Maruti Suzuki has been in the thick of action in 2022 when it comes to launching new cars into the market. The Indo-Japanese brand has launched many new offerings across all segments, including cars like the Alto, Baleno, Brezza, and XL6. The company has now reintroduced the Grand Vitara name to the market with a new compact SUV, one that comes with many engine and gearbox options. It is also the first car from the brand to get a strong hybrid model and the first in a long time to get an all-wheel drive option.
Design
The new Grand Vitara is built on the company’s new crafted futuristic design language and gets many premium as well as SUV design cues. This includes elements such as body cladding, roof rails, as well as skid plates. The highlight of the face is the triple LED headlamps, which certainly add to the appeal. The Strong Hybrid or the Intelligent Electric Hybrid gets a more premium, rich chrome finish on the grille and a glossy black finish on the cladding. Overall, the car looks quite big and commands a solid presence on the road, something that will work well for the buyer both in the urban as well as rural markets. The SUV gets 3 dual-tone and 6 monotone colour options, including the very popular Nexa Blue.
Interiors
The Grand Vitara is loaded with features, something that cannot be said about every car from Maruti Suzuki. Once again, it is the strong hybrid model that gets an enhanced appeal with exclusive features like wireless charging, head-up-display, and ventilated front seats. The SUV also gets features like a panoramic sunroof with dual sliding panes, a 360-degree parking camera, a Smart Play Pro+ infotainment system, and in-built Suzuki Connect technology, which comes with more than 40 connectivity features. The 2nd row is good on space, and 3 passengers can sit here in relative comfort. The good thing is that all three get adjustable headrests and, more importantly, 3-point seat belts. Talking about boot space, the smart hybrid model gets more volume as batteries eat up some of the space in the strong hybrid version of the car.
Engine
Both the smart hybrid and intelligent hybrid models of the Grand Vitara come with 1.5-litre petrol engines. The former runs on the familiar new-Gen K-series 1.5-litre, Dual Jet, Dual VVT petrol engine that does duty on many cars from Maruti Suzuki. It comes with a choice of 5-speed manual and 6-speed automatic transmission options, and here the brand is claiming a fuel efficiency of up to 21.11kmpl depending on the variant you choose to buy. This Smart Hybrid comes with a dual battery setup and offers brake energy regeneration, torque assist, and idle stop-start function.
The Intelligent Electric Hybrid gets a dual powertrain system, which includes an electric motor and a 1.5-litre engine. The self-charging SUV gets multiple drive modes (EV, Eco, Power, and Normal). This allows it to switch between the engine and electric drive modes. The setup also harnesses the power of both powertrains, depending on the driving situation. The SUV can also run as a pure EV, resulting in zero emissions. The model is available with an e-CVT transmission and delivers best-in-class fuel efficiency of 27.97 kmpl. It comes with a standard warranty of 8 years/160,000 km on the Li-ion battery pack.
The SUV also gets Suzuki’s All Grip Select technology, albeit only with the smart hybrid model and only with a manual gearbox. The electronically controlled All-Wheel Drive system comes with four selectable driving modes—Auto, Sport, Snow, and Lock. This enables the SUV to take the road less travelled and tide over challenging conditions.
Talking about safety, the car gets six airbags, which include front, side, and curtain airbags. It also gets an electronic stability program with hill hold assist and front and rear disc brakes across all variants. You also get safety features like hill descent control and a tyre pressure monitoring system on the SUV.
Prices
The smart or mild hybrid model of the Grand Vitara is priced between Rs. 10.45 lakh and 17.05 lakh, while the price of the intelligent electric hybrid ranges from Rs. 17.99 lakh to Rs. 19.65 lakh. The only All-wheel drive variant is priced at Rs. 16.89 lakh, all prices ex-showroom. Maruti says to encourage faster adoption of cleaner, greener hybrid electric vehicles in the country, the Grand Vitara strong hybrid gets a special introductory package consisting of an extended warranty till 5 years/1 lakh kms and a ‘Pristine’ accessory pack which is worth over Rs. 67,000. The SUV can also be owned through Maruti Suzuki Subscribe at an all-inclusive monthly subscription fee starting from Rs. 27,000. This fee covers the cost of complete registration, service and maintenance, insurance, and roadside assistance.
The author is a senior editor at carandbike.com.