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Suzuki Grand Vitara (2005 and earlier)

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Comments

  • ashutoshsmashutoshsm Member Posts: 1,007
    My Mazda Protege (amazing car) was mildly damaged in a no-fault fender-bender, and the insurance company arranged a rental car for me - I ended up with a Suzuki Grand vitara V6, 2000, 4WD with 1200 miles on it. I know that rental cars are not usually in the best condition all the time, as people do not drive them well - despite the rental companies' efforts to keep them in good shape - but here are my impressions anyway.

    This is by far the most powerless V6 I have ever driven - for the amount of power it does deliver, it is a gas guzzler!
    Ride quality is quite disappointing compared to a mitsubishi montero I rented recently, which had even more miles on it
    The feel, build, quality and performance do not even begin to compare to the newer crop of vehicles - particularly the Mazda Tribute and Ford Escape (am i right in understanding these are in the same class as the GV)
    The price apparently is as high as that for the Montero, Tribute etc.
    Lots of niggling vibrations and knocks and rattles
    Rear leg room is ridiculously little - got to be less comfy than even a tiny two-door hatchback.

    As such, I wonder what leads to so many people having bought this car (I see a fair number of GVs on the roads) - considering the price, which is comparable to what I feel are better-value small-SUVs

    Do I just have a real lemon from the rental company - but some isues are constants - low power, gas guzzling, small rear seat etc?

    Just curious to see what people's experiences are - I am considering buying a small-SUV ina few months and am eliminating possibilities - I am really stuck on the Mazda Tribute for now, waiting for the second model year when they typically iron out the first year recall/defects!

    -ashutosh
  • dgrzybowdgrzybow Member Posts: 8
    I know this is a Suzuki site but since the Tracker and the Vitara are so similar I thought someone here might help. I have a new 2001 Chevy Tracker LT. It runs great solid no vibration. I do notice a slight sing in the 4wd shifter. This goes away when I shift into 4wd but is noticeable in 2wd at about 40-50 mph. It's not real loud but I do notice it. Has anyone else experienced this? I like to know because I'm sure they'll tell me that all of them make this noise.

    Thanks Dave
  • dimensionerdimensioner Member Posts: 5
    Dave, when you go to the dealer and they give the line that they all do, take them up on the challenge. Ask to go for a ride in another one on the lot so they can show how they all do it. They will most likely change their story. What do you mean by singing. All the vibration problems happen at the same speeds as you indicated. Most people with the vibration problems call it a hum, a low toned one. Some people have had a wine coming out of their rear transfer case and have gotten it fixed. Maybe this is what you are hearing?

    Chris Murphy
  • dgrzybowdgrzybow Member Posts: 8
    Hi Chris,
    It took me awhile to figure out that the noise I was hearing is coming from the transfer case shifter. It sounds like a Heater fan on a very low setting.(only makes noise when moving) If I shift into 4wd the noise goes away. It's not that bad, but the rest of the truck is very quite and I do notice this. If I move the shifter slightly forward without shifting into 4wd the noise is amplified.

    Thanks, Dave
  • newdriver2newdriver2 Member Posts: 68
    I have the Escape and Grand Vitara in my mind but i am not sure which one is better for me to buy. Can anyone help me or give me some advice?
  • wcm_houstonwcm_houston Member Posts: 1
    There were two reasons why we purchased a Tracker 2001 LT, price and value. (I know this is a Grand Vitara site.)

    We got a small SUV, body on a frame (not uni-body), rear wheel drive, which means never having to replace CV boots or joints at about $250.00 a side, chain driven cams, (no timing belt replacement at about $300.00 every 60,000 miles)body cladding, shielded gas tank, etc., for a drive out price of 19.3 which included, tax and title, and all the other fees, too. I know a Honda with similar features couldn't even come close to it in price.

    As far at the V-6 is concerned, it is nothing to write home about. It is a whimpy 6, and it does gas milage is 20-21. But considering you will never have to replace a timing belt on it and that its first scheduled maintenance is at 100,000 miles, you save quite a few bucks.

    So far after owning it for 4 weeks, everything works great. The ride is smooth, the tracker is stable at high speeds. No vibrations.

    It is small, but it is hard to find a SUV built like a truck at its price.
  • rhb8rhb8 Member Posts: 1
    you mentioned an improvement by Michelin M/S tires on the GV. Can you give a model type and size? I'm still under warranty, but sure want to get away from those slick things that come with the vehicle (snow's coming)!
    Thanks
  • cosmo2cosmo2 Member Posts: 61
    As I have written earlier, my wife rented a GV auto for a weekend after we had owned our 1999 Tracker 4-door manual for over a year. Talk about affirmation of a wise purchase. All that #273 said about the GV is true. However, #278, the 2.0L 4 banger has all the advantages of the V6 without guzzling gas, and it has torque at lower RPM's than the V6. The Vitara/Tracker unit is a good small utility vehicle (forget sport), but the GV add-on's degrade the basic design. It looks like Chevrolet is bent on following Suzuki's bad example with the V6. I hope Chevrolet does not make the same mistakes with the suspension/tire add-on's and the ugly cladding. The basic unit is the best small four door FWD utility vehicle on the market until Jeep adds two more doors, a real back seat, and a real cargo area to the Wrangler. The car-based mini-utes are just ugly alternatives to Subaru Legacy and Audi station wagons.
  • vitarafreakvitarafreak Member Posts: 9
    Yo Cosmo 2. Go to see your Zukini Vitara dealer and right after that go to Chevy man and drive ZR2. I drove one and I like it even more than LT or Zukini GV. Not to mention looks of it. Insides are almost identical, both are made in Canada CAMMI plant by now anyway( some of GVs come from Japan). The only thing I do not like is a ZR2 decal on the doors, hair dryer and thats it in couple minutes. It would be very easy. I done it to three trackers before.
  • vitarafreakvitarafreak Member Posts: 9
    Yo Cosmo 2. Go to see your Zukini Vitara dealer and right after that go to Chevy man and drive ZR2. I drove one and I like it even more than LT or Zukini GV. Not to mention looks of it. Insides are almost identical, both are made in Canada CAMMI plant by now anyway( some of GVs come from Japan). The only thing I do not like is a ZR2 decal on the doors, hair dryer and thats it in couple minutes. It would be very easy. I done it to three trackers before.
  • vitarafreakvitarafreak Member Posts: 9
    Sounds like a winner. 2.7 l engine, longer wheelbase. Maybe my love for Chevy ZR 2 is over, who knows????
  • zane7zane7 Member Posts: 1
    I was at the Phoenix auto show yesterday and saw the jx-7. Anyone seen one at a dealership in phoenix?
  • vmk1vmk1 Member Posts: 1
    The new model is on the Suzuki website now.
    My first impression is that it looks great.
    So far my only complaint with my 99 would be if there was only a little more room in the back.
    This new model looks interesting.
  • casey38casey38 Member Posts: 7
    I am interested in the new suzuki xl 7 My family is skeptical about suzuki products. They claim it will fall apart in three years and I will be disappointed. The saleslady I talked to said they are great cars and rarely come in for service. Anyone out there have any experience with this
  • big_guybig_guy Member Posts: 372
    I had a '93 Suzuki Sidekick JLX (the 4-door hardtop). I had it for 7 years and besides regular maintenance (oil, lube, filter) I had to replace the tires twice and had to replace a water pump. It was a great vehicle. It traveled very well in the snow and performed well off-road as well. It never developed any rattles or squeaks . . . although the wind noise was pretty high at freeway speeds. I would probably still own it except I now have 3 children and the '93 Sidekick only had 4 seatbelts so I traded it in on a mini-van.
  • vitarafreakvitarafreak Member Posts: 9
    Casey38, I had three Geo Trackers so far. They are made on same assembly line as Suzuki. The only big repair on two of them was replacement of timing belts after 68000 miles on first one and 63000 miles on second one.The third 1996 Geo 4 dr is still without any service and under warranty. There is a lot of people making comments and most of them never had one. See for yourself the ratings in Consumer Reports. Go for it, I am waiting for ZR2 to be more available so I could push for a good deal.
  • pocahontaspocahontas Member Posts: 802
    Here's the direct link to Edmund's First Drive of the 2001 Suzuki Grand Vitara XL-7, By Karl Brauer. Good review. What do you think? ;-)

    Pocahontas,
    Edmunds.com/Roving Host
  • dmac8dmac8 Member Posts: 54
    I'm pre-disposed to buy this truck because of the spec., body on frame, V6, true 4WD etc.

    After reading a lot of the posts on this board, my wife and I drove one. It happened to be a 00 Limited, with 1400 miles on the clock.

    When I started it up, there was a loud ticking from the engine, Sales guy said it was because it had sat on the lot for several days. His response told me this question had been posed to him by someone else.

    Fair enough, we drove it, it warmed up and the noise was still there. To drown it out required the radio on pretty high, or the AC and fan at a high setting. Goofy move to put a prospect in a vehicle with problems he already knows of.

    Other observations from the low speed test drive were the vague feeling steering, choppy ride and much less oomph than one would expect from the V6.

    Overall, the truck appears to be really well made. Some of the handling and ride issues are, IMHO, facts of life with a short body on frame vehicle.

    The only other vehicle we will consider in this class is the RAV 4, which we have yet to drive. Aside from the Toyota price premium, it carries the reliability reputation.

    I have a 5 year old Toyota Landcruiser which has been almost flawless. As that is also body on frame, I'm familiarr with what to expect in terms of minor rattles etc. However, it is quiet at high speeds and there is very little wind noise.

    Question is, can you expect to put a lot of miles on the Grand Vitara without the host of problems on this board (RAV 4 board is much more positive).

    Thanks
  • indianakohindianakoh Member Posts: 8
    I'm not sure about the Limited that you drove (the situation seems suspect. Was it a demo car?) but I think the major issues dealing with vibration and steering have been resolved with the 2001 model. I have a 2001 CAMI truck with 5000 miles so far and there are no hints of any vibration. You have to remember even Toyota and Mazda/Ford are having major problems with their new generation mini-utes (look at the 2001 Rav4 discussion and read the papers about the windshield wiper breakdowns and fuel leakage problems on the Tribute/Escape).

    You're right about some of the "shortcomings" being inherent. However, even these have flipsides (e.g. The gas mileage is decent and parking is a breeze). If you can live with these things, I think the GV will be an enjoyable car that lasts you a long time.

    On a side note, the CAMI plant (I guess this doesn't pertain to the Limited and XL-7) is already "legendary" in the GM world. I have a friend who is a GM engineer and he tells me that the main reason GM agreed to the CAMI cooperative was so they could see how Suzuki makes cars and implement some of these ideas themselves (it definitely was not for financial reasons b/c they're losing money on it). My friend works for Cadillac and they're redesigning ALL their models from the ground up with many manufacturing ideas "borrowed" from Suzuki. While Toyota is still the industry standard, I think engineers agree that some companies, like Suzuki, are not too far behind.

    AJK
  • dmac8dmac8 Member Posts: 54
    Thanks for the response.

    I like to keep vehicles for a long time and add on the miles. To accomplish that, I recognize good maintenance is critical.

    I have an 86 Acura Legend with 149,000 and one of the reasons I keep spending money on it is the fact that people have these vehicles with in excess of 400,000 miles.

    The Grand Vitara strikes me as a robust little vehicle that seems like it should hold up. With normal preventative maintenance, can you get 150,000 trouble free miles?

    This is pretty much a given with most Toyota and certainly Honda products. If you contemplate that sort of life cycle, the upfront cost advantages are not significant.

    Thanks
  • spinynorman1spinynorman1 Member Posts: 2
    My wife and I purchase a new 1997 Suzuki Sport Sidekick JLX and have had nothing but trouble. At
    32,000 miles the engine slowly began self destructing necessitating a new short block at $3200 plus labor. Now at 72,000 miles, the auto tranny just blew up. The vehicle has been maintained at levels exceeding the manufacturer's recommendations (all my cars and trucks have gone at least 250,000 miles with NO problems under my ministrations: current truck, a 1987 GMC Jimmy, has 301,000 and is still going strong). Dealership Suzuki techs are undertrained. Parts are horribly expensive. The warranty period is woefully inadequate. Suzuki had little to say after a detailed complaint was filed. We wisely purchased a third party extended warranty when we bought the vehicle, and it has paid for itself five times over before the current tranny problem. Get any perceived problem diagnosed IMMEDIATELY! It will likely save you a bundle. I hope you all don't have the same problems we had. Good luck if you already have one!
  • pootypiepootypie Member Posts: 13
    Although this is the GV site, I thought someone
    might be able to help me diagnose the source of a
    squeak in my 95 4wd 4dr. Sidekick JLX. There is
    a sqeaking noise coming from the left front whenever I drive the car in cold weather. It goes away after a time, and hasn't seemed that serious but I would like to know what it is. I never hear the noise in warmer months. By the way, I love this
    little truck. It's been very reliable, great in snow, comfortable and with the five speed, has
    some spunk. I want something a little bigger and
    more powerful, so I'm opting for an Xterra now, but
    the Sidekick has been a great little vehicle for
    me.
  • bofeybofey Member Posts: 1
    I also bought the Suzuki Grand Vitara Limited. I was a little above the $20,000 mark when the included accessories of floormats, bumper guards, and mud flaps were included. I researched many of the competitors and nothing compared to the Suzuki. The Suzuki is definitely the best kept secret around. I have previously driven Honda and Toyotas and the fit and finish is on par with these vehicles.
  • rbalkrbalk Member Posts: 15
    There is a eGroups mailing list for the Suzuki
    Grand Vitara owners. You are welcome to subscribe.
    Only you can do is just send an email to
    suzukigrandvitara-subscribe@egroups.com with blank
    subject and message and then you are automatically
    subscribed. You can click www.egroups.com and
    see for yourself.
    Good Luck and enjoy this mailing list.
  • orlyorly Member Posts: 5
    I just got a 2000 GV. It's very noisy when idling, dealer recommended using 20W50 oil, because the GV engine runs very hot. Says it's the lifters that have sediment on them. I never heard of a passenger car using 20W50... but, it's still under warranty...

    Other than that, I love it. Besides, the rear seat is perfect for mounting a rear facing car seat with a base!

    I had an '89 Sidekick JLX, and put 185K miles, and was still going strong when sold.
  • moe54moe54 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2000 Vitara(not Grand). Recently when I depressed the clutch pedal, there was a "knock" that I felt in the pedal. This came on suddenly, no previous noise. My husband had me move the gear shift around and depress the pedal while he observed inside engine compartment. Nothing unusual. The next day the noise was gone. Help!
  • woody72woody72 Member Posts: 73
    Interesting that the '01 Tracker (4 cyl) manual emphasizes not to use 20W50. I use 10W40 but I don't know why they don't recommend 20W50. If my mechanical knowledge serves me right on an overhead cam (both 4 and 6 cyl) you don't have lifters, the cam lobes move directly on the rocker arm. Don't know why your idle is noisey other than in general these engines are noisey. Mine is noisier above 3000 rpm. I'd get another opinion. In case you are unaware Chevy Trackers are Suzukis.
  • lynnewin24lynnewin24 Member Posts: 2
    I recently rented a 2000 Grand Vitara - and enjoyed driving it a lot so I decided to buy a 2001 Grand Vitara Limited. Haven't picked it up yet. The price, including tax, was $22,627.00. Is this a good deal? Which warranty does anyone recommend. I have most recently owned Saturn's which I found very reliable. Noticed the steering and brakes aren't the greatest on the GV but like sitting up high and the price tag isn't too much more than my Saturn SW2. Any advice would be appreciated.
  • woody72woody72 Member Posts: 73
    Consider looking at the Tracker. It has 2 models with a V6. GM has (or maybe had) a generous rebate on these. Check Chevy's web site under current offers. I bought a '01 Tracker in mid Dec and received a $2000 rebate which I believe ran out Jan 15, but GM has been known to extend these. I initially was looking at Suzuki but settled on the Chevy because of the price and the fact that these vehicles are identical except for standard/optional equipment. Good luck
  • lynnewin24lynnewin24 Member Posts: 2
    Thanks for the info. I've already bought the Grand Vitara Limited though. No complaints so far!
  • christa824christa824 Member Posts: 17
    I have a 1995 Sidekick. At about the same miles, I had to put an entire manual transmission. It just started sounding like an airplane taking off one day. Last October, at about 98,000 miles, I had to put a new clutch and some other parts of the transmission on. I am on my third clutch (including the one that came new on the car).I am not hard on the transmission, I have been told that I am actually easy on it compared to other MT drivers. I also agree about the warranty. It just happens that everything happens right after the deadlines. Also, both of my headlights went out at the same time and both tailights went out at the same time. According to the dealership "nothing was wrong with my electrical system". I am very dissapointed in this vehicle. I had intentions on keeping it for longer when I bought it, but my husband and I are looking for other types of SUVs now.
  • guillermo3guillermo3 Member Posts: 4
    I had a 1977 Suzuki Sidekick. It was the best car I ever had. I put over 100.000 miles of abuse on the car. And it always responded reliably. I live in Florida, so my recreational driving is in the Everglades. And I mean it when I say "IN". My sidekick's button saw the mud and water on a regular bases. Often, driving through grassy marshes, I hit rocks that stopped the car. There was no damage ever. When I got stock in the mud, the larger vehicles that came to tow me had to stop at about 100 yards from my car or they would get stock. Most larger vehicles would get stock much sooner than the Sidekick.
    I always heard that the Sidekick is unstable. I never felt that it was. Once, Driving through Alligator Alley, I hit a deep, but narrow hole as I was changing lanes. At about 75 Miles per hour, the front right tire came off the wheel. The car suddenly skidded. I did not manage to get control on time, so By the time the car was going straight again, I was driving on the grass, on the right side of the road. The problem is that that grass is on a 45 degree incline and there is a marsh on the bottom. As the car was tilted 45 degrees , following the grassy incline, it started skidding , rotating the back towards the right. I recover control when the car was going backwards. Knowing that my front tire was gone, I was happy to go backwards. Eventually, the car stopped. We were inside the marsh, in water and mud to the bottom of the doors. But the car had not stalled. The engine was still running. I shifted to 4WD low, and drove out of the marsh and up the grassy ramp (about 3 floors up). The people that saw us going down could not believe that we were alive. They took us out of the car and checked us up from head to toe. We knew that we were OK. Thanks to the Suzuki, we were unscratched. Afterwards, My wife and I talked about how we never felt like the car was going to flip over, even though we both expected it. We also realized that if we had been in another car, the towing cost to get the car out of the marsh would have been considerable.
    So, When I decided to replace the Sidekick, what kind of car would I choose?
    A GRAND VITARA!!!!
  • guillermo3guillermo3 Member Posts: 4
    When I went to exchange my Sidekick for a new Grand Vitara., I was a little upset. I liked the roughness of my Sidekick. The Grand Vitara. seemed more like a luxury car than like a real SUB. So, I went to Honda and via dealerships. The via dealership didn't even have a 4 wheel drive vehicle. I was told that SUB drivers don't really want or need 4WD. So, I left. Taking a quick look at the Honda was enough for me. It is not an SUB. It is a car that pretends to be an SUB. I thought of checking the Toyotas, but I knew that the RAV4 is not a real 4WD either. So, I read all the specifications of the Grand Vitara. and figure that it still is a real SUB trying to pass for a car. So, I bought a Grand Vitara. I just hope that it will be as good as my Sidekick.
    So far, I like the way it rides. I am used to the carder suspension of the Sidekick. But I'll get used to the softer suspension. I like to feel the road. When I wanted a soft suspension, I bought an Oldsmobile. It was like an airplane on the freeway. My Suzuki should let me feel the road.
    I normally carry children on the back seat. So, I don't find the back to be small. Actually, my Sidekick was smaller. Smaller is better. If I wanted a large vehicle I would buy a Durango, a MC, or some other bulky, heavy, hard to park absurd vehicle.
    My Suzuki does not make any noises while I drive. I do hear the wind at high speed, and that is fine with me. I never heard the wind in my Old.
    The acceleration is more than fine. I get to 60 in about 10 seconds. In other words, I am the first one out of the traffic light or the tall plaza. When I wanted more acceleration I bought sport cars. But since I left my twenties I stopped desiring that thrill. What matters to me now is that I can pass easily at speeds under 75 MPH.
    I think that the complaints about acceleration and roughness that the reviewers are giving the Suzuki are leading Suzuki to go in the wrong direction. My brother just bought a 14 year old Samurai and I am jealous. He drove it up stairs that were almost like a wall. Perhaps I'll get one of those too. I hope Suzuki does not go the luxury way. Those of us who like rough small, gas efficient cars need Suzuki.
    A complaint about the Grand Vitara. is that it gives me only 19 MPG. The Sidekick delivered 22MPG in heavy traffic.
  • clarkartclarkart Member Posts: 1
    We purchased a 2000 Grand Vitara (V-6 plus 5 speed manual) in October 2000. Driven daily as freeway commuter (100 miles roundtrip); very little start and stop town driving except for weekends. Comming up on 10K miles and have developed an engine knock that sounds like a wrist pin/rod knock to me. Have to listen closely to hear it, but it is there. Seems to be most pronounced when engine is warm. Never heard this knock until our first oil change at "Jiffy Lube" and were advised (by "Jiffy Lube" to use their premium half petrolium and half synthetic oil). The Suzuki manual did not advise against this half/half oil combo; so I felt relatively safe in using it. Has anyone else experienced this faint rod knock sound? This SUV has never been driven hard. Driven daily at a consistent speed of 65 to 75 mph. I have only gotten into the throttle a few times and never touched redline.
  • woody72woody72 Member Posts: 73
    Yikes, that kind of noise would scare me too. I have the 2.0 I4 with 3K miles and although the engine is generally noisey I haven't experienced a specific knock. It seems unlikely the oil change could be responsible, although I haven't heard of mixing petrol base and synthetic even though they are compatible. Change back to your usual oil and see if the noise goes away, if not I would take it to a good foreign auto mechanic and have him listen with a auto stethoscope and with that info see your Suzuki service manager. Good luck, keep us posted.

    I just installed from GM accessories a quality made skid plate package which included a large front plate and a long narrow transfer case plate, both from heavy gauge steel. This design is much better than Suzuki accessories plate which hangs down from the frame with brackets. GM's bolts directly to the frame. It fits from '99, 2 dr. and 4 dr., 2 and 4wd.
  • houstonmanhoustonman Member Posts: 11
    While driving the 2001 V-6 Tracker, made by Suzuki, the third to fourth gear shift in the automatic transmission seems to shift into a neutral position, then goes into fourth gear. This has happened twice in the last month. It will go into neutral for maybe 1 second. When I mean neutral, I mean the engine will increase in RPM, like it is out of gear, then with a clunk the transmision will active again and will be in fourth gear. Has anyone had experiences with this? The vehicle is 5 months old with 6,000 miles on it.
  • hhlshhls Member Posts: 10
    I was close to buying a 2001 CR- EX, Automatic, including dest chg. $19,670, but I'm not completely convinced to go with Honda. I've been seeing the Grand Vitara around and now I'm in the process of researching it and learning more about it. Can anyone share info they've learned by comparing the CR-V to the Grand Vitara? I lean toward Honda because of the reputation for reliability, but the GV seems to be a great value... Thanks in advance for your comments.
  • guillermo3guillermo3 Member Posts: 4
    If you like a car that looks like an SUV, the honda is probably better than the Suzuki. Although I have heard and read that the Forrester is better as a car-like SUV than the honda.
    If you plan to get off the road, the Suzuki is the only small alternative.
    I had a Sidekick for three years and gave it 100,000 miles. Now I have a Grand vitara. In 7 weeks I have added about 4000 miles to it. It seems perfectly fine.
    Overall, I would not buy any thing other than a Suzuki.
  • ibtissamibtissam Member Posts: 1
    I am in the process of shopping for a new car

    I really like the GV
    I was offered one for $18000 with 13000 miles
    I would trade my Mazda 94 with 50.000 miles for $3500
    is it a good deal
    please some advice on what goes wrong with NV and if it would last for 100.000 headache free
    thanks for your respond
  • andgieandgie Member Posts: 1
    I need to buy a new car and was looking at basically everything, when I fell in love with the GV. I think I got a really good deal on it. The only thing that is holding me back is that I dont know anything about Suzuki.I dont know anyone that has owned one before either. I was also considering the Rav4 but got disgusted with Toyota and its lack of standard options. Any help or comments would be greatly appreciated.
  • houstonmanhoustonman Member Posts: 11
    I would tell a HELP!! to read the Chevy Tracker Town Hall comments. Eventhough Suzuki makes both GV and Tracker, the Chevy is cheaper due to rebates.
  • mjordan3mjordan3 Member Posts: 1
    In spite of all the P*#$@#g & Moaning I hear about this vehicle from the "Acura driving press review types", having owned this thing since August 2K has made me realize what a gem of a car (ooopps) SUV this is. I mean its really neat, and unique. I have never had problems with it, and it behaves itself perfectly in all ways. Gas mileage could be better - but it beats the heck out of the cookie cutter mold of the Honda, Toyota and whatever else we're hip to drive around town and 'Oh, look what i've got parked in MY driveway' crowd.

    Therefore, in certain terms, I highly recommend this understated ride to the discriminating dude or dudess who wants things a bit different when the V6 mill is 'fired off', subsiquently followed by unplanned urban vehicular adventures to the local shopping mall followed closely by a torturious trek to the fast food joint drive thru. Its even good enough for five hour drives back and forth to Florida - In sumptious leather decor wrapped comfort I might add, y'all! Henceforth, thinking about buying one are you? . . .well go ahead - you'll have no worries at all.
  • 88218821 Member Posts: 2
    very disappointed w/ performance of gv in snow. I had a near mishap, & my wife slid into a snowbank 2 weeks ago. gv feels "out of control" in certain conditions that cars are doing fine in. traction very poor-rear end fishtails easily. called body shop to check out status of repairs, & there were 2 other gv's in there!!!
    Bought this for winters in ne pa, but will be getting rid of come next winter. feel much more comfortable in 2wd subaru legacy. what's the use of 4wd if vehicle is too light-what i'm hearing now.
    need to hear from others on how their gv reacted in slippery conditions.this thing is a MAJOR disappointment!!
  • orlyorly Member Posts: 5
    My 2000 GV V6 has 24K miles. Around 20K miles i started to hear a similar knock. Dealer said it was sediment in lifters, but I didn't think so.

    Took to another dealer, who actually inspected it and determined that a timing belt tensioner had come off, and was knocking around in there. They ordered the part, and replaced it at no cost (under warranty!).
  • roseb1roseb1 Member Posts: 2
    I PURCHASED A GV 7 MONTHS AGO. IT WAS MY 1ST NEW CAR. LONG AND BEHOLD I FOUND 5 YES "5" DIFFERENT AREAS OF RUST ON THE BACK OF THE SUV. NOT ONLY THAT BUT IN THE WINTER THE SUV IS SO LIGHT I WAS ALL OVER THE ROAD. I WAS INVOLVED IN A MINOR ACCIDENT "WHICH I DIDNT CAUSE" AND THE CAR'S FRONT END CRUMBLED. ITS GOT A KNOCKING NOISE UNDER THE HOOD. IF I COULD GO BACK IN TIME I WOULD NEVER PURCHACE A SUZUKI!!
  • gsxr8ugsxr8u Member Posts: 1
    Reading around in here I see some problems I have not had with my GV. I bought it new in March 99, and it's a great vehicle, gets around good in the snow (Iowa) as long as your in 4wd, and has good cargo room for a mini-Ute. I now have 33,000 miles. I use it to tow my motorcycle quite often, and it tows well. I am a little dissapointed in the stereo system, with all that car makers are putting in for sound systems now, they need to work on that one. I have had no major problems, and only had it to the dealership twice for unusual rattles that got repaired at n/c. In the notes above, I noticed someone that went to Jiffy Lube and they said they put in a 50/50 blend of synthetic and premium. I worked at a Jiffy Lube for 2 years, and my advice would be to never let them talk you into anything but Valvoline 10/30. They are not trained as mechanics, or anyone you would want to ask for car advice, unless it's a air filter. They are trained to sell the expensive services and oil. Synthetic is good for motors after they have been broke in well, but once you go to synthetic, you shouldn't go back. I don't know if that would cause the knock, but hopefully you have consulted a mechanic.
  • isellpotiacisellpotiac Member Posts: 122
    your GV does not have a timing belt, it has a timing chain.
  • orlyorly Member Posts: 5
    You're right isellpotiac, it's a timing chain. That's one of the reasons I bought the GV in the first place!

    Still running great. I just put in new speakers and CD player... Other than that running great.
  • ckyeungckyeung Member Posts: 9
    I read from the edmunds website that GV is assembled in Japan whereas Tracker is assembled in Canada? Is that really the case? I thought the two vehicles are almost identical. If they are assembled in different countries, they may be different in terms of their reliability. Any idea?
    I appreciate your help in advance. Thank you
  • zeke707zeke707 Member Posts: 74
    The Chev Tracker and Suzuki Vitara 2 & 4 dr trucks are built in Canada by Cami. (See www.cami.ca). I believe the engines and transmissions are built in Japan, shipped to Canada and installed in the Cami built units. Don't have any idea on reliability of Japan vs Canada built. Many of the posts I read about the Cami built trucks indicate if you maintain them they will last for many miles (over 150k and more).
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