2016 Suzuki Vitara S Turbo 2WD Review – Straight To The Top Of The Shopping List
THE LAST TIME WE REVIEWED SUZUKI'S NEW VITARA, THE SUMMARY OF OUR ASSESSMENT WAS THIS: GOOD CAR, BUT SLOW. After all, 86kW and 156Nm really isn’t a whole lot of power and torque in this day and age.
But that criticism is gone - at least, if you’re shopping at the top end of the Vitara’s price range.
While that 86kW engine remains in the entry-level RT-S, the former top-grade RT-X model has been given the boot and replaced by this, the Suzuki Vitara S Turbo.
And, as the name suggests, there’s that magical device underneath the bonnet that helps little engines behave like big ones. Yes, thanks to the wonders of turbocharging, the Vitara now has the muscle it needed.
Vehicle Style: Small SUV
Price: $28,990 (plus on-roads)
Engine/trans: 103kW/220Nm 1.4 turbo petrol 4cyl | 6sp automatic
Fuel Economy claimed: 5.9 l/100km | tested: 7.5 l/100km
OVERVIEW
Perhaps as a response to early criticism of the Vitara’s underpowered 1.6 litre engine, just two months after the initial launch last September Suzuki Australia announced it would introduce a new turbocharged engine to the range.
That engine is now here, though only available in the top-spec Vitara S Turbo grade, which replaces the previous RT-X flagship.