SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8
This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Many of the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.
My most recent drive is on the home page. Archived reviews and opinion pieces are in the active list down the left side. Hover your cursor over a heading or manufacturer's name and search through the drop-down menu that appears.
Editor's note: SA Roadtests accepts multi-day vehicle loans from manufacturers in order to provide editorial reviews. All vehicle reviews are conducted on our turf and on our terms.
For out-of-province vehicle launch features however, travel costs are covered by the manufacturer concerned. This is common in the motor industry, as it's more economical to ship journalists to cars than to ship cars to journalists.
Judgments and opinions expressed on this site are our own. We do not accept paid editorial content or ads of any kind.
Pics by Motorpress
Posted: May 5, 2022
The numbers
Prices: Manual R266 900, automatic R286 900
Engine: 1462 cc, chain driven DOHC, 16-valve four-cylinder with VVT
Power: 77 kW at 6000 rpm
Torque: 138 Nm between 4000 and 4400 rpm
0 to 100 km/h: 12.1 seconds
Top speed: 160 km/h (est.)
Real life fuel consumption: About 7.2 l / 100 km
Tank: 48 litres
Luggage, seats up: 328 litres
Ground clearance: 198 mm
Turning circle: 10.4 metres
Towing capacity, unbraked/braked: 400 / 1100 kg
Standard tyre: 215/60R16
Spare: full size on steel rim
Warranty: 5 years, 200 000 km with five years’ roadside assistance
Service plan: 4 years, 60 000 km
I had hoped that the S might stand for “six,” a sixth ratio in the manual version’s gearbox. Sadly, it was not to be, although it really needs it. Perhaps it will get one with the next facelift or mid-life refresh.
What GL-S is, though, is a third pair of models for the Brezza lineup, slotting between entry-level GL and smarter GX. Briefly, Suzuki swapped the GL’s steel wheels for alloys and added a few trim items. The engine remains unchanged and transmissions, four-speed automatic and five-speed manual, do too.
If you have been paying attention you will know that Brezza is built in India by Maruti Suzuki, is fitted with the company’s proven 1.5-litre, naturally aspirated four-cylinder K15B engine, is a few millimetres shy of four metres long and is more spacious than it looks. Luggage room is pretty decent too.
Being small and unpretentious, it starts with a key, has a proper handbrake, the windows are big and easy to see out of and its waistline is sufficiently low to find the lines between parking bays. Then, although one probably doesn’t need it, a backup camera is standard – rear pdc too.
Other basic kit includes two airbags; ABS brakes with EBD and brake assist; ISOFix anchors; steering wheel buttons; automatic, filtered, single-zone air conditioner; electric windows all around; folding electric mirrors; seven-inch touchscreen with screen mirroring, Bluetooth, accessory sockets and fabric upholstery.
The car rides firmly but handles the occasional road hazard well and, as expected of vehicles designed and built in India, it passed the gravel road test comfortably. Fit, finish and build quality is also typical of most cars from that country; acceptable but not quite up to Kia standard for example.
Comfort: Rear seat occupants find sufficient head-, knee and foot room for fairly big adults, a fold-down bag hook behind the driver’s seat, panic handles, small bottle bins, map pockets and a central courtesy lamp supplementing the one in front. Safety kit includes two head restraints, two full belts and a lap strap.
The boot holds 328 litres despite cramming everything into a total vehicle length of 3995 mm. It loads at about mid-thigh height and is roughly three inches deep. The 60:40-split rear seatback folds almost flat to add about 650 mm to its length. Little wells on either side keep small and delicate cargo items from shifting in transit.
Moving forward: There is, once again, loads of headroom so shorter drivers can, hopefully, lift the seat as high as they need to. The trip meters (two stalks) are fairly easy to work with, HVAC controls are straightforward, the passenger rates a lit vanity mirror, there’s a second, un-chilled, glovebox in the upper dash and a specs box above the rearview mirror. Main dials are big and clear but deeply set within a cowling that casts a shadow, making the instruments difficult to see in daylight.
Vitara Brezza is compact yet spacious and workmanlike. It’s also well-equipped for a budget family car; not fancy, not fussy nor aggressively sporty. It gets the job done and that’s what counts.
Test unit from Suzuki Auto SA press fleet
This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.
I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.
If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.
Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles. And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.
Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.
This site is operated by Scarlet Pumpkin Communications in Pietermaritzburg.
Unless otherwise stated, all photographs are courtesy of www.quickpic.co.za
Copyright this business. All rights reserved.
SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8