Comparison - Subaru XV Crosstrek Hybrid 2015 - vs - Suzuki Grand Vitara Sports 2017

Eleven years on the current-generation Suzuki Grand Vitara still claims to be the king of small-budget, mid-sized SUV practicality with big off-roading capabilities

Familiarity can sometimes offer warmer comfort than those fresh-faced things embracing reinvention. That may well be an underlying feeling for those who’ve bought any Suzuki Grand Vitara in the past decade and who’ve just climbed into the 2016 version. Essentially, it’s the same car – the 4x4-savvy SUV that’s Grand in name but no longer quite so grand in size is still planted in the generation that launched back in 2005.

Thus, it's an uphill crawl for this Grand Battler to rise above its ratings from performances past. In critiquing its holistic SUV goodness, the Grand Vitara has long been a perennial low scorer in CarAdvice ratings past: in the last three reviews it rated one six and a pair of fives out of tens.

That said, none were petrol four-wheel drives wearing a Sport badge. As perhaps the best all-rounder variant of its crop, and at a seductive price point at that, a bump up to 6.5 out of ten is a deserving one.

Pros
Decent off-road abilities
Sport variant the best dual-purpose 4x4 SUV of the breed
Attractive pricing
Old-school charm..

Cons
that's stuck in old-school execution
Powertrain is old hat
Average on-road driving experience
Increasingly passé in this very fast moving segment

The latest Suzuki Vitara offers good value for money and loads of kit, but it's more of a crossover now than a rugged off-roader

The Suzuki Vitara has been transformed from a utilitarian family-friendly SUV into more of a crossover with Range Rover Evoque-inspired styling and more advanced equipment. There's also more dynamic driving ability on offer, but it's not quite up with the class best.

If you can sacrifice a little ride comfort, and value driving dynamics more, the Vitara is a fine crossover that's car-like to drive, with a sharp chassis and steering, but its lack of boot space counts against it. The diesel's mix of strong efficiency and performance is impressive.

Still, with a responsive and agile chassis for the class, and great efficiency from both the petrol and diesel options, this latest crossover-style Vitara is a much more alluring proposition than its off-road biased predecessors.

Pros
Modern design, lively engines, plenty of kit

Cons
Interior quality, noisy diesel, light steering