Vitara SZ4 blog

Timwithtelly

New handbag vs paint protection and refinement.
No way you'd win that one buddy.

Clem_Dye

We have a 2017 Vitara S and are having the front sidelight and indicator bulbs replaced with LED versions when the car goes in for its first service in a couple of weeks time. Seems like it's a common minor upgrade, according to our local Suzuki garage. No point doing the rear lights, as they're fine. No idea why Suzuki mixes the bulb technology on the front of the car like it does. Although the indicator bulbs are actually OK as they are, having weedy non-LED sidelight bulbs when the rest of the front lighting is LED (indicators aside) seems cheap and penny-pinching to me, but as the dealer is going to have to rummage around in the front light clusters it made sense to get both done at the same time. I'll report back once the upgrade has been done.

Clem

Timwithtelly

Yes please do report back.
Didn't know that was an upgrade option to be honest.

What's the 1.4 turbo like on the S?
Seems on paper to be a mile ahead of the 1.6.

Timwithtelly

Titan Covers rear boot cover fitted this morning.
Fitted superbly once I'd slowed down and actually worked out accurately the path for the Velcro to take.

Retains the parcel shelf.

Got the extra bumper flap option, which was a lot longer when folded out than I expected, which is a good anti-dog-nail thing.

Also got an extender, which extends cover up to the front seats if the back seats are laid flat.

Material is a fair weight for what it is and it looks well made.

Time will tell as my EBT pukes on every car journey and my staffy is an expert at clawing stuff just to see if he can make a hole in it.

Clem_Dye

Never tried the 1.6, because there wasn't a 4WD auto version. Only the S had that, which is what my wife needed as she's had some back surgery  and has nerve damage to her left leg. The 1.4 seems pretty quick on kick-down, and fuel economy seems fine. My only gripe is that the front sports seats are uncomfortable (for me at least) on a long journey. There's not much of a turbo lag and performance (numb bum aside!) is very good on both short and long journeys alike. The S gets pretty much all of the options available available for the non-S model. We added a few cosmetic bits and a proper spare wheel, rather than rely on the crazy foam normally supplied. Reliability has been good. We did have initial issues with some door panel vibration, and a minor issue with the reversing camera, but our local Suzuki dealership (Batchelors in Ripon) have been very good, and I'm happy to recommend them. The Vitara was our first Japanese car, and overall we're still happy almost one year in.

Clem

Clem_Dye

BTW, the front light upgrade that I mentioned is not a Suzuki update, but an update that our dealer seems to be doing for the latest style Vitara customers. If you want the details give Batchelors (01765 690590) a call and ask for Steve in the service department.

Clem

MahaRaja

Been looking at the Vitara for my next car, along with other small used compact Autos SUVs that I'm considering at the moment, along with Honda HRV but that has extortionate used prices.

Just had a brief 'test drive' of the Qashqai; 1.2 Petrol Auto at Cargiant yesterday, and not impressed. It felt under powered when you press the gas, probably as I'm coming from Honda 2.0 Auto Accord. The 'Test Drive' was a brief drive in their area, so couldn't drive more than 25mph!

I've been looking at ads for an Auto 1.6 or the Booster Jet 1.4 but they're expensive. An avg cost is about £15k for a 3 year old, when a brand new one of the same trim can be had for £19K! I thought the price after 3 years depreciates less than half. Only very few prem brands can hold about 50 percent of their original value but not Suzuki and Honda is even worse. A 3 year old HRV auto is about £17K but a brand new after discount is £21.5K. Don't understand why used cars are so bloody expensive.

Clem_Dye

You may not be comparing second hand prices correctly. For the Vitara, only the SZ-T has an automatic transmission option, but only in 2-wheel drive. The S variant is the only model to offer a full 4-wheel drive option as standard, either with a manual or auto gearbox. The 1.6 model's normally aspirated engine means that you do have to 'work' the car a bit more to get it moving. The 1.4 S has the turbo and that really makes a difference.

I'm happy to note that second hand values are so strong. That bodes well when we have to replace our S!

Clem

Timwithtelly

Watched a video earlier that seems to have the 1.4 at sub-10 seconds for 0-60mph.
Interesting you've had that door panel vibration.
I can't find the proper spare wheel as an official option - only more of that foam stuff.

Timwithtelly

Cheers Clem.
Will give them a buzz once I run it past my insurance company - they seem to add money on for any mods - insurance last year went up £25 for having a towbar fitted.