IT started with a trickle and now, excuse the pun, it’s a swiftly flowing stream. Suzuki’s Swift is leading a renaissance at the small Japanese car-maker. The company is selling more than 600 a month and the diminutive Mini Cooper-esque small hatch has met with rave reviews. Now it’s the Grand Vitara’s turn. Using a similar interior design theme to the Swift – easily legible instruments, nice chrome highlights and quality switchgear – the Grand Vitara’s interior is wrapped in a new, up-to-the-minute chunky body that’s bound to eat into Nissan X-Trail, Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V and Subaru Forester sales. That just leaves the V6 engines of the Mazda Tribute, Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sportage and some head-to-head price points. Like its predecessor, the range-topping GV boasts a peaky V6 engine, albeit with more power, along with a 2.0-litre five-door variant. Both offer a proper low-range for off-road work. Suzuki expects to find about 460 buyers a month. However, the Grand Vitara’s drive experience is a revelation and like the Swift, the sales expectations could be a tad conservative.