Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara AllGrip all-wheel drive variant in an off-road test [Video]

Maruti Suzuki launched the all-new Grand Vitara in the market this year. It is currently the flagship model from the manufacturer and is sold via Nexa dealerships. It is Maruti Suzuki’s first car in the country to come with AllGrip AWD feature. It is available with higher manual variants only. We did a fair bit of off-roading with the new Grand Vitara during the media drive and the same is available on our website and YouTube channel. Maruti has been organising such off-road experiences for customers at various venues, since its launch. Here we have a video where a Grand Vitara AWD version is seen driving through an off-road track.

The video has been uploaded by Car Stories on their YouTube channel. In this video, vlogger was attending the IBW in Goa, which is an annual event for bikers. Maruti Suzuki was showcasing the off-road capabilities of the new Grand Vitara at IBW to attract more people towards the SUV. They had prepared a track through which they drive the SUV. The track was built for customer experience where they can actually drive the car through the track and experience the performance themselves.

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The vlogger sat with an off-road expert first to familiarise the track. They drove the SUV through several obstacles that tested the suspension, articulation, approach and departure angle. The SUV was performing well. The AWD feature was locked in Auto which meant, the car would act like a 2WD SUV for most of the time and when the system detects that the wheels need more power or traction, it engages the AWD feature. The vlogger was really impressed with the way the car was handling the obstacles. The off-road expert with him told him how the car was actually behaving on the track. There was an obstacle where one side of the SUV was tilting too much and even in that situation, the SUV crawled out without any issues.

After the expert drove vlogger around the obstacles, it was vloggers turn to drive the SUV through the same route again. He was very happy with the performance of the Grand Vitara and came out impressed. The AllGrip technology is new in India but, Suzuki has been offering this feature in many of the models internationally. Even the Swift comes with AllGrip feature internationally. Grand Vitara does not have diff locks. Instead, it uses traction control to cut off power from the wheels that has lost traction and send power to rest of the wheels to move the car forward.

Maruti Grand Vitara is available with two petrol engine options. There is a 1.5 litre naturally aspirated petrol engine with mild hybrid system. It is available with a 5-speed manual and a 6-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters. This engine option offers the AWD feature. The next is a 1.5 litre, three cylinder petrol engine with a strong hybrid system. It is available with an e-CVT gearbox only. This variant has a claimed fuel efficiency of almost 28 kmpl which is one of the highest in the segment.

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