Hi mat, It was myself that came down to buy this car for my daughter who lives in Tiree.. What a fantastic little 4x4 this is. Drove all the way to Scotland without missing a beat. I wanted to keep it for myself lol It was good to see what you done to it in the video
I never fail to be surprised by how relatively simple cosmetic tweaks can make such a huge improvement/difference to a car! Another perfectly useable old car ‘saved’ great job Matt 👍🏻
I have a 2015 Vitara Allgrip DDIS SZ5 and love it. Yes, its got some hard plastics inside, but its got great carrying capacity, comfortable, quiet and economical. Its just all round honest car.
I’d love to see a video where you give an update on what happened to some of these cars after, whether you got the price you wanted and if there was more to the story once they’d been sold
My dad bought a face-lift mk1 4u2 Vitara from the side of the road for £750 back in 2012 as a stop gap when his car was written off. It was only meant to be around for 6 months but he ended up keeping it for 4 years. When he put it up for sale I was gutted so bought it myself 😂 my girlfriend drove it more than I did but a house purchase forced me to sale it and to this day I wish I never got rid. Can't seem to find them for sale anymore which is a shame
I have the exact same vitara but with the added spoiler and alloy wheels. Corners are the vitaras kryptonite! At least they fitted 4wheel drive so you can exit the field you just crashed into. In return the vitara will reward you with years of utter reliability.
I'm not surprised you sold that car quite easily. Suzuki's are very reliable and that would be an economical little car to run even with UK fuel prices. I'm almost at the stage now where I would only ever consider buying a Japanese car. I can honestly say 50 years ago I would not even have dreamed that this would be the case. I remember visiting a Honda car dealer around about 1977 in Preston Lancashire and thinking to myself, " Why would anyone buy a f----- Honda?" How times have changed. Kia is another manufacturer that seems to have their act together now with an excellent warranty and fixed servicing costs. I don't want unexpected repair bills, breakdowns or ridiculous servicing costs. Good video and a great result. A happy customer and some profit.
As a car journalist I'm not very used to deal with used cars myself, but a friend asked for help for buying a new used car for her. Thanks for a lot of tips that helped me to at least try to help her. She's now a pride new owner of a 2019 Suzuki Jimny brazilian made with less than 20k miles, full history and good as new. Thanks mate!
Another excellent 'restoration ' on what was a vehicle in pretty decent condition despite its sge & possible rust problems..loved how it now looks after those lads at the valeting place have done their work..they do a bloody great job 👏 love these reviews 💯👌
My mum had one of these a long time ago , it was brilliant as we lived in the countryside and we had a long steep single track road to negotiate & it coped with the snow & mud no problem .
Hi Matt, I live in Canada, I can confirm the Vitara is very reliable, I have two buddies that have these, they both have over 500k on them, that of course is KM not miles, and still going strong, one guy does not even plug his in, so it starts regularly in minus 20, as I live in Saskatchewan, the middle and often colder province here. Love your vids, always a good go to vid for honest car facts. Thank you for sharing 😁
Looked like a long term one owner car . kept up to it mechanically but there's a time where they fell out of love and were ready for a change . That bit of TLC to bring what is a good car back to retail looks well worth it . Nice quip on the telegraph to guardian !
When I saw this video I clicked on it immediately! I owned for a few years one in the same color. It was a 4 door 2.0 petrol with a manual gearbox, but it had alloys and pretty wide tires. When I got it it was used and in pretty bad shape. After a full engine service, new clutch, new all terrain tires and some other small things it ran pretty well. They are really reliable these. Only trouble I ever had, and I took mine on dirt tracks through the mountains quite often, was a leaky coolant pipe and some A/C leaks. I was really happy with it and only sold it when I had a kid and wanted something that was safer. Great video, I am glad you gave a new life to that one!
Also repaint the base of the wiper arms since I can see all the paint has flaked off. This car has been cared for by it's previous owner, looked good when you got first saw it with a few minor things. If I saw that original MOT, I wouldn't bother but the car when you walked around it was just much better than the MOT history would allude to, not surprised it flew through it's recent MOT, must have been a very picky garage looking for work previously.
Respect for Suzuki engineering. Own an Alto with the 1.0 K10 engine and its a peach. Chain driven cam and with regular servicing it's on a faultless 150000 km. The engineering is simple, which is the cornerstone of robustness.
Awwww it looks brilliant. I love the fact it has had one owner and is 19 years old that's true testament to Suzuki. I have bought brand new Fiats and Fords in the past been well cared for serviced etc and yet they didn't make it past 85'000 or 8 years.
That's a great car for someone. Good point about the undersealing. My own Pug will be 26 years old this year and I've undersealed it myself every 5th year, with a bit of extra touchup whenever I notice any flaking off in the interim. Hammerite with added Waxoyl isn't expensive and the new owner of this motor would find it much easier to squeeze underneath than I do with my 40mm lowered coilover and axle setup, should they not wish to pay you to do it before purchase. Edit : I see a gent has already bought it for his daughter, but I hope he'll do the job for her. It's well worth the effort.
@@allankummanadil6298 I did notice, even when my own car was new, that the factory applied underseal was a little thin in a couple of places, where even some of the body colour could be seen. If that's true of your own car, I suggest it's definitely worth attending to it, sooner rather than later, and thereafter just check it occasionally and give it a fresh coating every five years. Be careful not to paint over any drain holes though.
I have a grand vitara XL 2.6 automaric. Its 22 years old and just passed its mot again with not one mention of rust on the body. Last year had no advisories but this year its stated that the fuel filter needs replacing as its rusted. It hasn't done 60,000 miles yet. Its an amazing car to drive and tow with. What I love about it is that you can get to parts in the engine and its not like modern cars where everything is crammed in. Only bad thing is it does drink a fair bit of fuel but I still love it.
Great find and another fabulous transformation. I had wondered about these as I am considering a 4x4 to cope with the extreme weather and extreme so called roads we have these days
Took a 2005 2.5 V6 Auto in part exchange back in 2014 with 110k miles. Metallic grey, leather, working air con and a bit of walnut on the dash. Paid £1500 for it and thought it was a perfect temporary dog car until we found something better. It started on the button this morning and ferried both dogs to their walk and will do the same tomorrow morning. Now done 127k and other than oil changes, its only ever needed an aux belt. Love it.
I really like these the petrols are brilliant reliability wise there good off road and actually well made they don't feel like there going to disintegrate inside either after a few miles just the problem of rust
Hi Matt. Nuclear submarines work because they are powered by onboard nuclear reactors. Atoms in the nuclear reactor split, which then releases energy as heat. This heat is used to create high-pressured steam. The steam turns propulsion turbines that provide the power to turn the propeller. So slightly different technology to the standard car radio.
Great Ecology, capturing something before it gets dumped, giving it a new lease of life and turning a tidy profit, Excellent ! Also I was looking at 3 door (pretend) 4x4’s for the high seating position; I’m getting tired of contouring myself into my Ford Focus despite the great driving it does. (I’ll have to look thru your back catalogue to see if u’ve review a Rav 4, (2), ). Great video mate, thkz.
I have had 3 -LWB Grand Vitaras, one of which did near 100K miles in 4 years ( 2.0 V6 ) my last one was a 1.9L diesel 4WD manual and I never had any problems at all ! Rust was not a problem although I agree the Jimny seems a bit prone. Now using a 1.6L S-Cross with CVT , no problems and very economical. great value for money .
@@HighPeakAutos Predictable, but accurate. Could have been worse, the Vitara could have had Daily Wail steering, directing you in the middle of the road with the resulting carnage being blamed on immigrants
Hey Mat, really big fan of your work. I just bought a 21 plate vitara (mild hybrid) last week! Being a 25 year old chap I received a lot slack from the 'boys' for being a grandad. I was undecided between a 2020 VW T-cross and 2021 Suzuki Vitara. The Vitara had all the same spec as the T-Cross but was faster with a 4 cylinder engine (compared to the overstressed 3 cylinder 115ps VW engine) and guess what - it was nearly 2 grand cheaper! Im sure the VW fan boys will come after me but hopefully I havent made a mistake - I guess only time will tell!
The mild Hybrid technology will start saving you money right off the bat. You’ll definitely like the reduced fuel bills and the reassuring reliability of Japanese automobile technology. I’ve been driving only Japanese cars since 2000. 1988 Honda Accord DOHC-16V, 1998 Mazda MX-3 1.6i DOHC and presently 2008 Toyota Prius Tspirit, the latter which I’m refusing to part with - achieved 69.4 mpg last summer on a 45 litre tank of Super Unleaded (Esso) - getting a record 653 miles from the same tank of fuel - and all during the unprecedented UK heatwave.
I had a 18 plate non turbo 1.6 vitara it was ultra reliable never even had to top up oil or coolant only got shut of it as needed something larger as have 4 dogs 🐕 and shifting bigger items.
@@datathunderstorm Yes, its doing 50 mpg near enough with a very nippy engine. Just a shame suzukis are not as fashionable as a VW (brand appeal etc). However, I would argue that suzukis are better cars with more reliability and age better than VW's
@@allankummanadil6298 it’s all down to taste at the end of the day! As many people dislike VWs as they do like them. I’m also 24 and and would take the vitara any day of the week. Would argue a T-Cross is more of a grandad car so as I say, it’s all about personal taste 😂
Excellent! I love these type of videos. Especially as it shows what you did with it. I'd loved to have seen a follow up on the Nissan Navarra. That needed some proper attention and would have been great to see what you did with it.
MOT Testers seem to vary widely in their interpretation of the rule. For example, I have a car which had several MOTs with 'surface rust' advisories. They suddenly disappeared when a different MOT centre did the tests - no painting or repairs had been done in the meantime......
That’s quite right. I use an independent place so they have no favouritism and sometimes they pick up on certain things which other places miss and vice Versa. I always thought it would better if they were Goverment ran like lots of counties
@@HighPeakAutos Not sure government run stations would perform better - they are government run in Northern Ireland and there's been a long running saga of delays with test bookings to the extent that the MOT was suspended at one point. The main cause was a problem with the the workshop lifts, which were failing, with potentially dangerous consequences......
Cracking cars just a shame about the rust issues , I had a 1993 413 Samurai cost a fortune in sheet metal to weld it up and she's still doing the rounds .
A simple basic car that's not a moneypit. Their engines are used in experimental aircraft and their electrics are good but the finish is often not great but a bit of paint, cleaning, rust killer and welding and they go on for a long time. I love Suzuki motorbikes. Great mechanics.
Bought a 52 plate in 2018 for £500 Drove it round Europe in a charity banger rally ending in Barcelona. Bits fell off as we drove but had so much fun in the Vitara before scrapping it and flying home.
Had one of these for about six months. Wife said it rocked when going round corners. Swapped it straight away. You know the difference between January and July in the uk. The rain is warmer in July. Come to think about it we had a jimney not a grand vitara. Manual. And it guzzler petrol. 👍👍
You got a steal on that one. I had an XL-7...same looks just seating for 5 adults and 2 kids way, way in the back. Very neat setup and the rig had an extremely willing and ready v6. This is one of the very few cars I've owned that I really, really had a lot of fun with. The FWD was a kick in the pants too. If yours came with a V6, that thing would be pushing 6.5 secs to 60 mph.
See no matter what your eyes tell you Matt your mechanics and techs can give it a new lease of life. And all said and done it is a not bad wee car considering its age and mileage but as DVLA still has my license - no use to me. Plus I am thinking about converting to an EV Trike, so no need for expensive fuel but that could change with this Government think tank??
Had my 2005 diesel for 6 years passed mot every time got 130000 on the clock only paid 2 grand for it got to check the 4 wheel drive works on them and rust don't buy one from the coast
What a brilliant little reliable car. I own a new toyota hybrid and would love something like this as a second run around. I love japanese cars for their reliability and they dont use expensive dual clutch gearboxes. Great video!
Just had my E38 DONE MOT , SEATBELT ANCHORAGE points ,2X ciggerette packet size plates on rear of sills cost me £250 then it passed ,you cant see the plates realy nice .Then i drove to jet wash dog sat in front i paid my pound and started to wash the dog loves it ,then he pressed central locking ,NO NO .the cars locked and the keys are in it 20 mile from home .
These cars are sooo popular in Australia is a cheap alternative to a Landcruiser or just about any 4WD which is not far shy of $100k here. They fetch a tidy sum here second hand, even old and with plenty of miles, because people use them for trips to the beach and as an alternative little delivery van with the back seats ripped out.
I borrowed a friend`s 2000 GV a few years back when my car was getting a clutch done. Collected the car and the following day on the motorway suddenly lost all power and coasted to the side of the hard shoulder. No warning lights, just suddenly lost all power without warning. Rang breakdown and it turns out they don't have fuel warning lights!
Webuymouldycars... I like, but don't love, my 21 Suzuki Vitara, which will be going now that my Defender has arrived, but here in rural south west Devon they are the AWD of choice, for very good reason. Oh, and I found the perfect vehicle for you. Single seater with not one but two cupholders, or one cupholder and one family bucket sized holder, a ride on lawnmower...
I always take our cars mine and partners to local council offices maintenance Yard , by law the have to MOT the publics vehicles , they are very fair , only time any of our cars has failed was on emissions, the MOT tester said I darent rev the hell out of it as I don't know when cambelt was done. As you have 2 weeks before repaying for the test he just advised me to put emission cleaner in the fuel tank and drive it harder than usual. 2 weeks later the car went straight through. I've even sent a workmate who Audi claimed it wanted nearly £700 spending on it to get it through an MOT . He took and by all accounts it went straight through.
When you say you've paid £X for a car without seeing it, what does that actually mean? Who is doing the sale, gauging the value of the part-ex and moving it to the parking space?
Not driven the auto but the manual GV1600 is good on fuel but real sluggish & the GV2000 is more pokey but you sure see that fuel gauge go down quick! They drive ok thou, overall not bad & good value in the day! Wheels on them will always go like that with age. In the 90's on the old Vitaras i fitted the spare wheel & holding bracket plus the rear seats & seat belts.....PLUS remove the excessive coating of protection it had all over it 😆 The Supagard is a waste of money! I applied it to lots of vehicles in the day,the fabric spray is useful thou....but it STANK!
GREAT VIDEO! THANK YOU FOR CONSISTENTLY PUTTING OUT TOP QUALITY CONTENT. VERY INTERESTED! KEEP IT UP! ❤️👍 What is life without money? I think that's irrelevant. When you live, always try to invest for future times like this to ensure profits and growth. So you are not dependent on the government. Investing in the financial market should now be on every savvy individual's bucket list.
@Jerv Carter Investing in the financial markets works for me even if I don't do it alone. I have an expert helping me and his strategies have helped me avoid losses and increase my income.
Great cars, I was after a Jimny but they are stupid money and any I did see quite rusty. Ended up with a 1.6 petrol manual 2 door, had to put an O2 sensor in it to clear an engine light and it ran much better, and also done the cam belt, so easy to work on, plenty of room under the bonnet. like that one a polish of the headlights with some T cut and a spray of the wheels made it like new.
Always amazes me how people can sell the car on without even taking it to a car wash beforehand. Still, well done for having the vision to see that you could make some money on this one and hopefully the new owner will show it a bit more love than the previous one.
I have a 1996 Suzuki Esteem wagon which is better than all the Toyotas I had. It drives great and I can work on the engine myself. If I need any work done on the major parts, the mechanics where I live are very cheap. I have had German, American, British, and Japanese cars! I think the market is dominated by Toyotas and Hondas due to a lot of ads which exclude other makers like Suzuki.
I would have applied that Colin appleyard sticker on the spare wheel cover when this was new, I used to work for a sign company and we did all the cars for them when they used to be on the corner near IKEA Ashton.
Awesome again, I think a little to much time being spent on car check online review and servicing stamps, just noticed it of late, doesn't seem to be much driving of late, love the channel just love seeing it flow perhaps a little more like a short while back
Indicators on UK original and Japanese cars are on the right not left so you can indicate and do the gears at the same time. All eu and usa cars have the indocators on the left as the dont bother re designing the steering wheel just move it.
Great video Matt, do like those Suzuki's.. 😁 My mum still has her 2003 Ford fusion 1.4 trip and it's still going strong, she loves it..Waiting for you to get one of these on the show to see what you make of it..I still see a few about town..keep up the good work.. 😄
love this channel , notice a lot of auto youtubers are trying to copy the "i bought a xxxxx" and the format , lets be honest carwow is getting a bit predictable and scripted or at last it feels that way and all the cars cost a fortune, think being a trained actor makes Mat more natural in front of the camera, and the cars are those you'll probably be able to afford with a few dream cars thrown in
Another amazing transformation! Wondered what you were thinking dropping £2k in that, and then remembered why I wouldn’t touch a main dealer for a service/MOT after seeing those advisory lists.
Wonder way you don't do car vehicle history check before you buy it ? , anyway I had vitara for many years this is very reliable work horse ,have very tuff time with me and managed very well.
I use to own the other model Suzuki Ignis 2004, great car and started great on frosty UK mornings. The only time it let me down it needed a new oil filter other than that great car. I would have bought it myself as I know how good Suzuki cars are.
I bought an '04 a couple of years ago. Just as a farm cruiser. Having 4x4 auto & low miles sold me, while costing more than yours, I was happy to pay it as it's 1/5 to cost of a side by side buggy. * I lost the back right cover on the roof rack, looking. * What is the rocker switch next to the shift selector? Says: N. A/T. P
I had an 09 grand vitara ddis 1.9 with f9q dci engine and surprisingly reliable and torquey for a Renault motor only issues were split turbo pipes nothing else.
Great result matt, the last couple of vitaras I have bought cost me a roll of welding wire and multiple burns to get it through the MOT. Rare to see a Auto model also 👍👍👍👍
Hi mat,
It was myself that came down to buy this car for my daughter who lives in Tiree..
What a fantastic little 4x4 this is.
Drove all the way to Scotland without missing a beat. I wanted to keep it for myself lol
It was good to see what you done to it in the video
Oh wow, she's got a real cracker there by the looks of it. I want an update in another 19 years.
Ah ok. Thanks for your purchase. They’re good little cars. We have just had another one in this week, older but lower miles. They’re a rare find
great feedback,quite rare in automotive industry
Cars are like human bodies. Get a decent one & look after it, & it'll last a lifetime.
@@markatchison9974 I'm reading that in the style of swiss toni
Always had a soft spot for Suzuki and Daihatsu, they feel like plucky underdogs of the Japanese automotive industry
don't get too excited about Daihatsu, just Toyota stuff rebadged for cheaper markets.
@@adimw the opposite is true nowadays
Suzuki and daihatsu are both owned by Toyota now. Yes I now Toyota doesn’t own everything of Suzuki but just saying
The Fourtrack was legendary in the 90s
Got a Suzuki Baleno 1.6 Auto 1997 hatchback myself, 26 years old and still going strong! 🙂🙂
I never fail to be surprised by how relatively simple cosmetic tweaks can make such a huge improvement/difference to a car! Another perfectly useable old car ‘saved’ great job Matt 👍🏻
I totally agree!
Matt, you and your profession keeps these vehicles out of the junk yards AND affords people with an important service. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve binged about 50 of your videos this week after finding you, absolutely class
Oh thank you. Don’t watch too many, you’ll get bored 😂
What a great little car. Great value too - it's lost £6k in 19 years, not many can touch that.
That’s right. Only beaten by the Jimny or the defender I guess
I have a 2015 Vitara Allgrip DDIS SZ5 and love it. Yes, its got some hard plastics inside, but its got great carrying capacity, comfortable, quiet and economical. Its just all round honest car.
I have an 2016 SZ4 1.6 petrol. I really love the car. Is a little underpowered at times though 😭
I had the same brilliant car until someone hit it and wrote it off . irreplaceable
I’d love to see a video where you give an update on what happened to some of these cars after, whether you got the price you wanted and if there was more to the story once they’d been sold
Yeah definitely, as Mr Chops from Chops garage always says - profit ain’t in the bank until the comeback period is over!
My dad bought a face-lift mk1 4u2 Vitara from the side of the road for £750 back in 2012 as a stop gap when his car was written off. It was only meant to be around for 6 months but he ended up keeping it for 4 years. When he put it up for sale I was gutted so bought it myself 😂 my girlfriend drove it more than I did but a house purchase forced me to sale it and to this day I wish I never got rid. Can't seem to find them for sale anymore which is a shame
I have the exact same vitara but with the added spoiler and alloy wheels. Corners are the vitaras kryptonite! At least they fitted 4wheel drive so you can exit the field you just crashed into. In return the vitara will reward you with years of utter reliability.
They’re unbeatable
@@HighPeakAutos John Cleese would have a good go.
There must be something with yours then as my turns and corners excellent! Mine is an 03 1600v model
Is it easy to fit people in the back?
@@eniyeezy8417with a bit of squeezing for the 2 door models. Longer 4 door models will give you easier time if you need to fit more people
I'm not surprised you sold that car quite easily. Suzuki's are very reliable and that would be an economical little car to run even with UK fuel prices. I'm almost at the stage now where I would only ever consider buying a Japanese car. I can honestly say 50 years ago I would not even have dreamed that this would be the case. I remember visiting a Honda car dealer around about 1977 in Preston Lancashire and thinking to myself, " Why would anyone buy a f----- Honda?" How times have changed.
Kia is another manufacturer that seems to have their act together now with an excellent warranty and fixed servicing costs. I don't want unexpected repair bills, breakdowns or ridiculous servicing costs. Good video and a great result. A happy customer and some profit.
As a car journalist I'm not very used to deal with used cars myself, but a friend asked for help for buying a new used car for her. Thanks for a lot of tips that helped me to at least try to help her. She's now a pride new owner of a 2019 Suzuki Jimny brazilian made with less than 20k miles, full history and good as new. Thanks mate!
Where do you find new used cars? 🤣
@@bazahaza LOL you understood me
Another excellent 'restoration ' on what was a vehicle in pretty decent condition despite its sge & possible rust problems..loved how it now looks after those lads at the valeting place have done their work..they do a bloody great job 👏 love these reviews 💯👌
My mum had one of these a long time ago , it was brilliant as we lived in the countryside and we had a long steep single track road to negotiate & it coped with the snow & mud no problem .
Hi Matt, I live in Canada, I can confirm the Vitara is very reliable, I have two buddies that have these, they both have over 500k on them, that of course is KM not miles, and still going strong, one guy does not even plug his in, so it starts regularly in minus 20, as I live in Saskatchewan, the middle and often colder province here. Love your vids, always a good go to vid for honest car facts. Thank you for sharing 😁
Looked like a long term one owner car . kept up to it mechanically but there's a time where they fell out of love and were ready for a change . That bit of TLC to bring what is a good car back to retail looks well worth it . Nice quip on the telegraph to guardian !
I agree
When I saw this video I clicked on it immediately! I owned for a few years one in the same color. It was a 4 door 2.0 petrol with a manual gearbox, but it had alloys and pretty wide tires. When I got it it was used and in pretty bad shape. After a full engine service, new clutch, new all terrain tires and some other small things it ran pretty well. They are really reliable these. Only trouble I ever had, and I took mine on dirt tracks through the mountains quite often, was a leaky coolant pipe and some A/C leaks. I was really happy with it and only sold it when I had a kid and wanted something that was safer. Great video, I am glad you gave a new life to that one!
Also repaint the base of the wiper arms since I can see all the paint has flaked off. This car has been cared for by it's previous owner, looked good when you got first saw it with a few minor things. If I saw that original MOT, I wouldn't bother but the car when you walked around it was just much better than the MOT history would allude to, not surprised it flew through it's recent MOT, must have been a very picky garage looking for work previously.
I agree. Or perhaps they wanted to steer them into a brand new model. That kind of thing happens all the time
Respect for Suzuki engineering. Own an Alto with the 1.0 K10 engine and its a peach. Chain driven cam and with regular servicing it's on a faultless 150000 km. The engineering is simple, which is the cornerstone of robustness.
Awwww it looks brilliant. I love the fact it has had one owner and is 19 years old that's true testament to Suzuki. I have bought brand new Fiats and Fords in the past been well cared for serviced etc and yet they didn't make it past 85'000 or 8 years.
That’s interesting
That's a great car for someone. Good point about the undersealing. My own Pug will be 26 years old this year and I've undersealed it myself every 5th year, with a bit of extra touchup whenever I notice any flaking off in the interim. Hammerite with added Waxoyl isn't expensive and the new owner of this motor would find it much easier to squeeze underneath than I do with my 40mm lowered coilover and axle setup, should they not wish to pay you to do it before purchase.
Edit : I see a gent has already bought it for his daughter, but I hope he'll do the job for her. It's well worth the effort.
That’s the best thing to do. I do the same with mine
Would you recommend undersealing for newer cars? I am just wondering if it worth it for the newer cars (I have a 2021 plate)
@@allankummanadil6298 I did notice, even when my own car was new, that the factory applied underseal was a little thin in a couple of places, where even some of the body colour could be seen. If that's true of your own car, I suggest it's definitely worth attending to it, sooner rather than later, and thereafter just check it occasionally and give it a fresh coating every five years. Be careful not to paint over any drain holes though.
Just refreshed TH-cam and this popped up. Love these videos.
Glad you like them!
Good little cars. With some decent tyres they are very good off road. Small and light, perfect. Nice one.
Very satisfying to see that car saved for a good few years.
I fully agree: only replace (the radio in this case) if you can’t repair. 👌
Got a 04 vitara myself, love it :P 2.0 td
I've had 3 SWB Land Cruiser's over the last 15yrs love em
I have a grand vitara XL 2.6 automaric. Its 22 years old and just passed its mot again with not one mention of rust on the body. Last year had no advisories but this year its stated that the fuel filter needs replacing as its rusted.
It hasn't done 60,000 miles yet. Its an amazing car to drive and tow with.
What I love about it is that you can get to parts in the engine and its not like modern cars where everything is crammed in. Only bad thing is it does drink a fair bit of fuel but I still love it.
Lovely little car. It's amazing how you get them looking so good.
Great find and another fabulous transformation. I had wondered about these as I am considering a 4x4 to cope with the extreme weather and extreme so called roads we have these days
Took a 2005 2.5 V6 Auto in part exchange back in 2014 with 110k miles. Metallic grey, leather, working air con and a bit of walnut on the dash.
Paid £1500 for it and thought it was a perfect temporary dog car until we found something better.
It started on the button this morning and ferried both dogs to their walk and will do the same tomorrow morning. Now done 127k and other than oil changes, its only ever needed an aux belt. Love it.
I really like these the petrols are brilliant reliability wise there good off road and actually well made they don't feel like there going to disintegrate inside either after a few miles just the problem of rust
All those little one-owner touches on that car are a joy. Unexpected result on the MOT aswell, great!
Yes indeed!
Hi Matt.
Nuclear submarines work because they are powered by onboard nuclear reactors. Atoms in the nuclear reactor split, which then releases energy as heat. This heat is used to create high-pressured steam. The steam turns propulsion turbines that provide the power to turn the propeller. So slightly different technology to the standard car radio.
I have a lot of love for Suzuki. Totally reliable and the parts are cheap. That is the scary truth...
Suzuki make some decent long lasting cars. Japanese . Always a good choice tbh.
No way! Just bought one for my first car and I love it. Such a good car
That’s a great first car. When I was a kid I always wanted one of the early 90’s modes. Think they were called a Fat Boy or something
Out last any car on the road reliable and strong 💪
Its doesn't cease to amaze me how Matt always says you have to do history check before buying a used car but he does it after buying the car.
I thought that, waste of time paying for the service if you do it that way round
You might assume that, but that may not be the case. He does it in the video as a soft advertisement my friend.
I bet he does it before buying it. Well you would wouldn't you.
Great Ecology, capturing something before it gets dumped, giving it a new lease of life and turning a tidy profit, Excellent ! Also I was looking at 3 door (pretend) 4x4’s for the high seating position; I’m getting tired of contouring myself into my Ford Focus despite the great driving it does. (I’ll have to look thru your back catalogue to see if u’ve review a Rav 4, (2), ). Great video mate, thkz.
I have had 3 -LWB Grand Vitaras, one of which did near 100K miles in 4 years ( 2.0 V6 ) my last one was a 1.9L diesel 4WD manual and I never had any problems at all ! Rust was not a problem although I agree the Jimny seems a bit prone. Now using a 1.6L S-Cross with CVT , no problems and very economical. great value for money .
My brother’s wedding…one of his friends rented one of these and we took it to our land and did donuts in the mud…good memories.
Silver is a great colour. Hides all sorts of marks and scratches. Much better than a boring white.
What a great little car so genuine & straight, thanks for sharing
Brilliant video. We own a 2012 Suzuki Swift done over 100k, still going strong.
Nice result, that. Looks smart for a 19 y.o. Vitara (genuine chortle at the "Telegraph / Guardian" steering alignment)
I’m glad my predictable jokes work 😂
@@HighPeakAutos Predictable, but accurate. Could have been worse, the Vitara could have had Daily Wail steering, directing you in the middle of the road with the resulting carnage being blamed on immigrants
Hey Mat, really big fan of your work. I just bought a 21 plate vitara (mild hybrid) last week! Being a 25 year old chap I received a lot slack from the 'boys' for being a grandad. I was undecided between a 2020 VW T-cross and 2021 Suzuki Vitara. The Vitara had all the same spec as the T-Cross but was faster with a 4 cylinder engine (compared to the overstressed 3 cylinder 115ps VW engine) and guess what - it was nearly 2 grand cheaper! Im sure the VW fan boys will come after me but hopefully I havent made a mistake - I guess only time will tell!
The VW T Cross is boring.
The mild Hybrid technology will start saving you money right off the bat. You’ll definitely like the reduced fuel bills and the reassuring reliability of Japanese automobile technology. I’ve been driving only Japanese cars since 2000. 1988 Honda Accord DOHC-16V, 1998 Mazda MX-3 1.6i DOHC and presently 2008 Toyota Prius Tspirit, the latter which I’m refusing to part with - achieved 69.4 mpg last summer on a 45 litre tank of Super Unleaded (Esso) - getting a record 653 miles from the same tank of fuel - and all during the unprecedented UK heatwave.
I had a 18 plate non turbo 1.6 vitara it was ultra reliable never even had to top up oil or coolant only got shut of it as needed something larger as have 4 dogs 🐕 and shifting bigger items.
@@datathunderstorm Yes, its doing 50 mpg near enough with a very nippy engine. Just a shame suzukis are not as fashionable as a VW (brand appeal etc). However, I would argue that suzukis are better cars with more reliability and age better than VW's
@@allankummanadil6298 it’s all down to taste at the end of the day! As many people dislike VWs as they do like them. I’m also 24 and and would take the vitara any day of the week. Would argue a T-Cross is more of a grandad car so as I say, it’s all about personal taste 😂
Excellent! I love these type of videos. Especially as it shows what you did with it. I'd loved to have seen a follow up on the Nissan Navarra. That needed some proper attention and would have been great to see what you did with it.
I should’ve done really. That one is currently in Ukraine helping the war effort
@@HighPeakAutos That’s brilliant, nice to see so many of your cars making their way there with supplies 👍
@@Halfpint71 it’s a small thing but it makes me feel like im doing something to help
MOT Testers seem to vary widely in their interpretation of the rule. For example, I have a car which had several MOTs with 'surface rust' advisories. They suddenly disappeared when a different MOT centre did the tests - no painting or repairs had been done in the meantime......
That’s quite right. I use an independent place so they have no favouritism and sometimes they pick up on certain things which other places miss and vice Versa. I always thought it would better if they were Goverment ran like lots of counties
@@HighPeakAutos Not sure government run stations would perform better - they are government run in Northern Ireland and there's been a long running saga of delays with test bookings to the extent that the MOT was suspended at one point. The main cause was a problem with the the workshop lifts, which were failing, with potentially dangerous consequences......
Cracking cars just a shame about the rust issues , I had a 1993 413 Samurai cost a fortune in sheet metal to weld it up and she's still doing the rounds .
A simple basic car that's not a moneypit. Their engines are used in experimental aircraft and their electrics are good but the finish is often not great but a bit of paint, cleaning, rust killer and welding and they go on for a long time. I love Suzuki motorbikes. Great mechanics.
Nice one Cyril (Matt) good cars these Suzuki
Good you made a grand on this car .
Proud of ya they make a good run around car
Kevin
Bought a 52 plate in 2018 for £500
Drove it round Europe in a charity banger rally ending in Barcelona. Bits fell off as we drove but had so much fun in the Vitara before scrapping it and flying home.
Had one of these for about six months. Wife said it rocked when going round corners. Swapped it straight away. You know the difference between January and July in the uk. The rain is warmer in July. Come to think about it we had a jimney not a grand vitara. Manual. And it guzzler petrol. 👍👍
You got a steal on that one. I had an XL-7...same looks just seating for 5 adults and 2 kids way, way in the back. Very neat setup and the rig had an extremely willing and ready v6. This is one of the very few cars I've owned that I really, really had a lot of fun with. The FWD was a kick in the pants too. If yours came with a V6, that thing would be pushing 6.5 secs to 60 mph.
See no matter what your eyes tell you Matt your mechanics and techs can give it a new lease of life. And all said and done it is a not bad wee car considering its age and mileage but as DVLA still has my license - no use to me. Plus I am thinking about converting to an EV Trike, so no need for expensive fuel but that could change with this Government think tank??
Had my 2005 diesel for 6 years passed mot every time got 130000 on the clock only paid 2 grand for it got to check the 4 wheel drive works on them and rust don't buy one from the coast
What a brilliant little reliable car. I own a new toyota hybrid and would love something like this as a second run around. I love japanese cars for their reliability and they dont use expensive dual clutch gearboxes. Great video!
Vitaras are a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Well built, very capable.
Love your work 👍
Just had my E38 DONE MOT , SEATBELT ANCHORAGE points ,2X ciggerette packet size plates on rear of sills cost me £250 then it passed ,you cant see the plates realy nice .Then i drove to jet wash dog sat in front i paid my pound and started to wash the dog loves it ,then he pressed central locking ,NO NO .the cars locked and the keys are in it 20 mile from home .
Oh dear. What have you done?
@@HighPeakAutos 20 miles home spair key then i got back he had pressed it again and it was open and hazzards going.
I parked it outside the midland hotel the other morning 6am people just snapped away.
These cars are sooo popular in Australia is a cheap alternative to a Landcruiser or just about any 4WD which is not far shy of $100k here. They fetch a tidy sum here second hand, even old and with plenty of miles, because people use them for trips to the beach and as an alternative little delivery van with the back seats ripped out.
My father in law has a diesel one that I borrow for towing my boat. Its an amazing work horse. Not what you might call a babe magnet, but very capable
Lovely Jubbly, you've got a cracking Suzuki even after all your pesamism upon seeing it at the beginning.
I do have a soft spot for the vitaras hopefully soon i shall be looking for a 2019/2020 one
I borrowed a friend`s 2000 GV a few years back when my car was getting a clutch done. Collected the car and the following day on the motorway suddenly lost all power and coasted to the side of the hard shoulder. No warning lights, just suddenly lost all power without warning. Rang breakdown and it turns out they don't have fuel warning lights!
The *BEST* cup holder review _EVER_
Thanks!
A new David Attenborough arises in Manchester, " it's covered in moss and green stuff" sheer poetry, made me chuckle, cheers Matt
It looks brilliant Matt what a transformation 👍
Thanks 👍
Webuymouldycars... I like, but don't love, my 21 Suzuki Vitara, which will be going now that my Defender has arrived, but here in rural south west Devon they are the AWD of choice, for very good reason. Oh, and I found the perfect vehicle for you. Single seater with not one but two cupholders, or one cupholder and one family bucket sized holder, a ride on lawnmower...
Looks a nice car . Nice wheels and tyres can make a huge difference to looks
got a 2006 xl7 love it but replacing the corroded valves on top of the fuel tank is proving to be a real challenge here in the US
I always take our cars mine and partners to local council offices maintenance Yard , by law the have to MOT the publics vehicles , they are very fair , only time any of our cars has failed was on emissions, the MOT tester said I darent rev the hell out of it as I don't know when cambelt was done. As you have 2 weeks before repaying for the test he just advised me to put emission cleaner in the fuel tank and drive it harder than usual. 2 weeks later the car went straight through. I've even sent a workmate who Audi claimed it wanted nearly £700 spending on it to get it through an MOT . He took and by all accounts it went straight through.
When you say you've paid £X for a car without seeing it, what does that actually mean? Who is doing the sale, gauging the value of the part-ex and moving it to the parking space?
It’s sort of how the trade works. I get a phone call with a car at trade money, and either say yes or no. I usually
Say yes
Not driven the auto but the manual GV1600 is good on fuel but real sluggish & the GV2000 is more pokey but you sure see that fuel gauge go down quick! They drive ok thou, overall not bad & good value in the day! Wheels on them will always go like that with age. In the 90's on the old Vitaras i fitted the spare wheel & holding bracket plus the rear seats & seat belts.....PLUS remove the excessive coating of protection it had all over it 😆 The Supagard is a waste of money! I applied it to lots of vehicles in the day,the fabric spray is useful thou....but it STANK!
GREAT VIDEO! THANK YOU FOR CONSISTENTLY PUTTING OUT TOP QUALITY CONTENT. VERY INTERESTED! KEEP IT UP! ❤️👍
What is life without money? I think that's irrelevant. When you live, always try to invest for future times like this to ensure profits and growth. So you are not dependent on the government. Investing in the financial market should now be on every savvy individual's bucket list.
Investing is the key to maintaining your financial longevity. And not just an investment, but an investment with guaranteed returns.
@Jerv Carter Investing in the financial markets works for me even if I don't do it alone. I have an expert helping me and his strategies have helped me avoid losses and increase my income.
He is active on TELEGRAM 👇
CONSULTTIMTAYLOR ✅
I love it 💯❤️ Investing is the path to financial freedom
Glad it worked out for you, Matt. 👍🏻
People talk about German build quality, but for an 18 year old car , that is terrific. A useful proper 4x4 , I like it.
German build quality?...That Phaeton from last week sums up the reality of the German build quality myth.
Here in the US, the Vitaras/Trackers with the manuals are the more expensive ones! We also didnt get the two door tin top, quite an interesting look!
Great cars, I was after a Jimny but they are stupid money and any I did see quite rusty. Ended up with a 1.6 petrol manual 2 door, had to put an O2 sensor in it to clear an engine light and it ran much better, and also done the cam belt, so easy to work on, plenty of room under the bonnet. like that one a polish of the headlights with some T cut and a spray of the wheels made it like new.
brilliant to see such a turn around on an 18 year old vehicle great video
Love these. Great workhorse, if as you say they are looked after and not allowed to rust out of existence. That one even sounds good on the video.
Always amazes me how people can sell the car on without even taking it to a car wash beforehand. Still, well done for having the vision to see that you could make some money on this one and hopefully the new owner will show it a bit more love than the previous one.
I have a 1996 Suzuki Esteem wagon which is better than all the Toyotas I had. It drives great and I can work on the engine myself. If I need any work done on the major parts, the mechanics where I live are very cheap. I have had German, American, British, and Japanese cars! I think the market is dominated by Toyotas and Hondas due to a lot of ads which exclude other makers like Suzuki.
Had 2 Suzukis in the last 6 years,great little cars and extremely reliable.
I agree. The Swift is a great car
@@HighPeakAutos especially the sport model
I would have applied that Colin appleyard sticker on the spare wheel cover when this was new, I used to work for a sign company and we did all the cars for them when they used to be on the corner near IKEA Ashton.
What a tidy well looked after car. And your fettling has made it very much worth the asking price. There can be gold in those main dealer crumbs
I have a 1.6 gv lifted and tweaked for off road fun, we have a lot of fun with it
Awesome again, I think a little to much time being spent on car check online review and servicing stamps, just noticed it of late, doesn't seem to be much driving of late, love the channel just love seeing it flow perhaps a little more like a short while back
Indicators on UK original and Japanese cars are on the right not left so you can indicate and do the gears at the same time. All eu and usa cars have the indocators on the left as the dont bother re designing the steering wheel just move it.
Great video Matt, do like those Suzuki's.. 😁 My mum still has her 2003 Ford fusion 1.4 trip and it's still going strong, she loves it..Waiting for you to get one of these on the show to see what you make of it..I still see a few about town..keep up the good work.. 😄
love this channel , notice a lot of auto youtubers are trying to copy the "i bought a xxxxx" and the format , lets be honest carwow is getting a bit predictable and scripted or at last it feels that way and all the cars cost a fortune, think being a trained actor makes Mat more natural in front of the camera, and the cars are those you'll probably be able to afford with a few dream cars thrown in
Another amazing transformation! Wondered what you were thinking dropping £2k in that, and then remembered why I wouldn’t touch a main dealer for a service/MOT after seeing those advisory lists.
Wonder way you don't do car vehicle history check before you buy it ? , anyway I had vitara for many years this is very reliable work horse ,have very tuff time with me and managed very well.
They put steel wheels on 4x4's because of the stress you can put them through off road. Where as Alloys off road is never a good combination
I use to own the other model Suzuki Ignis 2004, great car and started great on frosty UK mornings. The only time it let me down it needed a new oil filter other than that great car. I would have bought it myself as I know how good Suzuki cars are.
Can you do a review on the newer black grand vitara you recently got. Interested in getting one.
I bought an '04 a couple of years ago. Just as a farm cruiser. Having 4x4 auto & low miles sold me, while costing more than yours, I was happy to pay it as it's 1/5 to cost of a side by side buggy.
* I lost the back right cover on the roof rack, looking.
* What is the rocker switch next to the shift selector?
Says: N. A/T. P
Great car that saved !! ideal for someone who perhaps looks after a horse cheap to buy and go anywhere any weather!!
I had an 09 grand vitara ddis 1.9 with f9q dci engine and surprisingly reliable and torquey for a Renault motor only issues were split turbo pipes nothing else.
Nice one Cyril (Matt). You did a good job on that Suzuki Vatara. Good car for someone and a profit for you .
Well done Son
Kevin from sunny Radcliffe
Another quality video with some good banter… look forward to the next one 👍🏼
Great result matt, the last couple of vitaras I have bought cost me a roll of welding wire and multiple burns to get it through the MOT. Rare to see a Auto model also 👍👍👍👍