Wheeling the Grand Vitara has been a mixed bag. On the plus side, we've flogged it over plenty of dirt trails, desert washes, and sand dunes, and with its light weight, nimble turning radius and free-revving engine, the Suzuki performs like a champ-just punch low-range Third gear, rev her close to redline, and have a rally-car blast all day. (Best to have a strap and a shovel along anyway-while the Suzuki's traction control system is quite responsive on loose surfaces, the diffs, alas, remain open.)
That said, the GV is not quite up to more severe trail duty, which we observed first-hand on its maiden run at our recent Death Valley trek. The same ride and handling manners it exhibits on pavement made it fun to wheel, and easy to drift, in the rocky sluices of Echo Canyon. But with fewer than 8 inches of ground clearance, no standard skidplating (an optional 'plate is available from Suzuki, which we'll install at our first dealer service), and grabby Yoko Geolandars flinging rocks and pebbles throughout our undercarriage, by trail's end we'd managed to punch a neat little hole in our oilpan, retiring the GV from the remainder of our trip. Though the real moral of this story is "Don't drive so fast next time, boss," we'd caution against piloting this low-slung rig over the rocky stuff-at least not aggressively.
Rock bashing aside, we'll heap praises upon the Grand Vitara for its high degree of user-friendliness and its commendable fit and finish. Suzuki has raised the quality bar with each new generation of this platform, and the latest GV is no exception. An added bonus, to our minds, is its bang-for-the-buck price structure. Suzuki only offers three option packages for the GV, and for a base of only $20,399, you pretty much get the works: A/C, power everything, remote entry, 12V powerpoints, Brubaker-endorsed XM-ready stereo, and 7-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. Everything and the kitchen sink, in other words. We'll keep logging the street and trail miles, and we'll return in a few months with another update.