There are some complaints about AvtoVAZ, but overall I don’t regret the purchase. Below is my subjective review of the owner of Vesta Sport, a real one, and not as many people write: we went to the salon, looked and started writing. I have already traveled more than 10 thousand kilometers.
I don’t know how successful I will be, but I’ll try to convey my impressions of owning the Lada Vesta Sport 2019-2020 model year. I don’t think that many will buy it at this price, but many are interested in what and how. I’ve had the car for several months, but I’ve driven almost 11 thousand kilometers on personal business.
Positive reviews about Lada Granta Sport
Nikolai: “It’s a very dynamic engine, for such a car, and it doesn’t show itself right away, but when the acceleration reaches about one hundred and twenty kilometers per hour. Another big plus of the engine is that it works perfectly on two types of fuel - A-95 and A-98 gasoline. Quite clear operation of the Lada Granta Sport engine, reviews from the owners confirm this"
Stanislav: “I can’t say anything bad about the engine. I’ve already had the 2022 sports grant for more than six months, and I’ve read a variety of reviews from the owners. I can note that the engine quickly picks up speed, does not make much noise, and I have not encountered any problems with the engine in six months.”
Oleg: “In my personal opinion, a 1.6-liter engine that produces power up to 118 horses is what you need for city driving. It is also unlikely that those who are considering this car in principle need to take off too hard. A good engine, I think it will last a long time"
Grigory: “I read reviews about the Sport Grant engine, what can I say. For me, the car drives great, starts smoothly, and picks up speed quite quickly. I am pleased with the dynamism, there are no problems with the engine on the road. I’ve been driving it for a year now - everything works great, I’ve never had to take the engine to a service station.”
Related link:
Replacing the front door handle on a Lada Grant. Self-adjustment of the lock gap
Taras: “The engine on this car is installed the same as on the Lada Priora, at three thousand revolutions per minute. The very quiet operation of the motor is impressive"
Andrey: “It’s convenient that the engine does not require 98 gasoline, and runs great on 95. It picks up speed smoothly. Doesn't twitch, doesn't growl. The presence of sound insulation helps to get rid of the sound of the engine running in the cabin."
Denis: “Excellent engine, no problems with it. Dynamic, controllable, intelligent, does not make noise, does not knock. Enough power"
About user interest
First, let's look at the advertising booklet, which contains the following lines: the owner of a Granta Sport can be sure that their car will be noticed. The rapid contour, low landing, graceful lines of the body - everything emphasizes the temperamental character of the car. As for the low landing, yes - Granta Sport has become lower. As for the fact that the car will not be left without attention - yes too! There was plenty of attention during the trip. People leaned out of the windows of passing cars, craning their necks as they passed by. There were some who were quite interested, asking questions and asking permission to look under the hood, sit in the cabin, and take pictures.
Several points were highlighted during the interviews. One of them, present in the form of a question (five or six times), does it have a leather interior? Hey designers and marketers, now you know about the people's aspirations. But regarding the external design, opinions are divided. The traffic cops found the silhouette similar to a Mitsubishi, and the watermelon seller - to a Subaru. True, he later added that Priora is better.
The rigid suspension was questioned, they say, in the city, and the conversation took place in Saratov, you will crush all your teeth with this suspension. Other technical features and design solutions (bumpers, spoiler) did not raise any complaints. The consensus when comparing the regular Granta and Granta Sport was the following: they made a beautiful swan out of an ugly duckling.
Now the car panel displays a figure of 5,000 km. What can you say based on your own feelings and expectations? But we can say the following: the car is good, it met good expectations and dispelled bad ones. By the way, the cricket has disappeared. But, as we know, miracles do not happen; we are accustomed to expecting bad things from the domestic automobile industry. Or maybe it’s in vain?
Lada Sport Granta engine reviews from owners - disadvantages
Darina: “Very small engine capacity; modern cars have been equipped with larger engines for a long time. The power is low and not suitable for driving outside the city."
Stas: “The engine works fine, but due to the fact that the car does not have a sixth speed mode, it is very inconvenient. It can be seen that if they had put it in sixth gear, the problem would have gone away on its own.”
Timur: “The engine is very loud, this applies specifically to the Grant Sport 114 hp, there are positive and negative reviews. For me, such sound insulation is not enough, noisy, loud"
Misha: “As soon as I accelerate over a hundred kilometers per hour, the steering wheel begins to vibrate strongly. In addition, the knocking in the cabin is very strong. Turnover is good - power is low.
Lizaveta: “The engine needs 3.5 liters of oil, but if you pour more, you can drown out the rumble and noise that hits your ears. A familiar engine immediately told me that it was no better than the one in the Priora.”
Conclusion about the engine
When evaluating the Lada Granta Sport engine, reviews from owners speak of positive and negative qualities. Quite powerful, but rather intended for city driving. It often works very loudly, completely similar to the Priora power unit. Good handling, dynamism, small volume. You can fill in 95 gasoline, acceleration picks up smoothly.
Related link:
Recommendations from experts for replacing the generator on the Lada Grant
Motor
So, we’ve probably reached the most interesting thing, why everyone came here to read my review of the real owner of the Lada Vesta Sport. This is the motor. Boosted to 145 hp regular 1.8, in the city there is an average of 8-9 liters per hundred, on the highway in a calm rhythm - about 7 liters. No complaints about the engine, except that there is some twitching at low speeds. I don’t quite understand, but maybe it’s due to the peculiarities of the firmware for Euro 5, or something else, and I’m already used to it, maybe it’s a factory defect, or maybe because of the camshafts, but it’s not always comfortable to push around in traffic jams. If this word fits traffic jams.
A friend of mine has a three-year-old Vesta with a 1.6-liter engine. I’ve driven it several times and haven’t noticed anything like this. At the bottom, the engine shows elasticity, but in comparison with my 145-horsepower, but then it doesn’t want to go. Mine comes to life somewhere after 3300 rpm, picking up speed quickly, which is enough for dynamic overtaking. The release is loud, yes, I even like it.
The most frequently asked question about oil consumption on Vesta Sport. Rosneft oil was poured into the engine and transmission from the assembly line, which did not suit me, so at zero maintenance I switched to Motul - I poured 75W-80 into the box and 5W-40 into the engine. I have already driven about ten thousand kilometers on it, the level still remains the same. Sometimes the engine turned over, but mostly it drove calmly. They promise to supply the Vesta Sport with a plug-inless 1.8-liter engine in 2022. This is probably what is missing. Purely psychological.
Grant sport transmission reviews from real owners are positive
Dmitry: “I spent a long time choosing between a manual and an automatic – the price for the second option is higher, so I had my doubts. But in the end I bought a Lada Granta Sport Automatic, the reviews on the car are good, and so are the characteristics. I’m not complaining – the price fully justifies the quality.”
Maxim: “The manual gearbox shifts speeds perfectly, clearly, and doesn’t stick. Judging by the information, it is the most reliable. Besides, it won’t cost much to fix the mechanics.”
Svyatoslav: “It’s been running for two years now – I have no complaints, everything shifts clearly, the reverse gear works great, it’s easy to control the speeds. Fifth speed allows you to accelerate the car sufficiently"
Evgeniy: “I chose Granta Sport for myself - the reviews from real owners of 2017 were, in principle, pleasing. I purchased it and lengthened the fifth gear, since the factory version has a very high engine speed, even at a speed of one hundred and thirty kilometers per hour. Now I'm happy with everything"
Kirill: “In fifth gear the car drives great, quite quickly, changing gears is convenient, effortless, in principle, almost like on foreign cars. I was not able to see much difference in the transmission of Renault and Grants"
New grant sport 2022 – owner reviews
Svetlana: “The only thing that confuses me about the gearbox is the presence of a cable drive. They say that if you contact the service center, it can be replaced with other options for boxes, I just don’t want to send a new car straight to the service center.”
Igor: “Sixth gear is missing. According to rumors and reviews, it is possible to install it, but to be honest, I don’t know how much it will cost, and in general whether it can be done. It would be a great gearbox with sixth gear."
Stas: “The manufacturer has endowed the transmission with a very short first gear - as soon as you start to accelerate, it’s time to increase the speed mode. Personally, this is why I often skid when starting.”
Related link:
Checking and adjusting headlights on Lada Granta. Advice from the experts
Mikhail: “The variator constantly malfunctions - I’ve already had to visit a service station three times precisely because of problems with it. Either a throttle or a cord - in general, I don’t recommend taking a variator, it’s better to choose between a manual and an automatic.”
Ilya: “The disadvantage is that when using first gear, the lever often slips when switching to second. This must be done quickly enough, but due to slippage it is not always possible.”
Conclusion on the new sports grant
Owners note the rather short duration of first gear, and also complain about the lack of the sixth speed mode. However, at a service station you can extend the fifth gear, and then the problem is solved, but due to the short first mode, difficulties often arise when starting to move. The manual and automatic transmissions work great, but the CVT malfunctions. If you watch Granta Sport video reviews, you can note the clear gear shifting, good handling and reliable operation of the box.
What Granta Sport looks like inside - reviews from owners
Igor: “Thanks to the leather steering wheel and sports seats, the inside of the car began to look solid. The transmission lever is also covered in leather, all the seams are with red stitching - in general, stylish, modern, original.”
Gleb: “The wheelbase was made a little larger, and now there is more space in the cabin - it’s comfortable and spacious while driving. The trunk is roomy, although it has become a little smaller; this volume of four hundred and eighty liters is enough for me.”
Boris: “The lateral support of the seats is simply excellent, much more developed than that of its predecessors. Just search for information on the Internet about Granta Sport - reviews from real people about the salon are mostly positive.”
Slavik: “When I had the opportunity to ride a top variation of a simple grant, without the sport prefix. I can say that the inside of the car looks as good as the basic version of a sports car."
Related link:
We select tires and wheels for the Lada Granta
Valentin: “I like the interior of the car. A convenient panel on which everything is clear and understandable, you don’t have to look closely, and is illuminated with high quality. The seat is very comfortable for the driver"
Interior and seats of the Grant Sport - reviews from dissatisfied owners
Lev: “It would be possible to add some new items to the design elements - as usual, Lada is Lada - everything is plastic, cheap, it doesn’t even look next to the old foreign car.”
Egor: “Very firm and rigid driver’s seat. Isn't it possible to make the ride more comfortable? When I first got behind the wheel, it seemed like it was not a driver’s seat, but a stool.”
Grisha: “It’s noisy in the cabin if you turn on the heater, and when driving at first speed the sound is still tolerable, but when you even get to third gear, get ready for unpleasant noises that can’t be eliminated.”
Potap: “As soon as I drove the Granta Sport 114 hp, the owners’ reviews immediately justified themselves - nothing was visible in the mirrors. There is no view from the driver’s seat; this had to be thought through when designing the interior.”
Renat: “The backlighting of the front panel is very specific, I would say – not for everyone. For example, it seems to me like some kind of ancient, outdated invention. There are complaints about the hardness of the driver's seat."
Conclusion about the salon
The car's interior has not become much more modern, but the appearance of leather upholstery and original red stitching gives the car a special style. If we consider the Granta Sport Active Drive, reviews indicate the presence of comfortable, but at the same time, slightly hard seats.
In addition, the car does not have a very good view of the road through the mirrors. For its price, the car has a wonderful interior.
Wheels, steering, brakes and suspension
Suspension front/rear: independent, MacPherson/semi-independent. Feels tough. Sometimes very tough. What did they do to it to achieve better handling? The wheelbase has been extended. In total, the front and rear suspensions were widened by 20 mm. The figure is small, but coupled with the added degree of inclination of the rear wheels and the reduced ground clearance (up to 140 mm) it turned out to be very effective. Plus different springs, reduced ground clearance and changed shock absorber characteristics.
We were lucky, we managed to grab a Lada Granta Sport on size sixteen forged slick wheels. Nowadays cars are equipped with cast ones, which are also good, but made in China. Yokohama C-drive tires. The tires feel great during acceleration and emergency braking (near Saratov, someone in an SUV quickly drove off the adjacent road and stood rooted to the spot in the middle of the highway). But this is not only the merit of the rubber, the car is equipped with rear disc brakes with a diameter of 240 mm and an emergency braking assistance system, which could not help but help in this situation. The brake pads, apparently, were not the best installed - the wear of the brake disc was noticeable already at the second thousand. But rutting and wet road surfaces are what have a noticeably bad effect on the Yokohama C-drive’s road grip and handling. Noticeable noise appears at a speed of 120 km/h. I would like to add some good words about the steering. I don’t know what exactly they did there, but it allows you to control the car, and not set the direction.
Lada Granta Sport 2022 - suspension reviews
Kostya: “I am completely satisfied with the suspension - I accelerated the car to 184 kilometers per hour, the suspension held its direction perfectly, the main thing is not to try to gain acceleration on a bad road. This car is very sensitive in potholes and bumps."
Related link:
Expert advice on how to replace the alternator belt roller on a Lada Grant with your own hands
Arthur: “A high-quality suspension immediately noted this fact. The car drives confidently, does not hesitate, does not make noise. I haven’t changed the suspension in two years of driving.”
Danila: “I understand that the manufacturer slightly changed the suspension, added a more sporty mood to it, so the car is quite playful and drives well at high speeds.”
Denis: “If we consider the suspension and struts of the Grant Sport, the reviews are quite contradictory. It all depends on the purpose for which the car is purchased. You won’t be able to drive on country roads and bad roads on it, but moving around the city is fine.”
Sasha: “I read the reviews of the Lada Granta Sport 2022 very carefully when I was thinking about purchasing. Now I realized that even adjusting the suspension is quite easy on your own - this is a big plus of our domestic cars.”
Negative reviews – Granta Sport 2017
Konstantin: “You can’t accelerate in a car - if you hit the slightest hole, the suspension will start knocking very loudly. It’s impossible to drive only on smooth roads in our country - draw your own conclusions.”
Roman: “The suspension is not energy-intensive due to the lowered struts. The manufacturer didn’t think through this point!”
Larion: “The suspension is killed very quickly if you often drive on roads with asphalt waves, bumps and potholes. True, the repairs are not expensive, but still unpleasant.”
Igris: “The shock absorbers suffer greatly due to incorrectly made suspension; very soon we will have to change them. Be ready".
Sergei: “It’s a bad semblance of a sports car - cars with such a suspension are not made in the class that the manufacturer has aimed for. As a result, we had to completely change the suspension and shock absorbers, and the price of a normal suspension was almost the same as all Grants.”
Air conditioning and stuff
The air conditioning (but more on that later), light sensors, rain sensors and other pleasant little things caused absolutely no complaints. The air conditioning turns off automatically during acceleration, which cannot be ignored when overtaking heavy trucks and lines of passenger cars with families going to the sea. The rain sensor has three positions that regulate the frequency of movement of the brushes.
One of the unsatisfactory features is the poorly placed rear towing eye. It is located in such a niche that the bumper may be damaged when the vehicle is towed.
Car body - positive reviews Lada Granta Sport 1.6
Mark: “Good appearance, sporty, stable, the doors open comfortably, but there were problems opening the trunk a couple of times. But I easily fixed it myself.”
Alexey: “When I was going to buy Granta Sport 2022, the owners’ reviews were of great importance. As for the body, I will say that the size of the car is very convenient. Not big and not small.”
David: “It’s a great car for the city - and there are no problems with the body, it’s not too big, but it can accommodate five passengers, and luggage, even an adult bicycle, fits in the trunk.”
Oksana: “The car is budget, so I didn’t even think of demanding a cool body from it, but overall it’s compact, comfortable, nimble - excellent for its price.”
Lesha: “I’m satisfied with the body – spacious trunk, good appearance, durable, modern”
Appearance
Some people don’t like it, others don’t like it, it’s all entirely subjective. There were cases when people came up on the street and asked where they got such a body kit and why they were tuning it at all. I had to explain that it was a drain. I personally really like the appearance: signature coloring, a little aggressiveness. There are no complaints about the installation of the spoiler, door sills and bumpers - the gaps are uniform, everything is securely fastened.
The only annoying thing is the red inserts on the bumpers, made of two parts - why couldn’t they be made into one element?
And I’m not the only one who writes about this in reviews of Vesta Sport owners
Lada Granta Sport - negative owner reviews 2017
Victor: “I can’t say that the body looks original and stylish - it all depends on the color and additional options. And these are additional payments again"
Pavel: “It would be possible to expand the wheelbase a little more, then the car would look more interesting, but it’s just another Lada”
Stepan: “Due to the very low body, it’s inconvenient to drive - the ground clearance could have been worked on better - once I went fishing, and immediately damaged some of the parts”
Zhora: “When I read reviews about the Lada Granta Sport wheels, I expected to see something stylish and original, but they don’t harmonize with the standard body at all.”
Eduard: “I don’t like the body at all - I’ve only seen it in photographs, but you can’t call the car a sports car - there are no sporting elements here”
Related link:
Replacing the oxygen sensor on the Lada Grant
Body - what can we say in the end?
There are additional options and firmware for the Granta Sport; owner reviews regarding the body often talk about its simplicity and standard appearance, but by adding options you can change this. Low ground clearance spoils the overall impression - you won’t be able to drive the car off-road. The body size is compact, the luggage compartment has good capacity, although it has been slightly reduced.
If we take a comprehensive look at the Grant Sport car, the reviews are quite contradictory. The car is suitable for those who appreciate and love the domestic auto industry, and, at the same time, are looking for an inexpensive option for purchasing a new car. You shouldn't expect any drastic changes from the Sports console.
The engines and suspension have been improved, many details have been made in a sporty manner, but Granta cannot drive quickly on poor-quality roads. The weak suspension is installed so that every blow is directed directly at the shock absorbers, so when it hits a bump, the car makes a lot of noise and is particularly sensitive
There are different opinions on many specific details of the car. The interior, engine, transmission and camshafts of the Grant Sport are particularly noteworthy; reviews of them are mostly positive.
Salon
It is standard, the only difference is the black ceiling, steering wheel, carbon fiber trim, lacquered inserts in the panels, front seats, handbrake and gearbox handle, trimmed with something similar to leather.
The seats are quite comfortable and hold up well on sharp and long turns. No fatigue even on a long trip. The steering wheel is a little thicker than in a regular Vesta, which I like. But the handle of the box is too large and looks somehow unsightly. The glossy inserts in the panels look good, but it’s annoying that there are always fingerprints on them.
