Got my Suzuki SX4

[Wyld Bill]

The wife & I picked up her/our SX4 Sport yesterday. So far I love it! The iAWD is great. Here's a link to the pics. on the SX4 forums if anyone over here cares to check it out. http://www.sx4club.com/forums/...t1923

[Ever Victorious]

Looks sharp.

I finally got around to poking an SX4 earlier this week and determined that if AWD were one of my primary concerns, I'd spend the extra money and get the Subaru Forester... The SX4 is just WAY too small on the inside for me and what I do.

[BMAR240SX]

Congrats

[cireecnop1]

very Very nice!! LUCKY! I see that its the sport model also, that one has the smart pass right? how do you like it? I have still yet to see a Sport model at my dealer.

[versabundus]

Very Nice Bill! I wish I had seen them before I bought the Versa. Use it in the Best Of Health for A Long Time. Happy Holidays.

[Wyld Bill]

Looks sharp.

I finally got around to poking an SX4 earlier this week and determined that if AWD were one of my primary concerns, I'd spend the extra money and get the Subaru Forester... The SX4 is just WAY too small on the inside for me and what I do.

Not to start an arguement on here but,... I did all the research,...the SX4 isn't much smaller than the Versa,...what are we talking like 5" differnce in length but the SX4 is wider. I'm sure the tiny bit mmore size of the Versa helps but we are not comparing a Yugo to an Excursion here.

[Ever Victorious]

The V's engine is set much farther forward, allowing all interior components in the cabin more room. Rear seat legroom was nonexistent compared to the V, and the trunk was the same size at best.

[Wyld Bill]

Actually edmunds & other places on-line said the front leg room was teh same maybe they were incorrect. There is more leg room in the rear seat in the Versa but when you look at teh specs it is actually only like 1-1/2" more in the Versa. My kids are a 6 y/o boy & a small sized daughter so that didn't matter as much to me being able to order a car that was what I wanted & actually recieve it in a timely manner.

[Ever Victorious]

When I sat in the rear seat after the driver's seat was adjusted to my own height, my knees were firmly locked against the back of the seat, and it was't terribly comfortable. On the V there's much space between the seats and my knees in a comfortable position.

Needing to carry both large amounts of cargo and, alternately, large passengers in the rear, the SX4 would never be a viable option for me. TOO bad because the price on it is phenomenal.

[Wyld Bill]

I hear ya bud,...it's all in what you are going to use it for ya know. Every body I know or work with exspected to see a bigger car when I told them about it. It's what we wanted. My wife origonally wanted a Miata!

[versabundus]

Hey Bill. If you get a chance, let us know how it does in the snow. It's got to snow there sooner or later.

[Wyld Bill]

Hey Bill. If you get a chance, let us know how it does in the snow. It's got to snow there sooner or later.

Yeah LOL! THis weather is nuts! No snow use but did have it in some freezing rain & played around in the local sand pit the other day.

[Wyld Bill]

Here's my review of the car so far.

2007 Suzuki SX4 Sport model with after market moon roof & window tinting first impressions:

I have had the car for almost two complete days now.The second day after I got it I jacked it up & checked everything out underneath.

So far the wife & I both love this car & it is the best vehicle we have ever owned. We have never owned a vehicle loaded with so many convenience features & I’ve got to say we are loving it.

What I really like about the car:

THE PRICE!!What a bargin. Great warrenty, all these features, under $19,000!!!

The fact that the LOADED MODEL is available WITH a MANUAL TRANSMISSION! YEAH!!!

The shifter hight, throw, & engagement.The Nissan Sentra we had was a five speed but the shifter was taller, more sloppy & had a lot of throw. The Sx4 shifter seems very tuner/rally-ish

The black interior.The interior could be better but the black interior does look sharp. I’ve always liked black interior but never had a vehicle with black interior until now.

The rust prevention effortsThere is a lot of good rugged undercoating under the car. The wheel wells are all plastic inside so there is nothing in there that can rust. Even the rear shocks that come up through the wheel wells have plastic tubes over them to protect them. What a great idea!

The parking brakeThe parking brake works REALLY good & feels hydraulic when you pull it on.

The stock 16” aluminum rims.I love the rims & tires. Yeah they aren’t bling blingin but for stock they look nice & make the car handle great. Our last car had 14” steel rims with hub caps, YUCK! I also like the way they are cut out so much so they are easy to keep clean & you can see the brake calipers really well.

The rear hatch opening. Nice & wide open. I like it.

Four wheel disk brakesI’ve never had a vehicle with four wheel disk brakes (except for an off road rig) I like them.

Safety featuresI’ve never had a vehicle with all of these safety features. A bunch of air bags, ESP, EBD, iAWD, ABS ya know all those three letter acronyms LOL! Heck I even like the seat belt reminders. They work well but they aren’t annoying. They are like “Hey put on the seat belt”. Then after awhile “Hey are you going to put on your seat belt or not?” Then it stops but keeps the light on. That is neat.

The paintI love the color & it is actually a really good paint job. A lot of cars you see out there when you look up close the factory paint job looks blotchy not this one.

The power steeringThis is the smoothest power steering I’ve ever felt. It is so effortless it is amazing.

Seating/driving positionsI love them. Most other cars have you sitting on the ground without a good view of the road & I hate that. This car is more like a mini,…ok micro SUV.

The rear fold & tumble seats. Most of the comparable cars out there didn’t have this feature. Not a big deal but nice to have.

The ruggedness of the AWD systemI checked it out down under before I bought one & ogled it more after I got it home. It is plenty rugged & well thought out.

The gadgets & neat stuffHeated mirrors, outside temp., MPG computer, fog lamps, climate control, steering wheel stereo & cruise controls, etc. I love this stuff. We’ve never had a car with any of this stuff except the cruise controls on the steering wheel.

The gas filler cover.I don’t like that it doesn’t lock but I do like the rugged 3D design of the gas door

The factory roof racksI plan on using them with a Thule pod up there so I’m glad it came with them & they look good on the car.

The six disk MP3 Cd playerI guess this could have been in the “gadgets” heading but it’s kind of more important. The wife & I have over 10GBs of MP3s so this will be very cool.

The looks of the carIt’s hard to make a small hatchback look cool but I think they have done a good job.

The moon roofNot a factory option BUT I do love my power moon roof. The thing came out really nice & has a bunch of cool features. Even though it’s winter, every time I’m in the car alone I have the moon roof open. I just love having an open roof it makes me feel closer to God or something. Then when you shut off the car it automatically closes. How cool is THAT!

FLOOR MATS!!! LOL! Every car I’ve ever bought came without mats. What a rip off. The factory floor mats are nice & come in all SX4s.

The engineI like the engine overall. Yeah it could have more power but then the MPG would be worse. I’ve always owned 4 cylendar imports so I’m used to the four banger import buzzy motors. Just wind em up before you shift,..they love it. I also like the fact that it has a factory exhaust header & decent sized exhaust all the way back.

What I dislike BUT,.. I don't know how Suzuki would make it happen for the price of the car:

The MPG. It would be nice if they could somehow get it around 35 MPG highway & 30 MPG in town.

Lack of a center fold down arm rest with cup holder in the rear

Non secure gas fillerNot a big deal where I live but could cause some problems in the city or if you have people that want to get revenge on you.

The seats.Not that comfortable IMO, not that adjustable, & the fabric seems cheap.

The 11 Gallon gas tank.With the low gas milage not too long between fill ups. Not a big deal but a larger tank would be nice.

Non opening rear hatch window.It would be cool if the rear window could open like on a Matrix or Vibe

Stock stereo sound qualityYeah it could have been a LOT better. It all works good but sounds like do do IMO when you crank it up. I think some bas blockers on the door speakers would have helped a lot to reduce distortion.

Moon/sunroof non factory optionI LOVE my power moonroof & think it should be a factory option or standard on the Sport model

The blind spots in the rear left & right cornersI guess all hatchbacks have this problem. Not too much you can do to fix it but I don't like it.

[mkaresh]

Excellent write-up.

I've been wanting to drive and review one of these myself, but the two Suzuki dealers that were closest to me have closed.

[Wyld Bill]

Wow that's too bad for them Suzuki is booming right now.