Suzuki Vitara S 1.4 turbo petrol review - pictures

Suzuki Vitara S 1.4 Turbo Petrol, available from December 2015

The Suzuki Vitara is a very easy car to like. It’s handsome, built to last and represents rather good value for money.

There is plenty of kit as standard. You get sat-nav, Bluetooth, a reversing camera, adaptive cruise control, air conditioning, a DAB radio and LED headlamps.

The 1.4 turbo may be the smallest engine available in the Vitara but it’s the most powerful and provides that injection of performance that has been missing. 

Whereas the 1.6 petrol engine needs revs to access its power, the downsized 1.4 turbo picks up far quicker lower down in the rev range, meaning more accessible performance.

It comes paired with Suzuki’s ALLGRIP all-wheel drive as standard and a six-speed manual gearbox.

This 1.4 turbo derivative will do 52mpg with CO2 emissions of 127g/km

The extra yard of pace from the turbo is immediately noticeable, especially when you’re accelerating out of slower corners and tackling inclines.

So some key issues have been resolved in the turbocharged Vitara S and, as a result, the car is much more relaxing to drive.

On the motorway the engine is hushed, while the ride is just as compliant as it was before, shrugging off the worst of the road imperfections. 

This engine is only going to be available in the Vitara S so expect to fork out around £21,000 to get your hands on it, although official pricing has yet to be confirmed.