Suzuki SX4 Sport Sedan MT

I've driven a SX4 Sport Sedan with manual transmission for two months and two thousand miles now. For the money , and given the limitations of horsepower (143 hp), it's one of the most rewarding cars I've had, and I've owned such cars as an M3, Saab (900,9000,93), MR2 and many others.

I bought this because it was inexpensive for its feature set and is a blast to drive. I assume most of my comments would apply to the hatchback AWD variants (the sport version is FWD only), though the sport sedan has less weight, 17 inch alloys, and perhaps one or two other options. My seat of the pants 0 60 time tells me about 8.5 seconds.

The SX4 pulls the amazing trick of making you think it's a much more expensive vehicle most of the time. It strikes a perfect balance between ride quality and handling, and this is something most cars do not get right for me, erring on the side of too much body roll or too much transmission of road imperfections. The SX4 hits the nail on the head in this regard.

As for power, well, 143 hp only goes so far. But the gearing and balance makes it seem very quick around town, and inspires confidence in any situation below say 55 mph. Much above this, on the freeway, its an economy car, and begins to show its limitations in top end acceleration.

The interior cabin design is like a mini SUV, and so there is plenty of shoulder and leg room, a large view of the road, and easy access.

In short, this car is economical (price/feature set/fun quotient), fairly comfortable, and a blast to drive. I dressed up the slightly drab interior with the Suzuki carbon fiber trim set, which looks really nice.

Last thing to note, this car is all Japanese, built in Japan, it is not a Daewoo. And fyi, Suzuki sells twice as many cars worldwide as Mazda, and is the leading seller of small cars in Japan. Look it up.