Buy or hold: Wait for Suzuki XL7 or go for rivals?

Coming soon to a dealer near you, the XL7 is Suzuki Philippines latest entry to the mid-size sport utility segment. It’s a promising new offering that combines utility and affordability without compromising reliability. It boasts a tough and aggressive look as well as a slew of features that make it a capable off-roader amidst its multi-purpose vehicle roots.

Also Read: Suzuki XL7 bookings open, P30,000 discount available

While it does share the same DNA as the Suzuki Ertiga, the XL7 won’t make you look like you’re attending another PTA meeting. Instead, you’ll be greeted upfront by a black, aggressive-looking grille paired with angled headlamps coupled with LED DRLs. This tough and rough demeanor extends to the sides where you’ll find, likewise, thick black trims that lie below the Suzuki XL7’s panels making it look a little less like a minivan and more like a duty-oriented vehicle. At the rear, the hardened look is finished with vertical taillights for a more prominent road presence. It’s also paired with a relatively capable engine, the 1.5L K15B found in many other nameplates in the Suzuki stable. That said, its looks, engine, and other features are good; but it does not break any records. In fact, many other vehicles in the same segment do offer a wide variety of amenities centered around practicality that it begs the question – should you wait for the Suzuki XL7 or should you be considering its competitors?

In this article, we’ll look into some of the things you should look into if you’re on the fence about waiting for the Suzuki XL7’s release or to go for its rivals.

1. Pricing

While Suzuki Philippines only has a handful of information posted on their website, it’s more than enough to tell us just how much the Suzuki XL7 is. This up-and-coming five-door seven-seater mid-size SUV is available (at the time of writing) in a single variant and is slated to sell for ₱1,068,000. Compared to other vehicles in this segment, like the Nissan Juke, the Toyota Rush, and the Honda BR-V, the Suzuki XL7 isn’t quite the most affordable. Here’s a quick comparison of the vehicles in terms of price.

Suzuki XL7	₱1,068,000
Honda BR-V	₱1,035,000
Nissan Juke	₱1,021,000
Toyota Rush	₱968,000

In fact, if you look at it, the Suzuki XL7 is the most expensive of the bunch as the other vehicles on the list tend to be on the lower end of the price range. Be it may that the prices of these mid-size SUVs are based on the lowest trim level the manufacturers have to offer, the Suzuki XL7 leaves no room for options as it comes only in one trim level. Having said that, Suzuki Philippines currently offers exclusive discounts to prospective car buyers looking to book the mid-size SUV in advance cutting a significant ₱30,000 from the original price to a potential ₱1,038,000 price tag.

2. Parts Availability

It’s inevitable. All vehicles, with all their moving parts, are bound to have components break and replace. It’s important that your vehicle of choice to have parts readily available so you won’t have to wait weeks, or months, for the parts to be shipped. Suzuki Philippines has a factory plant located in Canlubang, Calamba City, Laguna that ensures parts availability won’t be a problem for local car owners wanting to maintain and keep their Suzuki vehicles in good running condition.

Moreover, the fact that the engine used by the Suzuki XL7 is shared by other vehicles like the Ertiga and the Jimny, parts compatibility and the workforce professionally trained to handle these engines is of no scarcity.

3. Reliability

It’s no surprise to know that Filipinos think highly of Toyota. The brand is as synonymous as the words “reliability” and “dependability.” However, the same thing can be said with Suzuki and the Indian market. Suzuki has made a name for itself in the Indian automotive landscape that some find it inevitable that the brand will soon have a similar impact here in the Philippines with its local fleet bolstering its numbers and presence with the release and launch of new vehicles. With a slew of available parts and service centers to accommodate maintenance and repairs, the Suzuki XL7 might just be the dependable mid-size SUV for the active and outgoing Filipino family.

That said, the Suzuki XL7 makes for a strong contender in the mid-size SUV segment being in the same league as the likes of staple models like the aforementioned Rush, Juke, and the BR-V. Nevertheless, the Suzuki XL7 is worth waiting for especially if you can take advantage of Suzuki’s early bird promo but you might be better off looking the other direction if you’re buying it for its standard price.