ShareThisMore than most vehicle manufacturers, Japan's Suzuki has tested different ingredients to develop a recipe for success in the United States.
It has kept some, rejected others and been out of sync with consumer tastes. For example, in 2002 it introduced a small, tall wagon called the Aerio, which was ahead of its time.
Had it evolved to today's market, it would be viewed as a nifty compact crossover. But just about the time customers were trending in that direction, Suzuki dropped the Aerio because of poor sales. The company also tried and rejected the Reno, a hatchback that could have found favor today, as well as the Verona and Forenza, two cars that were built by Daewoo of South Korea.
For 2009, Suzuki has cooked up a lineup that it believes could sweeten sales in four areas: It consists of the SX4, which comes as a compact sedan or hatchback (Suzuki calls it a crossover), the XL7, a three-row sport utility vehicle, the Grand Vitara, a compact two-row SUV, and the brand-new Equator pickup truck.
The last is not a Suzuki product. It is a Nissan Frontier with a few cosmetic changes. Available with either an extended cab or a crew cab, it is designed to appeal to owners of Suzuki's other products, including all-terrain vehicles, motorcycles and outboard motors, many of whom already own pickups to transport their toys.
The Equator has the advantage of being a proven product with a good track record, built in the United States at Nissan's Tennessee plant.
But if Suzuki was out of sync with the Aerio and Reno, it may have caught a break with the 2009 Grand Vitara, which is a genuine SUV with unit-body-on-frame construction. Its off-road capabilities exceed those of competing compact crossovers.
Unlike an SUV, which is built like a truck with a body-on-frame and rear-wheel or four-wheel drive, a crossover is defined as car-based, with a unit-body and front-wheel or all-wheel drive. Generally speaking, crossovers deliver better on-road handling and fuel economy, and SUVs are more rugged with better off-road capabilities.
With the proliferation of crossovers, there are only a few popularly-priced compact SUVs from which to choose. Besides the Grand Vitara, there's the Nissan Xterra and the Jeep Liberty.
The serendipity comes with the Grand Vitara's brand-new four-cylinder engine, arriving at a time when buyers worship fuel economy. It means that the Grand Vitara can compete for compact buyers who want better mileage, as well as for owners of larger SUVs who are looking to downsize.
"We think the trend toward smaller vehicles bodes well for Suzuki," said Gene Brown, the vice president for product planning and public relations.
In 2008, the Grand Vitara was available only with a 185-horsepower V6 engine. For 2009, there are two new engines: the 2.4-liter four-cylinder, which delivers 166 horsepower, and a 3.2-liter V6, with 230 horsepower.
With only 19 fewer horses than the earlier V6, the new four-banger is more than adequate to motivate the 3,611-pound Grand Vitara. It is linked to a four-speed automatic transmission (a five-speed manual also is available). About the only reason a buyer might want the V6 is for the 3,000-pound towing capability.
The tested Grand Vitara was the Xsport model with the four-cylinder engine and four-wheel drive, which has a starting price of $24,149. The base Grand Vitara, with the five-speed manual gearbox and rear-drive, starts at $19,249. There's also a premium model between the base and the Xsport, as well as a top-of-the-line Luxury version.
To maximize interior space, the new Grand Vitara has its spare wheel mounted on the rear door, similar to that of the familiar first-generation Honda CR-V crossover utility vehicle.
As on the old CR-V, the rear door is hinged on the right side and opens from the left, which is wrong for American and other motorists who drive on the right side of the road. It means that you wind up standing in traffic when you're loading cargo instead of loading from the curb.
Other than that, the Grand Vitara is a smooth piece of work. It's quiet on the highway, with little wind or mechanical noise. The front bucket seats, covered in a sturdy cloth on the Xsport model, are supportive and comfortable, and the back seat, with seatbacks that recline, can accommodate three passengers with plenty of knee and head room, as long as they're not too portly.
The Xsport, with its standard motorized glass sunroof, has 99 cubic feet of passenger space -- about the same as a mid-size sedan -- as well as 24 cubic feet of cargo space, or more than twice that of many mid-size sedans.
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
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