Suzuki VITARA XL-7 5-seater
Need Something That Can Effortlessly Swallow A Big Load? Suzukis Grand Vitara XL-7 Five Seater Has Space And Then Some. Andy Enright Reports
The old adage that theres no substitute for cubes is just as applicable when it comes to a cars carrying capacity as it is when discussing an engines cubic capacity. Space equals versatility equals capability and the
Suzuki Vitara XL-7 five seater is that philosophy taken to a logical extension. If you need an affordable vehicle that can tackle almost any practical eventuality, heres your wheels.
Priced from a distinctly modest £17,995, the Grand Vitara XL7 five-seater is a supersized version of the standard Grand Vitara. The additional benefit of over a foot grafted into the wheelbase and seven inches onto the overhangs means that the XL-7 means that with the rear seats in their upright position, the XL7 can accommodate 900 litres, and when you fold the seats down, it swells to a massive 1,687 litres. Thats even more than a five
seat Nissan Patrol and, for the sake of curiosity, works out at about the same carrying power as nine
Toyota MR2s. Now theres something to astonish your friends at the pub with.
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Or not.
"On almost any objective basis, the Grand Vitara XL7 stands up as a family 4x4 very well indeed."
The overall capacity would be greater still if the
Suzuki were a little wider, but the same snake-hipped 1780mm width means that the Vitara XL7 can squeeze through city restrictions that would defeat a
Ford Mondeo driver. Intimidating it is not. The stretching job transforms the Grand Vitara from a car thats often overlooked into something that stands comparison with far pricier rivals. Youd expect it to be damned with faint praise, with us stating that its good at what it does bearing in mind its lowly sticker price, but on almost any objective basis, the Grand Vitara XL7 stands up as a family 4x4 very well indeed.
Take motive power. At the bottom end of the family 4x4 market, as typified by
Land Rover Discovery and
Mitsubishi Shogun Sport entry-level models, the engines are often tough old diesel units. To get a smooth petrol engine costs far more and usually comes with the resultant penalty of chronic fuel consumption. Youd need over £27,000 to get a petrol Land Rover Discovery, and youd be rewarded with a vehicle that returned 17mpg and which would hit 60mph in 10.
9 seconds. Now consider the Vitara XL7. Power is supplied by either the all-aluminium 2.7-litre 24-valve petrol V6 or a 2.
0-litre turbo diesel. The oil-burner is manual only but the V6 is available coupled to either the five speed manual gearbox or, for a £950 premium, a 4-speed automatic transmission. Good for 170bhp, weve become used to the V6 engine in the Grand Vitara range, but with significant extra sheet metal to haul, it produces sterling figures in the XL-7. Sixty mph arrives in ten seconds whilst an average fuel consumption figure of 27.
2mpg is scarcely credible for such a bluff, heavy petrol car. The diesel wont match the V6s urge but it trounces its impressive figures where fuel economy concerned. The five-speed gearbox is a fairly vice-free unit, although many customers will be prepared to pay the extra for the four-speed auto. Its not the sharpest auto weve ever tested, but it nevertheless prevents you exploiting the engines prodigious torque to get into the sort of cornering antics the XL-7 patently disapproves of.
This is no GTi, but its capable of being hustled along at a fair lick as long as not too much steering input is required. On-road refinement is very good, as is ride quality, although the steering is a little vague, although certainly no worse than the class norm. Suddenly the Solihull product looks a little bit silly Ah, we hear you say. The Suzuki will regret mixing it with a Land Rover when the going gets gloopy.
Not so. Most serious off road enthusiasts will tell you that a good rule of thumb is to ask one very simple question. Is the car youre considering built on a car-derived monocoque-bodied chassis (a la Hondas CR-V or Toyotas RAV4) or a tougher ladder frame affair (as would be a larger, more serious 4x4 like a
Toyota Land Cruiser)? Amongst compact 4x4 off roaders, not even Land Rovers Freelander can claim to be in the latter category, despite its jungle-busting image. Nor, like its
Honda and Toyota counterparts, does it have a low-ratio transfer gearbox for really heavy going.
The XL7, on the other hand, is what the importers call a real 4x4. Despite its additional length, the XL7 can still cut it off road. Ramp and departure angles, those overhangs fore and aft of the wheels, are a bit less wieldy, but the box-section steel ladder-frame structure impresses with its strength and durability. The Grand Vitara XL7 has been treated to a thorough working over in order to keep the value proposition looking fresh.
The focus of these improvements has been a comprehensive reworking of the Vitara interiors and not before time as the cabins were starting to look a little tired. The controls, instrumentation and specifications have been uprated and trim quality is far better. Separate high output front and rear air conditioning is a feature formerly only found in upmarket executive models, and sounds come courtesy of a four-speaker CD/radio stereo system. ABS, power steering, electric windows and mirrors, remote controlled central locking and an adjustable steering column are all standard.
Five seats make a great deal of sense in a Grand Vitara XL7, especially if youre of a practical persuasion. This is a vehicle that warrants serious consideration, fulfilling as it does a wide range of requirements. This vehicle would get my vote as the most surprising vehicle Ive driven all year. I thought Id hate it, but it won me over with its combination of cracking value, no-nonsense engineering and sheer thoughtfulness of design.
Try one. You have nothing to lose but your prejudice
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Suzuki Grand Vitara XL-7 five-seater
PRICE: £17,995 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 14
CO2 EMISSIONS: 190-285g/km
PERFORMANCE: [V6] 0-60mph 10s / Max Speed 103mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [V6] (urban) 20.5 / (Extra urban) 31.0 / (Combined) 26.2mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front airbags, ABS with EBD
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height, 4700/1780/1740mm
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