2026 Suzuki Vitara Hybrid review: Australian first drive

Suzuki has never really recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic and the automotive stock issues that came with it. You had to treat buying a Jimny like getting tickets to a Taylor Swift concert – finger on the trigger, ready to hit 'buy' on whatever comes up, or overpay for a secondhand one.

While stock was spotty for most of the Suzuki range, one of the strangest issues came from endless delays with the new Vitara range. Up until this year, Suzuki essentially only had 2023 stock until late 2025.

With the delay on a facelifted Vitara, which was launched overseas in 2024, Suzuki Australia continued bringing in pre-facelift models until mid 2025, when new autonomous emergency braking regulations came into effect.

Stock quickly dried up, and there were a good few months where you could not buy a brand-new Vitara at all. Finally, we now have the two-year-old facelifted model, of a model generation that is now 12 years old for the Australian market.

While it’s great to have this small SUV on the market once again, something is missing from its line-up.

New for the Vitara is a new hybrid powertrain. But not all hybrids are created equal. Suzuki Australia has gone big on "hybrid” badging, and renaming the model "Vitara Hybrid", despite the fact that it is not a real hybrid and certainly not what overseas markets get.

The marketing tactics of companies, and Suzuki isn’t the only one, that use mild-hybrid powertrains and sell cars to an unassuming crowd as a proper closed-loop hybrid, is troublesome. Because, the reality is that the majority of buyers in this segment do not care about the nuances of drivetrains.

The Vitara uses a 48-volt mild-hybrid system to provide a boost from a standstill. It cannot run on electric power alone; it simply provides a small boost to the efficiency bottom line.

Besides the non-hybrid hybrid system, the Vitara sees new styling across the board, a larger touchscreen for the top-spec model, and a tweaked spec list that sees equipment such as a six-speaker stereo, power-folding mirrors, privacy glass, and leather-like upholstery in the top spec only.

Obviously, the powertrain has also had some tweaks. You can no longer buy a naturally-aspirated 1.6-litre four-cylinder, as the turbocharged 1.4-litre four-cylinder is now standard fare. It has also had adjustments for fuel economy (0.1 litres per 100 kilometres and 0.3L/100km improvement for the front- and all-wheel-drive versions respectively). Power has dropped from 103kW to 81kW, but torque has been bumped from 220Nm to 235Nm.

Besides that, it’s still the same 12-year-old car, now $4500 and $11,665 more expensive (if you compare the old entry-level manual, 1.6-litre variant to its new entry-level equivalent), mainly due to the large discounts older models saw.

You can buy a Vitara FWD for $39,990 drive-away, which offers a 7.0-inch infotainment with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, fabric upholstery, leather-trimmed wheel, keyless entry and start, LED exterior lighting, reverse camera, and 17-inch alloy wheels.

The top-spec Vitara AllGrip starts at $45,990 drive-away and includes an all-wheel-drive system, a 9.0-inch infotainment screen with satellite navigation, a panoramic sunroof, a six-speaker sound system, additional off-road driving modes, synthetic leather and suede upholstery, power-folding side mirrors, and rear privacy glass.

Safety technology remains the same across the board with seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and front and rear parking sensors.

Opening the door to the Vitara will provide a familiar experience to anyone who has sat in one built in the last decade. A bigger touchscreen will likely be the only thing you notice at a glance.

The driver's seat is just the right size for my 184cm frame, as any taller and I could see the Vitara getting uncomfortable. I jumped into an AllGrip with a sunroof and my head actually touched the headliner.

Your elbows also tend to touch materials that don’t feel all that nice to rest on, although the suede inlay within the door panels on the AllGrip feels soft and pleasant to touch.

Suzuki has provided shortcut buttons for most car functions, eliminating the need to search through the touchscreen to select a navigation map or adjust the climate controls. This is always a pleasure in 2026.

Luckily, the touchscreen isn’t used for any further operations, as it seems to suffer from a lag similar to that of screens in other Suzuki models.

It’s also a giggle to still see analogue dials in a 2026 car, instead of a full-colour digital instrument cluster. It does make the car look dated, but at least it's legible.

It’s not the most high-end-trimmed interior, and my eye for what should be included at this price point has unfortunately been elevated by a few too many Chinese vehicles that are seemingly stack-full of pretty materials and a form-over-function looks.

I first had time in the brand-new eVitara, which, despite sharing a name, has nothing to do with the petrol-powered Vitara. One feels like a car from 2026, with less 'give' in the plastics and nicer-feeling materials, and the other feels like a car that is now 12 years old.

Despite not being the same car, it's hard not to draw comparisons. The eVitara has more sound deadening. You can hear it the instant you shut the door on a standard Vitara, and the plastics don’t flex when you push on them in the electric version.

I tested the Vitara's second row at the launch to find decent space for a small SUV. It should be fine for two adults, but it may get a little uncomfortable on long trips due to the vehicle’s small stature.

Boot space is measured at 362 litres with the seats up, 13L smaller than last year, which is around the same as an MG ZS and Cherry Omoda 5, but expands with the seats down to 642L. The bonus is that you get a spare tyre in the form of a space-saver, which is a rarity in 2026.

Something that has always saved the Vitara from being shunned to the 'too expensive' pile has been its driving experience, and I believe the 2026 model is no exception.

It's a light and easy drive, with potholes and pockmarked roads soaked up better than most, in this small SUV segment.

Whereas other affordable brands will often go for a stiff and harsher suspension tune to improve on-road handling, the Vitara is a bit lofty and floats through corners, which does cut into handling capabilities, but it does offer a very comfortable drive.

I tried my hardest to get a crashy noise or a spine-rattling bump, hitting every pothole I could find, yet it just seemed to soak it up nicely.

I also expected the interior to rattle, given its low-tier feel throughout, yet the car felt sturdy overall.

You can certainly feel the lack of power compared to its predecessor. You press the accelerator and nothing seems to happen. Even in the all-wheel-drive variant, straight-line performance simply isn’t there.

The lack of power could possibly be seen as a positive for a newer driver. When matched with the light steering, it’s a very approachable and basic car to drive. It doesn’t feel scary, and you have a nice, wide view of your surroundings.

Additional grunt is available from a standstill, but it tapers quickly. This could be an issue when attempting overtakes on the freeway, or at speeds over 80km/h.

We took on a slalom course where the Vitara showed some body roll when pushed. It wouldn’t exactly feel comfortable through successive switchback bends, but it would handle dodging road debris and animals without much fuss.

The Vitara has always been marketed as an SUV that can 'go anywhere', but it’s not a serious off-roader like a Jimny. Still, the AllGrip has enough technology and mechanical capability to tackle a few sludgy roads on the way to a campground or a beach drive.

I hit some wet clay sections and had a play with off-road driving modes, including the 'locker', which is more like a traction-control setting than a real differential locker. It senses wheel slip and transfers power to the wheels with traction.

Pushing the cars a little harder than you would normally saw the undercarriage scrape against taller mounds of dirt, but it handled the off-camber sections strangely well for an unserious off-roader.

The hill descent control works a charm to make low-grip downhill sections less daunting, and the Vitara exceeded my expectations of what it would be like off-road.

Unfortunately, I did not get the opportunity to drive the Vitara long enough to give a real opinion on whether you should buy one. Luckily, they’re not too dissimilar to previous models. It's fair to say this car sits on the ‘outdated’ side of the new-car spectrum.

As such, this new model has not undergone enough changes to increase the vehicle's cost compared to previous versions.

Still, approaching it purely as a driving experience, I was surprised by how well it handled mundane driving, as well as its ability to do some light off-roading.

It makes more sense from an on-road point of view, if you’ve resolved to buy a car with the Japanese 'S' badge on the front.

However, I highly recommend that you check out other vehicles. A Toyota Yaris Cross or even a Volkswagen T-Cross should be taken for an extended test drive before you leave the dealership with a new Vitara.

Zane Dobie comes from a background of motorcycle journalism, working for notable titles such as Australian Motorcycle News Magazine, Just Bikes and BikeReview. Despite his fresh age, Zane brings a lifetime of racing and hands-on experience. His passion now resides on four wheels as an avid car collector, restorer, drift car pilot and weekend go-kart racer.

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