Following the release of the updated 2013 Jimny last month, Suzuki has now given a mild facelift to its aging Grand Vitara that goes on sale in the United Kingdom this month as a 2013 model with prices starting from £15,995 for SZ3 1.6 litre 3 door version.
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The update brings some cosmetic tweaks on the outside and new design features on the inside to keep customers interested in the compact SUV that has started to show its age as the current model has been in production since 2005.
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We can only speculate what when wrong or what they could have done to prevent it – for example, we don't know if they had pulled the emergency brake and set the shifter in gear or whether they had placed any rocks under the front tires, but the result is that the Vitara rolled down the hill to its death.
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In order to keep customer interest high, Suzuki has launched a new model year version of the domestic market Grand Vitara, which is called Escudo in Japan.
On the outside, the subtle facelift brings a newly designed front grille with twin-bars in the shape of wings, a tweaked bumper that gains black trim, black headlamp bezels and new alloy wheel styles, while Suzuki also discarded the spare rear wheel on the tailgate and moved the license plate holder.
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It all happened this past Saturday at an official Nissan dealership in Moscow, Russia, with the entire scene being captured on film by a surveillance camera located inside the building.
We managed to find the preliminary Russian police report, which says the unnamed man left his car for repair on April 1, and came to pick it up on April 7.
"Showroom staff reported that the car is repaired, but after waiting several hours, the car owner did not see it," reads the (translated) report.
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The new Grand Vitara SZ-T is based on the five-door model and sports a different front grille and 18-inch alloy wheels, silver colored roof rails and bonnet side vents, built in turn signal lamps for the door mirrors and a tailgate mounted spare wheel.
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More than 32,000 Suzuki Grand Vitara and SX4 vehicles are being recalled in the United States over an improperly manufactured component of the tension adjuster pulley that could cause the drive belt to either slip or come off and lead to engine overheating or stalling. Suzuki said the recall concerns the 2009-2010 model year Grand Vitara SUVs equipped with 4-cylinder engines; 2011MY Grand Vitara vehicles produced prior to October 17, 2010; 2010MY SX4s and 2011MY SX4s manufactured before October 14, 2010.
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All in all, Suzuki sold a mere 1,878 cars and SUVs in August, down from 5,751 units the same month a year ago. The Japanese automaker says it has around 300 dealers in the U.S. If you do the math, that comes to a little over 6 vehicles sold per dealer in August... Here are some more details on the company's sales broken down model by model:
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The company said that it will offer the Kizashi with all-wheel drive as standard while power will be provided by the same 2.4-liter gasoline engine used on the N.A.-spec model.
The four-cylinder unit churns out 185 HP when linked to a six-speed manual gearbox and 178HP when mated to a CVT.
The Japanese maker is also planning to expand the Kizashi's range in the very near future with a more powerful V6 petrol engine as well as a hybrid version, though it is not clear if these variants will make it to Europe.
We don't know yet if it's technically feasible (and economically viable), but Suzuki's recent tie up with Volkswagen could see the Kizashi sedan being offered with a much-needed in Europe, diesel engine sourced from the German Group.
Together with the Kizashi, Suzuki will also display in Geneva the Swift Plug-in Hybrid that was first introduced at last fall's Tokyo Motor Show as well as new variants of the three-and five-door Grand Vitara with a redesigned rear hatch that does away with the spare tire box.
Completing its revised Grand Vitara line-up in the UK, Suzuki has introduced a new 1.9-liter DDiS turbo diesel engine to the five-door model range. The four-cylinder diesel unit produces 129HP at 3,750 rpm and 300Nm or 221 lb-ft of peak torque at 2,000 rpm launching the compact SUV from zero to 62mph (100 km/h) in 13.2 sec and on to a top speed of 106mph or 170 km/h.Suzuki said that CO2 emissions are reduced to 185g/km from 191g/km compared to the previous unit while the new model achieves 40.4mpg UK or 33.7mpg US / 7.0 lt per 100km on the combined cycle.
The new model is available in two different trim levels, the SZ4 and SZ5 grades, both of which come equipped with 18-inch alloy wheels, front fog lamps, in-dash 6CD changer with radio, MP3 audio-compatibility and seven speakers, heated leather seats and automatic climate control air conditioning as standard.
UK prices have been set at £17,975 OTR for the SZ4 and £19,475 OTR for the SZ5 trim.
After the launch of the facelifted Grand Vitara model range with the 166HP 2.4-litre engine in October 2008 (for details and photos, click here), Suzuki is now expanding its UK lineup with the addition of a 1.6L petrol and 1.9L diesel engine to the three-door model range. The 1.6-liter gasoline unit which is linked to a 5-speed manual gearbox, makes 106HP at 5,900 rpm and a peak torque of 145Nm at 4,100 rpm offering a 0 to 62mph (100km/h) sprint time of 14.4 sec and a top speed of 99mph or 159km/h. 
The entry-level petrol model that comes with a four-wheel drive system as standard achieves a combined fuel economy of 34.5mpg UK or 8.2lt/100km in the European cycle.S
The second addition to the Grand Vitara 3d lineup is the 1.9-liter DDiS diesel unit. that produces an output of 129 horsepower at 3,750 rpm and a maximum torque of 300Nm at 2,200 rpm. The four-wheel drive model accelerates from standstill to 62mph or 100km/h in 12.8 seconds and achieves a top speed of 106mph (170km/h) while returning 40.4mpg UK or 7.0lt/100km in the combined European cycle.
As with the rest of the range, both models feature a revised front end treatment and new door mirrors with integrated turn indicators while interior changes include a new multi-information display and revised air conditioning control panel.
In the UK, the 1.6-litre three-door manual is priced from £13,600 while the 1.9 DDiS diesel starts from £16,200.
Suzuki has joined forces with surf wear and equipment brand O'Neill to introduce a special edition version of the Escudo SUV (we know it as the Grand Vitara) exclusively for the Japanese market. Based on the 2.4L XG model and available in a limited run of 600 units, the Escudo 'ONeil' is offered in three exterior paint jobs (black, blue and white) with matching interior trim. O'Neill badges aside, the limited edition Escudo's features include waterproof seat fabrics and floor mats, gunmetal-gray alloy wheels, chrome grille, skid panels in a matt aluminum finish and upgraded standard equipment. 
In one of their television flicks, Top Gear trio Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard -I love Rod Stewart's 1980s spiky hairpiece- Hammond create a fleet of police cars in their own unique way. The cars of their choice are a previous generation Lexus LS, a Suzuki Vitara 4x4 and a Fiat Coupe. Hit the jump and enjoy the two-part video. 
Marking the celebrations for the 20 years of the Vitara and Grand Vitara models, Suzuki launched the facelifted version of its latest generation compact SUV in Europe this week. The 2009 Grand Vitara which is available in both three and five-door body styles, features subtle styling tweaks and most importantly, a new 2.4-litre petrol engine matted to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 4-speed automatic transmission that replaces the 2.0-liter unit. -ContinuedBoth the exterior and interior of the 2009 Grand Vitara have been given a mild facelift that includes a slightly revised front end treatment with and new door mirrors with integrated turn indicators. Inside the cabin sports new chrome and wood-effect inlays, together with improvements to the design and operation of some of the dashboard controls, including a new multi-information display and revised air conditioning control panel.
The new flagship model in the European Grand Vitara range is equipped with a 2.4-liter 4-cylinder engine developed from the 140 HP 2.0-litre petrol unit that it replaces. In the 3-door model, the 2.4L engine delivers an output of 166 HP while in the five-door model, 169 HP. When matted to the standard five-speed manual gearbox, the three-door Grand Vitara 2.4 accelerates from standstill to 100 km/h (62mph) in 11.2 sec (5d: 11.7 sec) and goes on to a top speed of 180 km/h or 112 mph.
Though standard equipment differs from country to country, the Grand Vitara 2.4 will be offered in most markets with ESP, 17 (3d) or 18 (5d) inch alloy wheels, electrically-operated glass sun-roof (5d), in-dash 6CD player with MP3 compatibility, and leather seats (5d) as standard.
