Just last week you read about our friendly compact SUV showdown in an off-road environment to see if India’s top three compact SUVs could justify the ‘SUV’ tag or not. Maruti’s Vitara Brezza, Ford’s updated EcoSport and the Tata Nexon took turns to drive through four different courses at the off-road adventure zone at Gurgaon. Truth be told – so while these SUVs do not offer 4×4 or AWD, the high ground clearance, big tyres and ample torque come handy and we are now sure that you can safely take these for your weekend adventures or that special Ladakh trip.
The same showdown is now available in video form on our Youtube channel and clearly showcases how these compact SUVs fared in different challenging conditions. Click the window below to start the video
While we drove the diesel powered Maruti Vitara Brezza and Tata Nexon, the Ecosport in this video was powered by a petrol engine mated to an automatic gearbox. All three vehicles exceeded our expectations around the four different sections, namely the high speed auto-cross, chicken humps, axle breaker and slush pit. The four different vehicles were driven by the same person so that we could deliver you a better and fair judgement.
So if you own one of these and were always skeptical about their performance off the road, you have a fair idea now. That said, a proper 4×4 or an AWD vehicle will any day fare better and in real world conditions, will not leave you stuck in the middle of nowhere. Sadly however, India does not have affordable and practical 4×4 vehicles as of now and we wish one of these three companies started offering this feature to make their compact SUV even more desirable! Maruti has already given us a strong hint with the Vitara Brezza 4×4 – have a look.
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