[tadejfu]

Hello guys. First of all, i don't own a suzuki yet, I am currently looking into buying my first one. Being the ocd person that I am, I've been searching and reading all i can before dropping the money. What I know so far, I am looking at a 5 door mk1 vitara (not too big, not too powerfull, not too small, just right), and its ought to be a diesl. In europe, we got the choice between the 2.0 model with the mazda engine, and the 1.9 with the xud9 engine. From what I gather, the xud is a good solid unit, with a good reputation, simplicity and most importantly reliability. I have trouble finding good info about the mazda rf engine though. It has more power, apparently better economy, on numbers alone it sounds better, but..... there is always a but. I can't find as much about reputation, longevity, reliability, issues and so forth. I would really appreciate some help.

[mnemonix]

None of those engine options have ever been available in Suzuki's in Australia where this forum is based.

[4x4xzook]

diesel vitara... interesting.

[tadejfu]

Yeah, I realize the fact diesels weren't an option in your country, but I did find people on the forum talk about doing engine swaps using either the xud or mazda engines, therefore I thought there are people with some knowledge and experience with them. I reckon somebody will come along with some good info.

[Gwagensteve]

Whilst there has been lots of talk of doing this swap, I don't think anyone has actually done it. A mate of mine even went as far as travelling to New Zealand to assess what the RF engines cars were like to drive, with he idea of importing an engine from there, but the swap wasn't viable for a number of reasons.

[watermouse]

I think the appeal of the RF engined Vitara is the option of fitting the 2.0 or 2.2 MZR common rail RF variants without bellhousing issues.

I have driven one, a Grand Vitara in NZ and while it was a very nice car the performance was underwhelming.

I have also driven a 306 with the xud turbo and that went ok but probably a bit lighter overall than a Vitara

In your situation, Tadjefu, I would stick with the more common vehicle and one you can find parts for more easily. The xud is a very common engine in europe being a Peugeot. There are probably heaps of aftermarket mods for it to increase power at least to what the RF would put out in a factory Vitara.

[mnemonix]

Yes it has been discussed but I don't believe there has ever been a single vehicle in this country running the engines you're interested in.

[headwerkn]

Zdravo tadejfu

As the others have stated, that era of Vitara was never offered with a diesel in Australia... it's only really been in the last 5-10 years that we've properly embraced diesel passenger cars... save for a very small number of Mercedes (190D, 300D) and large 4WDs (Landcruisers, Patrols, Pajeros/Shoguns etc.). Unlike Slovenia where seemingly every car runs on diesel, including my friend's Alfa 156JTS which I got to drive over there about a decade ago!

The VW 1.6/T and 1.9/T diesels (mechanical injection) are a popular engine swap in both Europe and the USA for Suzuki 4WDs due to their commonality, relative affordability, the worthwhile performance boost, better fuel economy and the fact that fit without a great deal of drama. Acme Adapters makes parts to helps the process. That's probably not much help to you unless you're willing to convert a petrol vehicle yourself, or seek out one that's already been modified.

Adijo!

[vet 180]

XUD9 engine for the OP. Very common engine in Europe, easy to get parts and get work done. A few kw's on paper and a litre or 2 per hundred kms doesn't mean much when considering the whole life cost of an offroad vehicle.