Suzuki Grand Vitara |
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Wikipedia: Suzuki Vitara
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History
The following section is an excerpt from Wikipedia's Suzuki Vitara page on 2 October 2019, text available via the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
The Suzuki Vitara is a compact SUV produced by Suzuki in four generations since 1988. The second and third generation models were known as the Suzuki Grand Vitara, with the fourth and current series eschewing the "Grand" prefix. In Japan and a number of other markets, all generations have used the name Suzuki Escudo.
Second generation (1998–2005)
Suzuki announced the second-generation model on 18 January 1998 for 1999. Slightly larger, pricier and more powerful, it used a light-duty automobile-type rack-and-pinion steering box instead of the recirculating ball truck unit used in the first generation. The three-door version remained in the mini SUV class while the five-door version moved up to a compact SUV. In most international markets, the name "Grand Vitara" was adopted. In many markets it was originally only available with larger (two litres and up) engines while the earlier Vitara was still available with smaller engines. In the United Kingdom, a 1.6-litre Grand Vitara (the GV1600) arrived in early 2001.
It was facelifted in for 2002 and again in 2004. A rebadged version was sold in North America by General Motors as the Chevrolet Tracker. The Tracker is sold in Latin America - excluding Mexico - as Chevrolet Grand Vitara. In Mexico, Grand Vitara and Tracker are different vehicles, sold by Suzuki and Chevrolet respectively. In Chile, the five-door Grand Vitara was known as Grand Nomade. In Japan, an OEM deal with Mazda meant that the wagon was also sold as the Mazda Proceed Levante.
As of 2003, the smaller Suzuki Vitara has been withdrawn from the North American market. Sales were slow, with just 4,860 sold in 2004 for the United States. In Canada, sales were strong. All North American Vitaras were built at CAMI Automotive in Ingersoll, Ontario and in the Riverside facilities. The soft-top was only built in North America, with European export models assembled in Canada. The three-door wagon was brought in from Japan for European buyers and sold alongside the Canadian-made convertibles. The 2001 model Suzuki Grand Vitara comes standard as a 2.0-litre 4WD vehicle in New Zealand.
Third generation (2005–present)
An all new redesigned Grand Vitara (called Escudo in some markets) was introduced for the 2005 model year. The third generation received significant changes over the outgoing model. The ladder-frame construction was replaced with unibody construction which featured a unique built-in ladder frame to improve stiffness and ground clearance while also reducing the floor height. The outgoing model's front MacPherson strut suspension was retained while the rear solid axle was replaced with a fully independent multi-link suspension. Depending on the market, engine options included a 1.6L inline four (125 hp), 2.0L inline four (156 hp), 2.7L V6 (185 hp) and a 1.9L Renault-sourced diesel engine (127 hp).
The engine and transmission are longitudinally mounted unlike most front-wheel drive based compact SUVs in its class. Engines are available with either a 5-speed manual or 5-speed automatic transmission. The Grand Vitara is available in both rear-wheel drive only models (for the Australian market) or with a 4-mode all-wheel drive system.
The most widely available Escudo is the 5-door version, but a three-door version is also available in some markets. In some markets the three-door variant drops the "Grand" to be branded simply "Vitara". In some countries, including Chile the 5-door version is named "Grand Nomade".
A commonly held misconception is that the third generation Grand Vitara is related to the GM Theta platform. The two are completely unrelated and were developed separately by GM and Suzuki and share no components.
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| Date | Document Name & Details | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| 4 April 2003 | Safety Compliance Testing for FMVSS 201U: Occupant Protection in Interior Impact, Upper Interior Head Impact Protection 2003 Suzuki Grand Vitara XL National Highway Traffic Safety Administration |  PDF - 3.3MB - 171 pages |
| classified date 2005 | Special Crash Investigation Report Case Vehicle: 2000 Suzuki Grand Vitari, 4x4, 4-door SUV National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | PDF - 9.8MB - 126 pages |
| report date 1 September 2010 | NHTSA Recall 10V392000 2009-2010 Suzuki Equator, 2010 Suzuki Grand Vitara, 2008-2010 Suzuki SX4 EQUIPMENT:ELECTRICAL:NAVIGATIONAL SYSTEM(GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration | Recall Page - 1 page |
| Date | Article | Author/Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1 October 2007 | Brandgefahr bei Geländewagen von Suzuki  | Wikinews |
