Suzuki Vitara Boosterjet any good?
Discussion
Not the most PH of questions, though we are after a newish car for my other half.
We have a toddler and are expecting another child shortly and the Third Gen Leon FR 1.4 petrol (Mk7 Golf based) she has is just too small in terms of boot space for the buggies and other stuff small people come with.
She’s a bit of an accidental purest, in that she hates diesels and much prefers three peddles. To make life a little harder she’s keen on an SUV for the higher driving position, but a park-able one (i.e. not a FFRR sized unfortunately) with some decent tech and not too much worse than the León in running costs.
This has led me to the Vitara, they seem to have a decent size and most importantly flat loading boot, they can be had with three peddles and the 1.4 boosterjet seems frugal enough. We have a Suzuki dealer pretty close to.
Question is are they any good and worth looking at? Budget is about £17k.
We have a toddler and are expecting another child shortly and the Third Gen Leon FR 1.4 petrol (Mk7 Golf based) she has is just too small in terms of boot space for the buggies and other stuff small people come with.
She’s a bit of an accidental purest, in that she hates diesels and much prefers three peddles. To make life a little harder she’s keen on an SUV for the higher driving position, but a park-able one (i.e. not a FFRR sized unfortunately) with some decent tech and not too much worse than the León in running costs.
This has led me to the Vitara, they seem to have a decent size and most importantly flat loading boot, they can be had with three peddles and the 1.4 boosterjet seems frugal enough. We have a Suzuki dealer pretty close to.
Question is are they any good and worth looking at? Budget is about £17k.
I don’t think the boot is that big to be honest, considering the size of the car.
If you’ve a Suzuki dealership nearby, take a look at the SX4 S-Cross - the boot is a good bit bigger (55 litres more). Colleague I carpool with has one - it’s a decent enough car and roomy enough inside.
Edited to actually answer your question - yes the Vitara is a perfectly good car. We have a Suzuki dealership nearby and I see loads of them about so they can’t be that bad. (I’d still look at the S-Cross though)
If you’ve a Suzuki dealership nearby, take a look at the SX4 S-Cross - the boot is a good bit bigger (55 litres more). Colleague I carpool with has one - it’s a decent enough car and roomy enough inside.
Edited to actually answer your question - yes the Vitara is a perfectly good car. We have a Suzuki dealership nearby and I see loads of them about so they can’t be that bad. (I’d still look at the S-Cross though)
Edited by spaceship on Sunday 20th March 17:27
I had one as a courtesy car when my new Jimny was in for some work. The one thing that really stuck out for me was the gearbox in the manual had just absolutely no feel and was something that I just wouldn’t want to live with day to day. Otherwise completely inoffensive as a car overall.
I've got one, its 2 years old now, very last of the non hybrid model. Its a top of the range SZ5 and was listed at 25.5k. I got a good discount (remember those) and paid 20.5k with mats and flaps and S tailgate spoiler, its still nearly worth that now! They are often overlooked but I think they are very good value. There are cheaper models but I particularly wanted the pan roof.
The 1.4 boosterjet is very good, same as Swift Sport, its a lightweight SUV so performs well and is averaging 44mpg. It actually feels quite sprightly in sport mode.
Allgrip system is very impressive if you prefer 4WD, Proper rear suspension arms instead of a beam, it works like the Jimny but without the low range.
Cheap and cheerful interior but ok for the price, my main criticism is the lack of a digital speedo in the centre of the instrument cluster like the Swift has and the touch screen nav isn't the best but I plug my phone in and use Waze which also gives me the digital speedo.
Oh I forgot about the hideous clunky looking rear light clusters, they really are a blot on the landscape, the pre-facelift ones are much nicer and some owners have retro fitted them but its not a straightforward job. At least the headlamps are impressive.
I did consider the Duster, I really like the Techroad model. It was a similar price to the Vitara and similar performance but didn't drive quite as nicely but ultimately the Suzuki dealer was so much easier to deal with, so they got my custom. Its been totally reliable and the annual service is cheap.
With your budget you could have a Vitara S, they have the nicest interior trim, spec and rear lights.
The 1.4 boosterjet is very good, same as Swift Sport, its a lightweight SUV so performs well and is averaging 44mpg. It actually feels quite sprightly in sport mode.
Allgrip system is very impressive if you prefer 4WD, Proper rear suspension arms instead of a beam, it works like the Jimny but without the low range.
Cheap and cheerful interior but ok for the price, my main criticism is the lack of a digital speedo in the centre of the instrument cluster like the Swift has and the touch screen nav isn't the best but I plug my phone in and use Waze which also gives me the digital speedo.
Oh I forgot about the hideous clunky looking rear light clusters, they really are a blot on the landscape, the pre-facelift ones are much nicer and some owners have retro fitted them but its not a straightforward job. At least the headlamps are impressive.
I did consider the Duster, I really like the Techroad model. It was a similar price to the Vitara and similar performance but didn't drive quite as nicely but ultimately the Suzuki dealer was so much easier to deal with, so they got my custom. Its been totally reliable and the annual service is cheap.
With your budget you could have a Vitara S, they have the nicest interior trim, spec and rear lights.
Thanks all.
Did consider a Duster I do like them but the boot has a load over lip, sounds trivial but it’s a deal breaker. Had to Google what a Jogger was, man that is gopping and unnecessary big.
Will take a look at a Vitara / S-Cross on the feedback.
Understand Suzuki usually perform quite well is customer satisfaction / reliability type surveys, anything worth looking out for?
Did consider a Duster I do like them but the boot has a load over lip, sounds trivial but it’s a deal breaker. Had to Google what a Jogger was, man that is gopping and unnecessary big.
Will take a look at a Vitara / S-Cross on the feedback.
Understand Suzuki usually perform quite well is customer satisfaction / reliability type surveys, anything worth looking out for?
jwwbowe said:
Thanks all.
Did consider a Duster I do like them but the boot has a load over lip, sounds trivial but it’s a deal breaker. Had to Google what a Jogger was, man that is gopping and unnecessary big.
Will take a look at a Vitara / S-Cross on the feedback.
Understand Suzuki usually perform quite well is customer satisfaction / reliability type surveys, anything worth looking out for?
1.4 Boosterjet engine is a fantastic engine, I agree with some comments about the boot size it is quite small for the car. Scross has a bigger boot but the car sits lower down.Did consider a Duster I do like them but the boot has a load over lip, sounds trivial but it’s a deal breaker. Had to Google what a Jogger was, man that is gopping and unnecessary big.
Will take a look at a Vitara / S-Cross on the feedback.
Understand Suzuki usually perform quite well is customer satisfaction / reliability type surveys, anything worth looking out for?
As i sell Suzuki's for a living I prefer the Vitara, Mrs has the 1.4 Boosterjet, Averages 48 Mpg and we have never had an issue in the 2 years of ownership.
Any yet they are incredibly reliable.
jwwbowe said:
Thanks all.
Did consider a Duster I do like them but the boot has a load over lip, sounds trivial but it’s a deal breaker. Had to Google what a Jogger was, man that is gopping and unnecessary big.
Will take a look at a Vitara / S-Cross on the feedback.
Understand Suzuki usually perform quite well is customer satisfaction / reliability type surveys, anything worth looking out for?
The jogger is pointless as the back row of seats are basically in the boot and they dont fold flat into the floor so you would have no boot at all.Did consider a Duster I do like them but the boot has a load over lip, sounds trivial but it’s a deal breaker. Had to Google what a Jogger was, man that is gopping and unnecessary big.
Will take a look at a Vitara / S-Cross on the feedback.
Understand Suzuki usually perform quite well is customer satisfaction / reliability type surveys, anything worth looking out for?
XR said:
my main criticism is the lack of a digital speedo in the centre of the instrument cluster like the Swift has
Swift Sport didn’t get the digital speedo until it went mild hybrid. Not sure if the Vitara got it at the same time. I haven’t driven a Vitara (got a Swift Sport myself) but a colleague of mine really likes hers. Well she did until someone ran a red light and T boned it. She walked away with just a few bruises and some aches so they seem to do well in side impacts! She is in the process of getting a replacement for her writeoff, upgrading to the boosterjet this time.
Dan W. said:
1.4 Boosterjet engine is a fantastic engine, I agree with some comments about the boot size it is quite small for the car. Scross has a bigger boot but the car sits lower down.
As i sell Suzuki's for a living I prefer the Vitara, Mrs has the 1.4 Boosterjet, Averages 48 Mpg and we have never had an issue in the 2 years of ownership.
Any yet they are incredibly reliable.
I don't mean to hijack the thread, Dan are the 1.0 Swift's boosterjets any good? ThanksAs i sell Suzuki's for a living I prefer the Vitara, Mrs has the 1.4 Boosterjet, Averages 48 Mpg and we have never had an issue in the 2 years of ownership.
Any yet they are incredibly reliable.
My cousin bought a Vitara with the 1.6 and the five speed manual, and it's pretty good to drive. It's front wheel drive and I think it's an SZ3, so about as light as they come (I think lighter than a Fiesta, for instance).
Good ride and handling compromise and a responsive engine. The gear change is nicer than the six speed in my Swift Sport.
Fuel consumption also very good apparently, and he manages to fit three kids and their stuff in the back.
I've not tried a 1.4 boosterjet, but I imagine they'd have no trouble keeping up with traffic.
Good ride and handling compromise and a responsive engine. The gear change is nicer than the six speed in my Swift Sport.
Fuel consumption also very good apparently, and he manages to fit three kids and their stuff in the back.
I've not tried a 1.4 boosterjet, but I imagine they'd have no trouble keeping up with traffic.
Wife has had the Vitara S 1.4 for a couple of years, in that time we have expanded the family to 2 kids. Car is fine for children although I would argue lowering the boot floor is almost necessary to accommodate chunky prams/buggys - but of course then you have a load lip. Worth testing out in your case. Boot is definitely bigger than her previous fiesta (14 plate) but isn't huge.
We bought ours, a 66 plate, for about £11k in early 2020, think it's now worth fractionally less than that due to increased car prices, although at the height of it all it was worth £14k to wbac.
As others have said, interior is what you pay for but essentially it's fine if you go into it not expecting super plush materials. Day to day you tend to forget that sort of stuff anyway. Due to its low weight it is very nimble and has sharp steering which is good fun actually! Can't say I've noticed particularly bad gear changes as someone else mentioned, although ours is hard to select first and second slightly when cold but again we are now used to it.
Engine is pretty sweet, picks up well enough and was a surprise the first time I put my foot down in it. Ample for normal driving. We occasionally use the Vitara to drive back to the parents which is 150 miles of dual carriageway, a and b roads. There's a little bit of road noise when going 70 but does the job and we get there without feeling particularly fatigued - well, any more than having 2 young kids does in the back and the effort it takes to get them anywhere of significant distance!
We have done maybe 15k miles and in that time average about 40.5mpg which is more on the low end of what this engine should do I would say, but the wife mainly drives it across city to nursery/work with lots of traffic on the way.
Overall, we actually really like the car. Does the job well, affordable to run, nice chunky car looks in isolation but actually not a huge car when compared to others - ie easy to park. We bought and service ours in York despite it being an hour away, definitely recommend Batchelors if you are relatively local.
Any further questions just ask, this has been a bit of an incoherent ramble 😁 - more coffee needed!
We bought ours, a 66 plate, for about £11k in early 2020, think it's now worth fractionally less than that due to increased car prices, although at the height of it all it was worth £14k to wbac.
As others have said, interior is what you pay for but essentially it's fine if you go into it not expecting super plush materials. Day to day you tend to forget that sort of stuff anyway. Due to its low weight it is very nimble and has sharp steering which is good fun actually! Can't say I've noticed particularly bad gear changes as someone else mentioned, although ours is hard to select first and second slightly when cold but again we are now used to it.
Engine is pretty sweet, picks up well enough and was a surprise the first time I put my foot down in it. Ample for normal driving. We occasionally use the Vitara to drive back to the parents which is 150 miles of dual carriageway, a and b roads. There's a little bit of road noise when going 70 but does the job and we get there without feeling particularly fatigued - well, any more than having 2 young kids does in the back and the effort it takes to get them anywhere of significant distance!
We have done maybe 15k miles and in that time average about 40.5mpg which is more on the low end of what this engine should do I would say, but the wife mainly drives it across city to nursery/work with lots of traffic on the way.
Overall, we actually really like the car. Does the job well, affordable to run, nice chunky car looks in isolation but actually not a huge car when compared to others - ie easy to park. We bought and service ours in York despite it being an hour away, definitely recommend Batchelors if you are relatively local.
Any further questions just ask, this has been a bit of an incoherent ramble 😁 - more coffee needed!
Mrtank said:
Dan W. said:
1.4 Boosterjet engine is a fantastic engine, I agree with some comments about the boot size it is quite small for the car. Scross has a bigger boot but the car sits lower down.
As i sell Suzuki's for a living I prefer the Vitara, Mrs has the 1.4 Boosterjet, Averages 48 Mpg and we have never had an issue in the 2 years of ownership.
Any yet they are incredibly reliable.
I don't mean to hijack the thread, Dan are the 1.0 Swift's boosterjets any good? ThanksAs i sell Suzuki's for a living I prefer the Vitara, Mrs has the 1.4 Boosterjet, Averages 48 Mpg and we have never had an issue in the 2 years of ownership.
Any yet they are incredibly reliable.
but they stopped the 1.0 a while back, but our customers prefer them over the 1.2
Wadaboo said:
Wife has had the Vitara S 1.4 for a couple of years, in that time we have expanded the family to 2 kids. Car is fine for children although I would argue lowering the boot floor is almost necessary to accommodate chunky prams/buggys - but of course then you have a load lip. Worth testing out in your case. Boot is definitely bigger than her previous fiesta (14 plate) but isn't huge.
We bought ours, a 66 plate, for about £11k in early 2020, think it's now worth fractionally less than that due to increased car prices, although at the height of it all it was worth £14k to wbac.
As others have said, interior is what you pay for but essentially it's fine if you go into it not expecting super plush materials. Day to day you tend to forget that sort of stuff anyway. Due to its low weight it is very nimble and has sharp steering which is good fun actually! Can't say I've noticed particularly bad gear changes as someone else mentioned, although ours is hard to select first and second slightly when cold but again we are now used to it.
Engine is pretty sweet, picks up well enough and was a surprise the first time I put my foot down in it. Ample for normal driving. We occasionally use the Vitara to drive back to the parents which is 150 miles of dual carriageway, a and b roads. There's a little bit of road noise when going 70 but does the job and we get there without feeling particularly fatigued - well, any more than having 2 young kids does in the back and the effort it takes to get them anywhere of significant distance!
We have done maybe 15k miles and in that time average about 40.5mpg which is more on the low end of what this engine should do I would say, but the wife mainly drives it across city to nursery/work with lots of traffic on the way.
Overall, we actually really like the car. Does the job well, affordable to run, nice chunky car looks in isolation but actually not a huge car when compared to others - ie easy to park. We bought and service ours in York despite it being an hour away, definitely recommend Batchelors if you are relatively local.
Any further questions just ask, this has been a bit of an incoherent ramble ?? - more coffee needed!
Thanks for taking the time on that real world use. Very similar to our intended use to. Plan to pop down to our local dealership this weekend We bought ours, a 66 plate, for about £11k in early 2020, think it's now worth fractionally less than that due to increased car prices, although at the height of it all it was worth £14k to wbac.
As others have said, interior is what you pay for but essentially it's fine if you go into it not expecting super plush materials. Day to day you tend to forget that sort of stuff anyway. Due to its low weight it is very nimble and has sharp steering which is good fun actually! Can't say I've noticed particularly bad gear changes as someone else mentioned, although ours is hard to select first and second slightly when cold but again we are now used to it.
Engine is pretty sweet, picks up well enough and was a surprise the first time I put my foot down in it. Ample for normal driving. We occasionally use the Vitara to drive back to the parents which is 150 miles of dual carriageway, a and b roads. There's a little bit of road noise when going 70 but does the job and we get there without feeling particularly fatigued - well, any more than having 2 young kids does in the back and the effort it takes to get them anywhere of significant distance!
We have done maybe 15k miles and in that time average about 40.5mpg which is more on the low end of what this engine should do I would say, but the wife mainly drives it across city to nursery/work with lots of traffic on the way.
Overall, we actually really like the car. Does the job well, affordable to run, nice chunky car looks in isolation but actually not a huge car when compared to others - ie easy to park. We bought and service ours in York despite it being an hour away, definitely recommend Batchelors if you are relatively local.
Any further questions just ask, this has been a bit of an incoherent ramble ?? - more coffee needed!
OH has the 1.0 after our SX4 S-Cross was destroyed. Great engine and I’d imagine the. 1.4 is even better. I know Matt Watson from Carowow loved it.
Personally, I can’t praise Suzuki enough. Cars tend to be well equipped, dealers are nice, and in about 13 years of running three of them nothing has gone wrong. And I really mean that.
Suzuki also seems to be one of the few brands that still do a decent range of colours. Blue, red, turquoise, orange and a contrast roof are all options.
The Vitara must be coming up to being replaced but I still think it’s a handsome looking car in the correct colour. The new S-Cross is the other option, but likely to cost a fair bit more, and seems to be pretty colour sensitive. Silver looks good, black looks…less good.
Personally, I can’t praise Suzuki enough. Cars tend to be well equipped, dealers are nice, and in about 13 years of running three of them nothing has gone wrong. And I really mean that.
Suzuki also seems to be one of the few brands that still do a decent range of colours. Blue, red, turquoise, orange and a contrast roof are all options.
The Vitara must be coming up to being replaced but I still think it’s a handsome looking car in the correct colour. The new S-Cross is the other option, but likely to cost a fair bit more, and seems to be pretty colour sensitive. Silver looks good, black looks…less good.
Just adding to what has already been written above….my wife has the 1.4 Boosterjet in her Swift Sport and she loves it.
I believe it outputs more power than the office figures, it certain feels quicker than it’s 0 - 60 time, great engine IMHO.
Back to the Vitara, we looked at these plus a handful of other small SUV a few years ago and we shortlisted it with the Vx Crossland. For some reason we didn’t look at the Duster. The Vx cost a little more with a posher interior but but but I’d take the Suzuki’s better engineering and reliability all day long over a Vx.
Let us know how you get on at the dealers.
I believe it outputs more power than the office figures, it certain feels quicker than it’s 0 - 60 time, great engine IMHO.
Back to the Vitara, we looked at these plus a handful of other small SUV a few years ago and we shortlisted it with the Vx Crossland. For some reason we didn’t look at the Duster. The Vx cost a little more with a posher interior but but but I’d take the Suzuki’s better engineering and reliability all day long over a Vx.
Let us know how you get on at the dealers.
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