5^th place : Suzuki Grand Vitara

The Grand Vitara was the biggest surprise of the day. Let's be honest: most of our testers did not give this Suzuki much of a chance prior to the start of our competition. Yet, it delivered astonishing comfort and off-road capabilities. In addition, its low price gave the Vitara a huge edge. Many were left dumbfounded.


The on-road performance of this SUV is hardly in the same class as the other, more premium models. The ride remains decent despite the fact that the powertrain is a bit short on power and fairly noisy when pushed.

On the way to Notre-Dame-de-la-Merci, the Grand Vitara showcased interesting handling and more than adequate comfort for a compact ute. Visibility all around is also worthy of praise, as is the easy access to all seating positions. The interior is surprisingly spacious for such a small vehicle.

In the trails, though, the Grand Vitara was handicapped by its limited ground clearance and lack of underbody skid plates. It was the only one to sink upon crossing a relatively intimidating river. The protective plastic plate under the engine was damaged and we had to resort to the mechanical skills of our colleague and former open-wheel driver Bertrand Godin to put it back in place, at least temporarily.


Despite these shortcomings, the 4WD system withstood the attacks on the sandy tracks and allowed the Grand Vitara to bravely earn the fifth place in our rankings.

"It's about the only compact SUV that includes low-range gearing, which is an advantage. Too bad its powertrain is not entirely up to the task: it's adequate but not impressive." - Michel Deslauriers