Despite building some solid cars, like the fun-to-drive SX4 compact and the midsize Kizashi, which earned third place in Cars.com's recent $25,000 Family Sedan Shootout, Suzuki has a consideration problem on its hands: It's just not typically in the conversation along with mainstream brands like Chevrolet, Honda, Ford and Toyota, which all market competing models. That's reflected in Suzuki's sales, which are a mere fraction of those brands'.
The Grand Vitara faces the same uphill battle as its car siblings, but if you're willing to give it a look, you might be surprised by its composed ride — I know I was — and its available off-road technology will put it high on some shoppers' lists. The problem for Suzuki is that the number of shoppers who want real off-road capability in a small crossover is small — and will likely only get smaller in the future.
INTERIOR
While the interior fit and finish of the 2010 Kizashi still reads a bit
"cheap," there are some details that are better thought out. For example, the
fabric upholstery has a wood grain f ...
Engine & Transmission
By and large, our Kizashi GTS test car's sportiness ended with its looks,
mainly because it was equipped with the optional continuously variable automatic
transmission and all-wheel drive. The Kiz ...
2011 Suzuki Kizashi
Introduced for the 2010 model year, the Kizashi midsize sedan was the most
impressive, competitive model in Suzuki's history, and our enthusiasm hasn't
abated in 2011.
My impressions in the 2010 ...