Suzuki Vitara Brezza built for the urban jungle

After a thoroughly enjoyable three months living with the Suzuki Vitara Brezza in automatic guise, we swopped it for a manual version in our long-term fleet at the start of July.

Also kitted in top spec GLX trim, the only difference between the two test cars is the transmission. And the colour of course, as the outgoing model was Pearl Arctic White and the manual version is clad in what Suzuki calls Autumn Orange Metallic.

On the subject of the styling, it is one of the Vitara Brezza’s strongest attributes we believe. The term concrete jungle has become so cliched, but it has its merits when it comes to cars and their practicality.

Tight spaces

Parking bays seem to get narrower every time a new mall opens and kerbs, retainer walls and pavement edges can cause you a lot of scratches to you your car’s paintwork if you don’t pay attention 24/7. And the worst part is seeing a five-digit panelbeater quote for damage that seems rather insignificant.

For starters, the Suzuki Vitara Brezza offers a remarkable ground clearance for a car that isn’t even four meters long. Its measures 198 mm, which is excellent in any language. To put that into context, it’s 13 mm higher than its bigger sibling, the Vitara, and only three millimetres lower than the Volkswagen Kombi, a vehicle renowned for its practical ground clearance.

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The Vitara Brezza is further protected from unexpected scratches and dings by generous amounts of black “armour” around its body.

What Suzuki describes as hard-wearing polycarbonate mouldings are strategically placed above the door sills and around the wheel arches. This design continues around the lower front bumper and rear bumper in conjunction with the familiar Suzuki SUV U-shaped inserts.

Hard-wearing plastics

The mouldings at the bottom of the doors come in very handy, as those are usually the first in the line of fire when a pavement is too high or a wall to close.

To top it all off, even the side mirrors are foldable. This happens automatically every time you lock the car, but can also be done manually if you need to squeeze through tight spaces. Very handy when those pesky pillars in the basement parking get too close for comfort.

Even if you still manage to misjudge the height of a kerb or make contact with the little pole that ran into your path, which can happen to anyone, you should still be spared damage to the paintwork as the mouldings will be a lot less of a hassle to repair.

Looking over your shoulder

In GLX spec, you have the added peace of mind in the reverse camera which displays on the infotainment screen every time you engage reverse gear. The display shows gridlines behind the car to give you a better perception of the depth.

Other exterior styling enhancements in GLX guise include auto LED projector headlamps, LED daytime running lamps, LED front fog lamps and GLX exterior trim which include 16-inch machine polished alloy rims.

While the Vitara Brezza is no 4×4, the rugged undertones also come in handy should you venture onto everyday gravel roads, which it is perfectly capable of doing. With the rims clad in fairly high profile 215/60 rubberware, you also don’t need to worry to much about tyre or rim damage once you do wander off the tarmac.

Smooth operator

The Suzuki Vitara Brezza 1.5 GLX manual is powered by a punchy 1.5-litre free-breathing petrol engine that produces 77kW/138Nm. Where the automatic was equipped with a four-speed gearbox, the three-pedal version sends the power the front wheels via a five-speed manual.

While automatic transmission has become the popular choice in this day and age, the Vitara Brezza’s manual offering is as easy to operate as they come. The clutch is light and easy and the gearbox very smooth.

A sporty ride

If you prefer a more sporty ride, then the manual should make a more attractive option. If you allow the engine to reach 6 000 rpm, its peak power range, then the engine definitely feels punchier than the self-shifter.

This will probably explain why our fuel consumption in the manual hasn’t really been able to better that of the automatic yet. Over the first 1 200 km in the manual, the average consumption number has been around the 7L/100 km mark, a tad more than the 6.8 L/100 km achieved in the automatic.

But once we make a real effort to drive it more economically, we are sure the 5.4 L/100 km achieved by the auto on our economy run should be under threat.

Priced at R289 900, the Suzuki Vitara Brezza GLX comes with a class-leading four year/60 000 km service plan and a five year/200 000 km mechanical warranty. Service intervals are every 15 000 km or year.

For more information on the Suzuki Vitara Brezza’s specifications, click here.