When you think of Suzuki you tend to think of them as the small car specialist.
They are just that, but they do make other vehicles, from an admittedly small van to a medium SUV. Suzuki also has the Ertiga and big sister, the XL6.
The Suzuki XL6, the subject of this review, is a no-nonsense six seater. It is not a luxury vehicle, but a family car with lux touches, like separate air-con for the two rear rows of seats, of which the middle row has two individual (captain style) chairs with armrests as well as ventilated cupholders, climate control, rear camera and leather steering wheel in the GLX model.
A clever decision by Suzuki to standardise across their bigger cars on the tried and tested normally aspirated K15B 1.5 L petrol motor mated to either a four-speed auto box or five-speed manual, means you get reliability peace of mind, fair power and torque and good fuel consumption of around 6,5 F/100 km in general driving. This depends on your right foot though. It easily rises to 7 F, especially in town.
Standard equipment includes front LED fog lights, tilt and stereoscopic steering, 7” touchscreen with Bluetooth, keyless entry and multifunction steering wheel with audio controls. The GLX adds automatic headlights, leather steering wheel, synthetic leather and cloth seats.
The big advantage to the separate seats of the middle row is keeping children apart and giving adults their own space. Children can easily move to the back row, between the seats. It even has a small boot, which is at least good for the kids’ sports gear. With the third row of seats folded, the boot becomes enormous.
There are a number of cupholders and other little bins, even two in the floor of the boot. The spare wheel fits under the floor, which helps to give the boot a better shape.
I found the performance for uses like the school run, hospitality courtesy service, taxi and small staff bus roles just perfect.
The XL6 is an ideal little (slightly upmarket) bus. The seats are comfortable, the ventilation system excellent, a good sound system and easy-to-use touchscreen make it a really pleasant cabin.
Strong crosswinds on the open road may unsettle her a bit, but in town the XL6 is a serious value proposition and easy to live with. The all-round handling feels competent and safe.
I think taxis and shuttle services will find the XL6 fills a niche smaller than the traditional eight-seater, partly due to much lower acquisition costs but dramatically lower expected running expenses.
The XL6 has a five-year or 200 000 km mechanical warranty and comes with a four-year or 60 000 km service plan, which is pretty reassuring.
The range starts with the 1.5 GL 5MT (manual) at R336 900 up to the 1.5 GLX 4AT (automatic) listed at R370 900.
Also look at the more plain Jane Suzuki Ertiga at around R20 000 cheaper per model, Mitsubishi Xpander at R365 995 (seven seater), and Volkswagen Caddy seemingly expensive at around R500 000, but which is much more upmarket.
