)? JUST GREAT to hear you too have owned other Zukes, as there ain't many of us here, (as near as I can tell), though the Maestro of GV info?, our bud xostnot sure is an invaluable info source. But now we're waiting to hear from you, (and yet again ultimately, one: JD Power), to see if these latest Zukes can transcend their past reliability issues. No, as you and I and others know, nothing there that would ever tend to leave you stranded by the side of the norwoods road, but regardless those haunting little gremlins do, (lets be honest), manage to score right up there on the aggravation meter.... If Suzuki can now prove with the new '09's that it has overcome the necessity [for all of us] to have to keep noting this repetitive "issues footnote", well then at such time imo, the marque will finally have fully matured.... Hope it goes that way for them, and we the [mostly] still faithful. Keep us informed. Nwdsmn. |
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Trouble is, the more people wait to buy Suzuki's, the more dealerships will close, and the higher the risk Suzuki will pull out of North America. If you want sales figures, someone at cartalkcanada posts US and Canadian sales breakdowns monthly, right down to the model. The Equator, indeed, is not doing well. Surprise! The SX4 presently is saving the company's North American bacon. However, on the global scale, and Suzuki IS a global player, Suzuki is doing ok, having recently moved up to 9th largest world carmaker. #1 in India, for instance. There are, however, lots of stories of closing dealerships in the US. Not that it's not happening to other brands though. http://www.globalsuzuki.com/globalnews/2009/0428.html This site has a wealth of information about Suzuki, a magazine, even a picture of the Iwata plant where the GV is built. North Americans have a completely different perception of Suzuki. People on other continents don't single out the brand for resale value, mileage, reliabilty, dealerships, etc. They also don't read Consumer Reports. Perhaps if Suzuki wants to grow in North America, they should look at how Hyundai has done it. If they care. I've come to distrust Consumer Reports and JD Power reliability ratings. The only souce I respect is Michael Karesh's truedelta.com. Speaking of which, he could use a few more GV owners to get the GV onto "fully qualified" status of 25 vehicles per model year. The reliabiilty stats gathered so far are mid-pack. Certainly not at the bottom as CR and JDP rate them. Below Chrysler, for instance. Obviously that has not been our experience.
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Replying to: xostnot (Apr 29, 2009 6:40 pm) I still think the Aussies have it right seeing the true PURPOSE IN LIFE of the GV, for it is revered (nearly) "down under". Yet on the other hand we don't have to wrestle many "crocks" here in North America, and so are different folks. Though on the subject of "crocks", seems something akin to fair dinkum full of one, for more than just one of us here? to have felt over time it may have been something akin to having to pin one of the big long scaly toothy ones, (think Sea Crocodiles???), to the ground, (metaphorically speaking, of course), when trying to solve ownership "issues" with, (for instance), either the dealership service network, or on occasion, "those 20 footers out there in reincarnated form, if you will", represented by those Suzuki's national customer service rep types... Need I say too much more.... Ya, ok, ok again, they can't all be that bad, but my own satisfaction level was just 50%, so... So that's just one more example why yes, we ARE a breed of brand loyal owners, (mostly loyal), who by definition are apart from "the clutch", (reptilian reference there again), apart from the mainstream of new vehicle buyers. Yet are some of those unique distinctions ones we wish to readily embrace, by choice? You can and have spoken as well to these sorts of nagging issues as well as any of the rest of us. "Generic" info there really, irrespective of what model(s) we may have, or now still do own. Ya, our drive it till it drops Esteem wagon is still parked outside, and ok, I'm glad I have it. But I just recently finally had to toss up the hands and give up the continued aggravation of fruitlessly pursuing a clear dealership service related issue any further, but will still [have to] live with the vehicle anyway, til it drops.. Re" just one, (of a number?), of GV aggravations of yours, for instance: it would absolutely "tan my hide" to have paid what you did for your loaded GV (with leather), and then to have 'em stretch out within such a relatively short period of ownership, yes, your "rig's" excellent o/r performance notwithstanding. Contrast that with our older "new", (to us) loaded '05 CR-V, where they, (the hides), remain totally pristine but for some minor stretch [marks] as opposed to being "stretched out". That reminds me, I need to pick up some leather treatment stuff today, any recommendations?). Elsewhere under the hood, our Accord/Acura TSX sourced engine has not allowed me to add even one drop of oil now during our first 5,000kms of ownership. In fact the service intervals using synthetic oil, (factory service recomended invervals), on the new '09 CR-V's, are WAY up there beyond a GV's, (the ultimate quality of the new '09 GV's, and their engines, of course yet remaining to be fully known, however). Ok, ok, again I know were back to apples and oranges, but... But although I also know the fact Suzuki's require 1 quart per 1,000kms, has nothing to do with the longevity of their bulletproof engines, still, speaking very simply to "engineering tolerances", the message there re comparative oil consumption figures is pretty clear if you look a bit deeper. That this fact doesn't seem to effect engine life in a Zuke, is of course a real blessing. But the devil lies [elsewhere, elsewhere in the vehicle] in those [other] engineering "details", when you the new owner of a new to the market Suzuki offering, gets to play "real world shakedown test pilot" as in effect those "engineering tolerance related issues" can and do crop up somewhere else, "here and there" at some point on down the road... Been there, done that, and don't miss it at all now, I must be frank, just like our sometimes audacious, (oops, no offense bud, seriously!!!), bud, Budman3. In the interim, I sure hope for nothing but good news from that guy, "The Guy". Nwdsmn.
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Replying to: norwoodsmn (Apr 30, 2009 12:20 pm) Haha, at least you're still thinking of your ol Bud. I must say that I have mended my ways of audacity and ferocity ever since the GV left the garage for someone else's demise. I think the stress of ownership and not knowing how much more out of pocket expense I could endure and trips to the dealer (which is now gone) all contributed to my evil ways. Once again, the reason I stay is not to cause harm and cruelty to other owners but to let NEW owners know what they may encounter and with a product that Suzuki won't stand behind.  I forgot about the oil burning in the GV, as well as the cardboard on the floor to soak up the oil leaks. It's equivalent to my Chevy truck that sometimes I wonder if they originally designed it to be a 2 cycle lawnmower engine. Between the Hondas/Acuras in the family, I have never added oil or found leaks. I really do hope Suzuki wakes up to smell the coffee and correct some the issues but they are definately putting more nails in the coffin as time goes on. The first couple years when a new product comes out is the most critical for the future of the product. When complaints fall on deaf ears, it won't take long for the public to notice. I was hoping to hear from some of the members to see if they actually purchased the Zuke, not only here but in the older section of the GV. I guess if they did, they would be here complaining.  I'm almost there, nrwdsmn. My replies are getting loooonger. 
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