Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara vs rivals: fuel efficiency, powertrains and dimensions

The Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara is the latest entrant in the cut-throat midsize SUV segment. Furthermore, it is the second hybrid SUV in its segment, closely following its sibling, the Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryrder. The two models have the advantage of a strong hybrid option, which can run in EV mode.

Maruti’s new hybrid SUV will face tough competition from the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Skoda Kushaq, Volkswagen Taigun, MG Astor and Nissan Kicks. Let’s see how the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara fares on paper against its rivals in terms of size, engine options and fuel efficiency.

Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara vs rivals: dimensions

The Grand Vitara is 4,345mm long, 1,795mm wide, and 1,645mm tall, which makes it the third longest SUV in the segment, trailing the Urban Cruiser Hyryder and Nissan Kicks by 10mm and 39mm, respectively.

The Grand Vitara is a midfielder when it comes to comparing its width and height with that of its rivals. While the hybrid siblings – Grand Vitara and Hyryder – are wider than the Creta, Taigun and Kushaq, they are narrower than the Seltos, Astor and Kicks. The height of the Maruti SUV is on par with the Seltos, but the Astor and Kicks are taller than it by 5mm and 14mm, respectively. All SUVs here ride on 17-inch wheels.

Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara vs rivals: engine and gearbox

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Where every other SUV’s base powertrain is a naturally aspirated petrol engine, the Volkswagen and Skoda get a turbo-petrol unit.

In the high-spec petrol powertrains, the Grand Vitara and Hyryder are the only ones to use a hybrid powertrain. Overall, the Grand Vitara and the Hyryder develop the least amount of power and torque, while the 1.5-litre Taigun and Kushaq make the most torque, at 250Nm, and the 1.3-litre Kicks makes the most power, at 156hp. While the Taigun and Kushaq produce 150hp and 250Nm from their 1.5-litre TSI unit, the 1.4-litre Creta and Seltos, as well as the 1.3-litre Astor, make 140hp from their turbocharged units.

The Grand Vitara and Hyryder get a strong-hybrid system with their higher-spec petrol engine, where the 1.5-litre, three-cylinder, naturally aspirated unit produces 92hp and 122Nm of torque and the hybrid motor produces 79hp and 141Nm. Combined, the strong-hybrid powertrain makes 115hp. The Maruti and Toyota strong hybrids also get an electric-only range of 25km, thanks to the 177.6V lithium-ion battery.

Most SUVs here get a 6-speed manual gearbox, while the Grand Vitara, Hyryder and Astor make do with 5-speed unit. Remarkably, for the automatic gearbox, all SUVs employ a mix of torque converters, DCT and CVT transmissions. On the other hand, the Grand Vitara and Hyryder use an e-drive gearbox for the strong hybrid powertrains.

Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara vs rivals: fuel efficiency

*The fuel efficiency figures are company claims based on internal testing

Maruti Suzuki and Toyota claim that their strong-hybrid SUVs return a fuel efficiency figure of 27.97kpl. However, this claim is yet to be certified by ARAI. And if the ARAI figures do turn out to match the official ones, the Grand Vitara and Hyryder would become the most fuel-efficient SUVs in the segment. Similarly, the mild-hybrid powertrains in the Grand Vitara and Hyryder have the highest claimed fuel efficiency figures compared to its rivals, returning up to 21.12kpl. The MG Astor’s ARAI-certified figures were unavailable, making it a bit difficult to judge where it stands amongst its rivals. On the other hand, the Nissan Kicks is the least fuel efficient of the lot. 

Here, we have only considered the petrol powertrains of all SUVs and it is worth noting that the Creta and Seltos also have a diesel powertrain. 

Would you choose the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara over any of its rivals? Let us know in the comments below. 

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