With an ARAI-claimed 27.97kpl fuel efficiency figure, the Grand Vitara would become the most fuel efficient SUV when it goes on sale.
Maruti Suzuki has finally taken the wraps off its new global flagship SUV, the Grand Vitara. The fifth-gen Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara will go on sale in India first, and is expected to be sold in multiple overseas markets. It has been developed jointly with Toyota, and will be built at latter’s Karnataka plant along with its sister model – the Hyryder SUV. Bookings for the Grand Vitara SUV have been underway since July 11 for a token amount of Rs 11,000, and it will be sold through Maruti’s premium Nexa dealerships.
- Grand Vitara to go on sale in the coming weeks
- First Maruti to get strong hybrid, AWD powertrain option
- Deliveres likely to start before Diwali
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: carmaker’s first made-in-India flagship SUV
While the Hyryder is an all-new model name for Toyota, the new Grand Vitara carries forward Suzuki’s legacy of the popular Vitara, its global flagship SUV that has been around since the late 1980s. This SUV also marks the return of the “Grand Vitara” moniker after almost a decade in the Indian market. Maruti Suzuki sold the second- and third-gen of the Grand Vitara in India, but both models were full imports. The fifth-gen Grand Vitara that has been unvei is the first to be heavily localised and built in India, and is based on Suzuki’s Global C platform that underpins multiple Maruti and Suzuki models.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: exterior highlights
Up front, the new Maruti Suzuki Vitara gets a sharp-looking nose, with the wide grille getting chrome and piano black inserts, similar to the new Ertiga. Flanking the grille, the SUV gets a squarish split headlamp design that’s in line with the ACross SUV and the new Suzuki S-Cross SUV sold abroad. The headlamp design is similar to the Baleno, and a prominent chrome bar runs between the Daytime Running Lamps and the large Suzuki badge placed in between.
The side profile is similar to the Urban Cruiser Hyryder, however, the Maruti Suzuki’s Grand Vitara gets distinct styling elements like a different alloy wheel design, a floating roof and blackened pillars. At the rear, the Grand Vitara gets tail-lamps with three horizontally placed LED lighting elements on either side, a styling touch that will be seen on all Nexa models. A chrome strip runs across the width of the tailgate, which houses the Suzuki logo, and merges neatly into the tail-lamps. The Grand Vitara nameplate is placed in the centre, right below the logo.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: interior highlights
The Urban Cruiser Hyryder and the Grand Vitara share common bits on the inside. The Grand Vitara gets faux leather with contrast brown layout. In terms of features, the Grand Vitara gets comprehensive equipment, ventilated seats including a head-up display, a 9-inch Smart Play Pro Plus touchscreen infotainment system with connected car tech and even a panoramic sunroof, with the latter being a first on any Maruti Suzuki product sold in India so far. Other common bits shared with the Hyryder and other Maruti Suzuki products include the AC controls, AC vents, steering wheel and power window switches.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: first full hybrid Maruti in India
After the Urban Cruiser Hyryder, the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara is the second midsize SUV in India to come with a strong-hybrid powertrain. Shared with the Hyryder, the hybrid powertrain is Toyota’s 92hp, 122Nm, 1.5-litre TNGA Atkinson Cycle engine, which is paired to an electric motor that makes 79hp and 141Nm of torque. Combined power output for the hybrid power plant is 114hp and it is paired to an eCVT gearbox. Like the Hyryder, the Grand Vitara also boasts of an electric-only range of up to 25km. Maruti has confirmed that this powertrain option delivers an ARAI certified 27.97kpl.
Additionally, Maruti Suzuki is also offering their 1.5-litre K15C mild-hybrid engine with the Grand Vitara. First seen on the Ertiga and XL6 facelifts, and more recently on the new Brezza, it makes 103hp and 117Nm of torque. The engine will be paired either to a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic gearbox with paddle shifters and be offered with Suzuki’s All-Grip AWD technology. This engine option does an ARAI certified 21.11 kpl for the 2WD manual variant, 20.58 kpl for the automatic and 19.38 kpl for the AllGrip AWD.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: big on features and safety tech
In terms of equipment, the higher variants of the Grand Vitara get features like 360-degree camera, wireless charger, full digital instrument cluster, ambient lighting and connected car tech with Google and Siri voice compatibility. The hybrid versions also get driving modes.
When it comes to safety features, the Grand Vitara gets ESP, hill-hold assist, tyre pressure monitor, all-wheel disc brakes and as many as six airbags.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: AllGrip Select AWD
Suzuki brands its all-wheel-drive tech as “AllGrip”, which is sold in three versions – AllGrip Auto, AllGrip Select and the AllGrip Pro. For the Urban Cruiser Hyryder and the Grand Vitara, we will get the AllGrip Select system that is also offered in the Vitara and S-Cross models sold abroad. You can read more about these systems, how they function and how they differ from one another here.
The AllGrip Select offers the driver four modes to choose from – Auto, Sport, Snow and Lock – and the system is controlled electronically via a push-and-turn dial on the dashboard. Depending on the mode and the road surface, the AllGrip Select can send power to all four wheels. The system also has a brake locking differential function, which, via the ESP, can stop an individual spinning wheel and trick the differential into sending the power to the wheels on the ground.
Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara: launch timeline and rivals
Maruti Suzuki will announce the pricing of the Grand Vitara in the coming weeks, after Toyota announces the prices of the Urban Cruiser Hyryder. .Maruti Suzuki’s midsize SUV will compete in a crowded market filled with cars like the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Volkswagen Taigun, Skoda Kushaq and the Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder. Deliveries will commence this festive season.
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