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Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel

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Offline OverlandMatthewCosta

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Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel
« on: November 28, 2015, 02:00:57 PM »
Hey guys  8)

New here and first post. I've been looking around and I'm impressed with all the knowledge on here!

So down to the nitty gritty of the question.

I'm planning a trip that will cover 5 (maybe 6 continents, still planning and in the extreme beginner stages) and have been trying to determine the perfect vehicle. I need advice for the pros and cons on choosing a Sidekick or Vitara for long-term travel. At first I had been taking a look at the traditional Land Rover or Land Cruiser route but the cost, MPG, and the convenience of parts world wide led me to realize that the Suzuki 4x4's would be the best option for me.

I've noticed some Sidekicks for well below 4,000 in decent condition and Vitara's a couple 1,000 more. The GV's seem to have a little more room, however.

Also I have a BASIC idea of modifications that should be done to complete this trip like snorkel, skid plates, probably a 1 1/2 lift with updated suspension, tent rack on top, delete back seats, bigger fuel tank, and maybe even a tow cable front bumper.

I'm sure some of you are shaking your head already saying my oh my are you screwed but hey, gotta learn somehow and God knows ill learn the hard way.

Look forward to the responses guys.

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Online fordem

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Re: Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel
« Reply #1 on: November 29, 2015, 09:55:32 AM »
You need to specify a year - to some of us, the Vitara and the Sidekick are equivalent vehicles - the Sidekick was the US market name for what the rest of the world knew as the Vitara, or in some cases, an Escudo.

I hate to suggest this but, I believe a Toyota Hilux is actually your best choice when it comes to convenience of parts.
'98 SQ420 Grand Vitara
'05 JB420 Grand Vitara
'16 APK416 Vitara
'21 A6G415 Jimny

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Offline OverlandMatthewCosta

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Re: Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel
« Reply #2 on: November 29, 2015, 10:10:09 AM »
You need to specify a year - to some of us, the Vitara and the Sidekick are equivalent vehicles - the Sidekick was the US market name for what the rest of the world knew as the Vitara, or in some cases, an Escudo.

I hate to suggest this but, I believe a Toyota Hilux is actually your best choice when it comes to convenience of parts.




Jeez completely blew that part lol. Speaking of the vitara 99-03 (I'm in the US) then 98 and earlier for the sidekick. Saw a sidekick '95 for sale for $2,000 with 86,000 miles which peaked my interest on the sidekick, I had been looking at vitaras mostly before. And I hadn't considered the toyota hilux  so I'll definitely take a look and do some research. For the sake of this post though I'll just keep it between the sidekick and vitara.


Thanks for the response!

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Offline Drone637

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Re: Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel
« Reply #3 on: November 30, 2015, 12:37:34 PM »
Not sure about putting a tent on top, vs pulling it on a small trailer.  That is a lot of weight to be putting up top.

How many people are you looking to bring with you?  Depending on your size it might be easier to make a bed setup in the back that can be used.
96 Geo Tracker, x-SJ-410,  x-White Rabbit, x-Project Trouble
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Online fordem

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Re: Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel
« Reply #4 on: November 30, 2015, 02:15:48 PM »
Ok - so we're going to restrict this to the US market, essentially comparing a gen1 (89~98) to a gen2 (99~05) - by the way, I'm pretty certain, there are other threads on this.

The gen1s were mostly 1.6s in either a 2 dr convertible or a 5 dr hardtop, there was also a relatively limited production of 1.8 engine vehicles, gen2s were available with a 1.6 or a 2.0 in a 2 dr convertible, and the 2.0 & 2.5V6 in a 5 dr hardtop.

Right there you can see the big advantage of the gen2 - more power - they are also slightly larger, slightly heavier and way more comfortable.
'98 SQ420 Grand Vitara
'05 JB420 Grand Vitara
'16 APK416 Vitara
'21 A6G415 Jimny

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Offline Thirty-Nine

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Re: Choosing between Vitara and Sidekick for long term travel
« Reply #5 on: December 01, 2015, 12:49:45 PM »


I can certainly come at it from the first-generation perspective. I have a two-door '95 16-valve and we travel all over in it, often times pulling out little Dinoot trailer with a rooftop tent. This summer we did about 3,000 miles in it covering Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, and Nevada.

My Sidekick is lifted 2-inches and wears 235/75/15 tires, which are larger than stock. It also weighs about 3,000 lbs. thanks to my winch, bumper, rack, etc., etc. It's likely quite a bit more with my ARB fridge, gear, and boy my wife and me inside. My vehicle has 166,000 miles on it.

The trucklet is not fast at all. It will, however, cruise at 70 mph happily. It is not a fan of going much faster, although it will. We took it up to 80 once on the trip just to see if it'd do it, and it did, but screams pretty loudly. We quickly brought it back to its happy zone afterward.

One of the best things about the early generations are their simplicity. If you opt for the 8-valve engines, they're even simpler. Parts are super cheap and widely available world-wide, as these were sold as Vitaras all over the globe from 1989 on. The car has been dead-nuts reliable since I bought it four years ago. I have put a lot of work into it, and recently had the transmission rebuilt, too.

I have never driven a 99-04 Vitara/Grand Vitara, so I can't speak to them. But, I can say that my '95 has been great. If you do decide to go that route, I'd look for a hardtop of four-door version, or a two-door with a hard top installed vs. using the soft top, simply for security purposes.

My wife and I have dreamed of taking our Sidekick out of North America, and maybe we will at some point. So far, ours has been relegated to the U.S. and Canada.

- Andy