Suzuki’s stab at the sedan segment

Cars are getting a bit like malls, don’t you think? No matter how much we whine and complain about rising fuel (or land) prices, they just seem to keep getting bigger and bigger. Take a look at the Corolla and Civic as an example. They started life here as 1.2 liter or 1.3 liter cars and now come standard with a 1.8 engine, or the optional 2.0 liter in Honda’s case.  Sure they have become more efficient over the years, and are arguably more economical than their 1.6 liter predecessors, just with a lot more space, but you see what I’m getting at, I’m sure.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining; as a matter of fact, as I am getting bigger myself, I welcome the added room and power. But as the big boys start going through puberty, smaller brands like Suzuki have sniffed out an opportunity to compete in one of the most cut throat segments of this very competitive industry. Introducing the new SX4.

Now I know what you may be thinking, and yes, I’m also beginning to think that cars are finally running out of names, but there’s far more to the SX4 than just a raffled off nameplate.  Let’s start with its’ baptism by fire in the World Rally Championship. Now it may not be troubling the top ten, but the sheer fact that it has big enough ball joints to tangle with those fire breathing monsters, just shows that Suzuki are on to something here.

Unfortunately, we won’t be getting the 143 hp, handsome hatch versions with the potent 2-liter engines and all-wheel-drive system, so you can put away your driving gloves. What we will get is the base model, 102 horsepower, 1.6-liter, 4 cylinder, 4 speed automatic SX4 Sedan, without the option of a manual transmission.

During the launch at the Le Pavillion in Manila, only one variant was offered, and it comes standard with 15-inch alloy wheels that are wrapped in 195/65 R15 rubber, while suspension is sorted out by McPherson struts with coil springs in front and torsion beam with coil springs in the rear. It also comes with electronic, speed sensitive power steering and ventilated discs at the front, but it still uses the dated drums at the rear.

It may look a bit small from the outside, but despite the SX4’s compact 4.5-meter length, 1.7-meter width and 1.5-meter height, I have to say that Suzuki have done wonders to come up with a remarkably roomy interior. Head room in particular gives you the feeling that you’re in a bigger car, and visibility is excellent as well, thanks to a high driver’s seating position and rear head restraints that do not intrude into the driver’s view. Rear leg room is on a par, if not a touch smaller than a City or Vios.

In this trim, it should now be able to go head to head with the Sentra and the GLX Lancer as well as be able to lure the occasional Vios and City buyers, although I still believe that offering the 2.0 liter variant, even in low volume numbers, would serve as a showroom leader for Suzuki and could drive sales up for the entry level models.

Because that, in a nut shell, is what this car seems to scream out for. An image. It is technically sound and seems very well-built, but locally, it has about as much personality as a dial tone.

The trouble starts once you start browsing through the internet for the SX4 and see it in international trim. After a couple of pages, you start foaming at the mouth, whereas in contrast, poring over the local press kit tends leave you slightly under whelmed. I’m sure it comes down to keeping costs down but there’s not a lot that sticks out from the competition except for that whopping 515 liter trunk and the fact that it is currently the only one in its class to come fully imported from Japan.

This has its advantages, of course, like fabulous fit and finish, very well sorted out NVH (Noise, Vibration and harshness) as well as a very handsome three spoke leather steering wheel with audio controls connected to an integrated MP3 compatible audio system player and eight speakers, but at 814,000 pesos, it is up against some pretty stiff competition.

And only an official test drive could settle that score. Stay tuned.