Suzuki Vitara vs Mahindra XUV700

What's the difference?

The Vitara still looks great, offers impressive real-world fuel economy, possesses a sporty chassis bringing sharp steering and involving handling and roadholding characteristics, and is expertly packaged. No wonder it has remained a consistently strong seller for Suzuki.

But its lack of driver-assist safety equipment, lethargic low-rev performance and stiff, loud ride speak of a small SUV of another era. In too many key areas, it’s rapidly dating and falling behind most rivals nowadays, and can no longer rely on low pricing anymore now that the cheapest base auto is $27K plus ORC.

Still, if you don’t care about the lack of AEB… or a digital speedo, digital radio, rear cupholders or highway quietness, then there’s still a fair bit of fight left in the plucky little Vitara.

Suzuki’s been building them for over 33 years now and such experience shows.

This is credible seven-seat motoring from Mahindra. The XUV700 has a couple of engineering quirks I'd like to see ironed out, but this SUV feels as though it deserves a place among Australia's affordable SUV offerings.

Remember that first Vitara of 1988? The chief designer of today’s LY series, Takehito Arai, told us back in 2015 that its squareness and smaller size were inspirational in shaping the current model.

To that end, he went for a muscular look, with off-roader detailing like the five-slot grille, strong shoulder line, clamshell bonnet, blistered rear mudguards and higher-than-class-average ground clearance (of 185mm), evoking other Suzuki 4x4s like the Jimny and Sierra.

Nearly six years on, the design has stood the test of time surprisingly well, with the Suzuki still looking handsome and contemporary – no doubt helped out by the big standard wheels that fill in those arches nicely, along with the vibrant colour options (like our rich beige test example) and two-tone paint application.

The 2019 facelift, by the way, ushered in changes to the toothy grille, bumper, tail-lights lenses (now LEDs), alloy wheels, interior trim and instrumentation (which went more colourful), along with higher-quality-feel interior trim and materials.

This Mahindra is kind of dark and mysterious. Which is another way of saying it's literally painted black and almost nobody I asked had any idea what the hell it was.

That's the curse of a brand that’s still trying to make a mainstream name for itself, I guess, with Mahindra having a long road ahead of it before its gets to a level where its vehicles are instantly recognisable.

Anyway, the blacked-out grille treatment works, as does the very modern LED light array, and while not what you might describe as a boundary-pushing design, it's all inoffensive.

But it’s inside where things get interesting. Honestly, the way technology has exploded into cheaper offerings never ceases to amaze me. It wasn’t that long ago that, to be greeted by a big twin-screen set-up like the one in this Mahindra, you’d need to spring for a Mercedes-Benz.

Which is interesting, because if you've ever sat in a vehicle from the German giant, you'll recognise the XUV700's electric seat controller, with the seat-shaped design seemingly lifted straight from Benz.

I'd describe the cabin feel as semi-premium. The screens are lovely, the seats are comfortable, and the sunroof is massive, but some of the trim elements feel a little cheap and flimsy under the touch, and the use of those materials only increases as you move back through the seating rows.

There's still plenty to appreciate the instant you slide yourself on to those lofty cushions.

The Vitara is packaged to transport a smaller family (and include much of their clobber) with ease, from the moment the big doors open. An excellent driving position that inspires confidence, heaps of storage in the doors and centre console, good vision and a light and airy ambience are further drawcards.

And while the seats may seem a bit wide and flat to begin with, they're amply supportive over an extended time in them, with a softness to their shape and texture that makes them quite cosy. No lumbar support for the driver is disappointing, though.

Still, it’s easy to see why the Suzuki remains such a consistent seller after all these years without change.

In 2021, the dash has held up pretty well, mainly due to clear instrument dials and Suzuki’s ever-present 7.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system that is ridiculously easy to operate. Never mind the hard and cheap-looking lower-lying plastics, the cabin is beautifully screwed together as well. And it's likely to stay that way for a very long time.

But there are annoyances, beginning with the lack of digital speedometer, especially now that the cheapest Vitara is a near-$30K proposition; for the same reason we’d have hoped for a DAB+ digital radio, auto lights on, rear-seat cupholders and more than just one USB port (located under the climate control system).

Getting in and out of the rear seat is simple, aided by wide doors and lofty seating, again on flat but ultimately comfortable cushions and backrest, though they neither slide or recline as with some other small SUVs. There's heaps of headroom; the raised rear cushion promotes a natural posture which is good for longer journeys, and enough room for three smaller adults to squeeze in. Larger feet can be tucked underneath the front seats too.

However, besides there being no device-charging facilities, you’ll also notice the lack of reading lights, rear air vents (though the front outlets' outputs do reach back OK) and beverage storage. At least the doors have space for a one-litre bottle and the overhead grab handles include coat hooks. And, like the front, it's all light and airy, with good sight lines for bored back-seat riders to stare out from.

Beyond that, the boot is fairly big and square, with a bi-level floor that’s good for hiding smaller items, while there are hooks, a light and 120V outlet for rear-seat occupants to snake some hapless charger cord to.

Cargo capacity is rated at 375 litres – raising to 710L with the 60/40 rear backrests lowered. It’s nice to see a good old-fashioned luggage board instead of the flimsy mesh items some rivals foist upon us nowadays.

All in all, a big, spacious and inviting interior that’s big on practicality and ease, but also showing its age in a few places.

There are seven seaters, and there are real seven seaters, with the latter offering a true third row in terms of space and comfort. So where does the Mahindra fit?

At 4695mm in length, 1890mm in width and 1755mm in height, this Black Edition is a decent size for a mid-size SUV, and so you’d describe the space in the third row as big enough, but not for full-grown adults marooned back there for longer spells.

To enter, it's a lever system that makes climbing in easy, with the second row folding up and then right out of the way so you can just walk in.

Space is tight for adults, though. I'm 175cm and my head was touching the roof, though I did have enough leg and toe room, and I was impressed by the fan controls and power sources (though I was less impressed by the sea of hard and scratchy plastics back there).

Step forward a row and the space is ample for just about anyone, and there are more vents, bottle holders and charging ports, too.

Boot space swells or shrinks depending on how many people are on board, of course. Mahindra doesn't have an offical boot-space figure for the XUV700, but says you will get "in excess of 700 litres" with the second row folded flat. With all three rows in place, things are tight, and you're looking at a couple of backpack-sized bags only.

First up, the price. The XUV700 Black Edition arrives at $43,990, drive-away, which puts it on a collision course with the Chery Tiggo 8 Pro Max Elite. It also puts it in the same realm as an entry-level Nissan X-Trail.

It’s also a fair chunk more than the cheapest XUV700, the AX7, which is currently $36,990, drive away.

But Mahindra is promising kit, and lots of it. Outside, the Black Edition scores black paint, a black grille and black 18-inch alloy wheels. Inside, there are black synthetic leather seats and a generally blacked-out design theme.

On the tech front, there are dual 10.25-inch screens, one for the driver and one to handle multimedia, and there’s wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. A 12-speaker stereo provides the soundtrack, and there’s a wireless charge pad, too. 

Dual-zone climate and LED lighting also appear on the standard features list, while the huge glass roof has an electric sun shade, which makes it very liveable in an Aussie summer.

Interestingly, it comes with front-seat cooling, but not heating, with the latter unlikely to ever be necessary in Mahindra's home market of India.

In some markets, the Vitara is offered with Suzuki’s punchy little 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol engine, as well as the Turbo’s 1.4-litre four-pot turbo option as seen here, but the bulk of Australian sales are powered by a 1586cc 1.6-litre twin-cam 16-valve four-cylinder naturally aspirated petrol engine, known as the M16A.

A peaky unit, it produces maximum power of 86kW at 6000rpm and 156Nm of torque at 4400rpm. Despite modest outputs, a pleasingly low kerb weight of just 1120kg ensures that the Vitara has a favourable power-to-weight ratio, of 76.8kW/tonne.

Drive is transmitted to the front wheels via a six-speed torque converter automatic transmission, complete with a big pair of paddle shifters for some manual manipulation. Or you can just buy the superior six-speed manual and enjoy a substantially more involving drive.

The Mahindra is powered by the almost comically named 'mStallion' engine, which is a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol producing 149KW and 380Nm and paired with a six-speed auto and front-wheel drive.

I don’t have an offical 0-100km/h time, but safe to say you won’t be turning up to a Fast and Furious illegal race meet in the Black Edition.

It's a very capable engine and transmission combination, but it loses points here due to the surging nature of the power delivery, which very frequently causes the front tyres to break traction.

That flyweight mass also pays dividends with fuel economy.

Tuned to run on either 91 RON standard unleaded petrol or a 94 RON E10 ethanol-petrol combo, the Vitara returned an efficient 7.6 litres per 100km over our 521km drive in both inner-city traffic and on a highway jaunt.

While that’s still some way off the official combined average of 6.2L/100km (urban: 7.9 and extra urban: 5.2), it still shows Suzuki’s expertise at such economy engines. We regularly visited the Vitara tachometer’s red line – it’s in the nature of this engine to be revved hard and fast – and never really attempted any economy driving out of it.

The published average figure, by the way, translates to a carbon-dioxide emissions rating of 142 grams per kilometre.

Fitted with a 47-litre tank, nearly 760km between refills is possible.

Mahindra says the XUV700 sips 8.3L/100km on the combined (urnan/extra-urban) cycle, which – when paired with the 60-litre tank – should see you able to travel in excess of 700km on a single tank.

And happily, when it does come time to top up, you can reach for the cheaper 91RON petrol pump.

We covered in excess of 300km, and the Mahindra's in-car readout registered an average of 10.2L/100km.

For its role shifting a small and light SUV around town, the 86kW/156Nm 1.6-litre twin-cam 16-valve four-cylinder petrol engine provides sufficient if unexciting performance, and a big part of that is the fast-acting and responsive six-speed torque-converter automatic gearbox.

While the Vitara will never be victorious in the traffic lights grand prix, there’s a substantial amount of flexibility within the engine’s rev range, with maximum power coming in at just 200rpm shy of the 6200rpm red line. So, you need to really prod that pedal down if extra muscle is required, and with that there’s quite a lot of mechanical noise coming through, but it isn’t coarse.

Using the big and well-placed paddle shifters helps to draw out a few extra morsels of oomph, but the fact is, compared to the CX-3’s 2.0-litre or HR-V’s 1.8-litre engines, the Suzuki’s has to work hard – and for longer – to cover the same ground at anywhere near approaching the same time. The aforementioned rivals' effortless, torquey response just isn't available to be enjoyed. For that, you'll need the terrifically muscular Turbo.

That’s a pity really, because the Vitara’s chassis is one of the more involving and fun ones in the small SUV class.

Thanks to a light helm, tight turning circle, rear camera, large exterior mirrors and an appreciable amount of all-round vision afforded by the large glass areas, nipping in and out of small traffic gaps or slotting into tight parking spots just isn't an issue in the Suzuki. It feels bred for the urban jungle.

Equally, the Vitara's fast and eager steering provides quick and crisp handling out on the open road as well, with the front end feeling light and agile yet nicely balanced as well. Even through ragged turns, the Suzuki remains on track. Over gravel surfaces it can be driven with reassurance that the traction and stability controls are always there to reel any slides in. It’s very easy and rewarding to punt the Vitara along at speed and with lots of confidence.

But the ride is a little firm in some places, there’s far too much road and tyre noise intrusion and – after a while – the engine’s constant revvy nature becomes a little tiresome.

Note that the fact that Suzuki did not bother engineering this powertrain to take AEB is reason to believe that there probably isn’t much life left for the M16A engine beyond this generation of Vitara.

There are two sides to the Mahindra XUV70O. The first is its comfortable, compliant, easy-breezy side, one with which, should you be gentle with the Black Edition, you'll find it's happy to be gentle back.

We covered some 300km in the Mahindra, from the city to the freeway to country roads, and the Black Edition proved a solid performer in facing everything we threw it at.

The cabin is quiet enough, blocking out the worst of the road and tyre noise, and the steering, while very light and flimsy feeling, proved responsive and confidence-inspiring enough, too.

The engine and transmission gel nicely at speed, and while the XUV700 won't be winning too many street races, the power on offer matches the vehicle nicely, and it doesn't feel underdone.

Even the safety systems are unobtrusive enough, with only the lane keep system proving annoying on the freeway, as it occasionally lightly fought back against steering inputs.

So, a six out of 10? I've marked the Mahindra down because, for mine, the power delivery and traction do not play well together, with the Black Edition only too happy to break front traction, and break it often, should you feed on too much throttle when turning from a standing start, or even in a straight line if you're pointed uphill.

Not helping the traction is the lumpy power delivery, where you get little when you first plant your foot, then a whole lot all at once.

That part of the otherwise positive drive experience made me mark it down here.

The Mahindra doesn’t yet carry an ANCAP safety rating, but it comes with all the stuff needed to perform strongly, on paper at least, in crash testing.

That includes seven airbags, adaptive cruise control, 'Forward Collision Warning' (with AEB), lane departure warning and lane keep assist.

Keep an eye on that reversing camera, though. For mine it’s a little laggy, which means things can sneak up on you when reversing.

The XUV700 does wear a five-star Global NCAP safety rating but hasn't been assessed by ANCAP.

Suzuki has switched to an industry-average five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and roadside assistance.

Service intervals are every 12 months or 15,000km, while published basic capped-price servicing is available. Prices start at $239 (years one and five) and reach as high as $429 (year three). Total cost is $1565, averaging out to $313 annually at the time of publishing.

Vehicles under five-years old but with higher mileages up to 90,000km can expect to be charged up to $559, according to Suzuki’s website.

Mahindra offers a seven-year, 150,000km warranty, with seven years of roadside assistance. We like the years, but we’d like to see the kays become unlimited to match brands like Kia.

You’ll need a free service at 1500km, then your first real check up at 10,000km, then its 12 months or 15,000km after that.

Capped-price servicing means you’ll pay $1781 for the first five services, but that includes the free one, so it's more like four trips to the dealerships for an average cost of $445 per workshop visit.