2011 Suzuki SX4 Sport SE Review - A Quirky Sedan From An Old Brand! 

Suzuki missed an opportunity to deliver a hot hatch in the US market. If they want to re-enter, they'd do well to consider doing so with an enthusiast hatch and not a CUV.

A little background you left out. Suzuki came into the US market in 1985 as a captive import by GM. They started operating independently in 1986 with their Suzuki Samurai (Jimny in all other markets). They eventually imported a small car (Swift) and a somewhat larger SUV (Sidekick). They were in a partnership of sorts when GM bought 20% of the company in the early 1990’s. Suzuki supplied the Metro and Tracker vehicles to GM’s GEO division. By the early 2000’s GM upped their ownership to 35% and also bought South Korean manufacturer Daewoo. GM dictated Suzuki to be the division to sell Daewoo cars. Daewoo was manufacturing very little on its own and the cars were beyond substandard. Three Daewoo models were rebadged as Suzukis, the Forenza, Reno, and Verona. This is what killed Suzuki in America, GM literally killed their reputation with substandard vehicles. When GM sold its ownership in Suzuki back to the company in 2008-9 (the market crash that almost killed GM) they were weak and had three models (some of which relied on GM parts) so they left the North American market. That is the true story. The car you tested (SX4) was known in other markets as the Fiat Sedici, as it was developed in a partnership with Fiat and designed by Georgetto Guigaro. It only had the CVT for,the last two years of its existence in North America. Before that it had a traditional 4 speed automatic. Please, rather than make broad assumptions and vague generalizations, research a vehicle before you report on it and give people misinformation about a brand and its models. Suzuki,Isuzu, Saab, Hummer, Saturn, and Pontiac were both all but destroyed by GM in the late 2000’s and all deserved a better fate. You make it sound as if Suzuki left because they couldn’t add up, nothing could be farther from the truth! As for the Kizashi (pronounced as spelled Kiz-ash-ee), it was an amazing car that missed out because of the Daewoo cars Suzuki were forced to sell by GM. No one would look at it after the company had their reputation destroyed by GM.

My neighbor had the hatch with a manual. I always thought it was super cute and adorable!! But you should def find a Kizashi to review, always wanted their never released turbo, manual, awd version...sadly they pulled out of the US before they made it

Drove a rental SX4 sedan for 2 weeks in Salt Lake City on a business trip. It was huge inside, with an SUV type of high driving position. Gigantic trunk. Did great on the freeway and was a reasonably decent handler on twisty roads in the mountains. Mine had a geared automatic. I was actually somewhat sad to return it to Hertz. Good memories

glad to see you review such an underrated car. Despite sales not being the best i still see plenty of these sx4s around.

Some model years of the hatchback had a conventional Aisin 4-speed automatic besides the 6-speed manual. And the AWD system was quite good, it had a FWD only and also a 50:50 lock mode.

"Suzuki, can we please get Jimny?" Suzuki USA: "No. Now finish your SX4s"

I have a Garmin portable navigation I bought in 2015 similar to the one in this car. Even in 2023, I still find it better than trying look at an equally small screen on my phone using Google Maps. The Garmin came with lifetime map updates too.

I love the eulogy; so accurate. As an owner of a 95 Sidekick, and former owner of an X90, their cars were/are cool. Wish we had the Jimney here, especially the highlighter yellow color! Gotta fix the alternator on my Sidekick and gonfor a cruise now....

Zack, learn how to drive a CVT equipped car. To get the fastest acceleration, do not repeat do not smack it to the floor. you actually hurt your speed. Instead, push the accelerator a little quicker that usual this will allow the CVT to spool up faster. When you just smack it to the floor you shock the CVT and that is why you have to wait longer for it to spool up, which is the equivalent to a normal transmission shifting gears. If you want to see a CVT spool up, just Google How a CVT works.

my mom has a 2004 suzuki grand vitara XL-7 it has been the best suv she has ever owned she still has. I love it

My dad's wife has one of these as a little city commuter. They've had it for a while. It seems to work for them.

I literally seen 2 SX4 Hatchback's in orange color today 😂. And they both were driven by 2 different people. So I find that this review came out today very funny. Btw, Another good review Zac!

I have a friend who owned both this, and it's genetically-related predecessor, the Aerio. His SX4 was an earlier model year with a standard geared transmission and without the Garmin option. What I remember about both of these cars was two things. First, they are incredible spacemongers; for the size of the car, there's tons of headroom, shoulder room, and leg room both front and rear and they both had huge trunks. They had massive, airy cabins. Secondly, was at least for him, the engines were unreliable. He replaced the Aerio after it nuked it's second engine, with neither engine logging 100,000 miles before dying, and the SX4 blew it's engine up too (though at a more respectable 150,000 miles); he eventually replaced it as well, and has since given that car to his daughter-in-law who uses it. One of the cooler things about this car is the A-pillar window. This is a relic design feature out of time and it might've been the last american-marketed car that had one.

I still use a 2002 Suzuki Esteem it was my first car and it stills runs great 👍🏼

I just drove a rental RHD Suzuki Swift in TC, the interior is EXACTLY the same. The center Garmin was replaced by a storage bin.

I bought new a 2002 Aerio hatchback crossover. It would have been an S trim in the US. My 15 year old son and I took it on a 3 week, 37 state, 12,000km road trip in the US in 2005. The car performed like a champ, never a moment of worry, great highway mileage, and the only other one I saw the entire trip is when we got to Seattle, 3 hours from home in Vancouver. I traded it in for a deluxe SX AWD model, with the 2.4 engine, fully optioned with a more normal dash. That car had the best AWD system I’ve ever used, it went everywhere.

These (and the Kizashi) are everywhere here in West Virginia. I'm surprised they haven't rusted away.

Need to find a Suzuki Kizashi. That was the cool Suzuki in it's time. Used to get great handling reviews.

I had a 2012 sx4 crossover for 10 years. Decent dependable car. Had some recalls that were fixed. Other than regular maintenence there were no issues. Until fuel filler neck rusted out. Could not find parts for it anymore so i got rid of it

I recently drove the 2007 model here in India, one of the best Suzuki cars I've driven if not the best. It was diesel MT. Surprised to see it in the US.

We have the hatchback version with 1.6 liter engine mated with a 4-speed automatic here in Thailand. It came out just after I bought the 2010 Swift (1.5 liter w 4 speed auto). It felt like a slightly bigger Swift. Had it been available when I bought the Swift I might have gotten it instead. While the Swift was quite popular, the SX4 was sold in tiny number. Overall the Swift has been superbly reliable and my mom is still driving it.

I still see even older versions of these running around where I live. I bet these are very durable (save for that cvt)

My granny has a gray hatchback all wheel drive one, the wad switches in the center are for heated seats, traction control and 4x4 control

I’m currently in Costa Rica studying Spanish for the summer and Suzuki is still doing well and I do wish we still had Suzuki in America. Especially the newer Jimnys are really great. Car culture in Costa Rica is great but I’m glad I’m not tasked with driving. It seems like there are no driving laws.

I had once gotten an SX4 as rental. However the model I drove was the 1.6L with a 4 speed automatic. The transmission in that thing was so responsive that it actually made the car zippy and fun to drive like if it was a manual because of the transmissions excellent tunning. It's a real shame that the CVT models performance is the complete opposite considering it had a 2.0L. This review has really made think who would actually buy the CVT. If the person absolutely had to have an automatic of some sort the 1.6L model would had been the better choice. Or just shop else where.

I bought my 6 speed manual new in 2012. I currently have 285K miles on it. Other than replacing the alternator at 192K, and regular oil changes, It needed nothing. it runs like a top still. This car with a manual transmission is a blast to drive, and an awesome underappreciated car. a CVT is a deal breaker in any car for me.

Suzuki isn't totally gone from the U.S. market. They still sell motorcycles here. However, I think they haven't introduced a completely new bike in about 20 years and recently pulled out of MotoGP racing.

Great insight into this car. Shocked for find out is came with an all-wheel drive option.

The CVT sang the song of its people..."rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR" I saw a Suzuki car on the road a few months ago...the first time in years. Keep bringing the quirky cars!

I don't remember this being sold as a sedan. Learn something new each day, I guess. I remember the Kizashi and the Aerio and the wagon versions of these though.

I have the AWD hatchback with the CVT. I felt it could do some autocross, despite the transaxle and the weak power. So, I added 18" rims and low profile tires, and it handles really well! It also handles really well in the snow. And it was cheap. The seats are terrible, fuel economy is also terrible, and it has almost zero sound deadening, and the back seat feels like an afterthought, but I enjoy driving it. I only wish it had a better engine and manual transaxle.

For some reason when i heard SX4 i was thinking of the AMC Eagle SX4 i sold my buddy a few weeks ago😂. Suzukis are so weird but oddly interesting to me since i rarely ever see them.

My better half has one of these, although in our market the drivetrain consists of a 1.6 engine and traditional 4 speed automatic. I have to disagree with the final thoughts about it being shaky etc. The one in the video has over 77,000 miles, and definitely is not mint, so tired suspension components will invariably affect ride and handling. Ours just crossed 30,000 kms (< 19,000 miles), and is also a 2011, so it is a lot more box-fresh and overall it is a very tight and well made car. I find the seats comfortable, with my only complaint being the front swiveling armrests are ever so slightly too high, so you feel like your shoulder is slightly pushed up when resting your arm on it (I'm 5'10" but a bit lanky). NVH suppression isn't stellar I'll admit, but then again it's an economy car with a price-tag that when new, undercut most of the rivals. I found road noise was massively reduced though when new tires were fitted (we changed them due to age, not wear).

Love the color. Very sporty looking. ❤

私の愛車はSX4セダン1500ccの4速オートマチックです。 日本国内で見かけることは、滅多にありません。 不人気な車ではありますが、車としての完成度は非常に高いと思います。 とても剛性の高いボディ、適度にスポーティーな足回りとハンドリング、優れた燃費、広い室内空間、広大なトランクスペース。 日本のような幅員の狭い道路でも、取り回しは優れており満足しています。 この車が搭載しているM15型エンジンは耐久性が高いと言われており、これからも長く乗り続けていきたい素晴らしい車です。

The SX4 Is still an attractive looking car. Suzuki is still selling decent range of cars in Europe. The hatchback was the better looking one. It was also sold as the fiat sedici as well. Because it was available as a 4x4 fiat called it sedici, a play on words. Sedici is Italian for sixteen and with math, 4x4=16

this is an economy, practical family car supposed to look like

i could only imagine what i would think about suzuki if my first (and so far only) car wasnt one, welll technically its a daewoo, but still. this thing is so weird and not necessarily in a bad way, i want to drive a suzuki car that suzuki actually made really badly, they seem both straightforward and unusually different at the same time

Today June 2, 2023 I saw a relatively newish looking Suzuki in Miami. Not everyday you see any Suzuki

If only they offered a version with the all-wheel-drive, five-speed manual, and a turbocharged in-line four-cylinder engine. That could’ve been a cool competitor to the Impreza WRX and the Lancer Evolution. Especially as a two-door.

I remember these! Crazy that Suzuki is left to small city boxes & rebadged Toyota cars

CVTs became more common in the late 2010s

I love suzukis, here in Chile are affordable and reliable cars (and small?), now I have a Suzuki alto (super boring in my opinion, but cheap ), my dad has a new swift, before he had a samurai and i would love to have a 2015-2018 jinmy.... (i mean, a miata would be awesome, but are expensive and rare here) some weeks ago i saw a suzuki cervo for the first time, its and 70s-80s small car, but looks kinda sporty, i dont know how it is to drive tho

I'd love to see a review on a Suzuki Aerio SX. I think they're a hot hatch that isn't mentioned often.

This has to be sharing parts and the engine with the Nissan Sentra of the same year, the cars look very similar and even the hp etc. are pretty much identical. Suzuki and Nissan share a lot of models with each other (for the example the Suzuki Equator and the Nissan Frontier).

They also sold this in europe as the fiat sedici

Never had AWD in Sedan only Hatchback

Suzuki didn’t really leave USA, they only stopped selling cars. Suzuki is still selling motorcycles and atv’s very strong

I notice the M on the shifter, which is for manual using the shifters. The 2017-2019 Toyota Corolla SE with CVT has those as well.

Considering the main markets they make their vehicles for, it might as well be considered an upper tier economy car (close to being called luxury but still available for the masses)

I’d appreciate it very much if you reviewed a 2013 dodge charger SRT8

The factory Garmin is definitely my favorite feature in this car!

I have an awd manual hatchback version of this car. I like it, very quirky but I wouldn't call mine reliable.

I've seen several of those in me area's Marketplace with blown engines. They seem to not hold up very well..

I am wondering if the center console dead switches are for electric windows. Americans often prefer the door window switches so they may have moved them.

As the owner of a suzuki aerio(2.3 155 fire breathing horses) I have to say that those cvt in the sx4 suck. But they had a 6 speed manual offered besides the 5 speed.

These are quirky and my Aveo has some Suzuki bits

I had one but the name is not sx4, we call it in here a suzuki baleno. SX4 for a hatchback model. It had a wagon type it call a suzuki aerio. I own baleno with 5 speed manual transmission

My old cvt civic hybrid used to do the same thing where it just revved waayyy up and stayed up until you let off the gas. I HATED that it made me cringe

Fortunately we get Suzukis in Australia and the manual SX4 is a 6 speed gearbox we own a 2021 Suzuki Beleno GLX its an automatic but its the torque converter automatic transmission l amnot a big fan of CVT transmissions you do realise they have been around since the 1960d and DAF was the first car to use tge CVT transmission and it was do simple two pulleys and a rubber belt simple and the best also Suzukis are popular in Australia in our dead end street there is a Suzuki Jimny our son has a Suzuki Jimny also l didn't influence him to buy it he wanted a 4X4 so ge bought and they are popular also uf you can get one

Love Nippleton Subaru of Shlongberg.

Hey I'm looking for crv 2006 please if you can help me to find good one I will pay you for your help and I will appreciate you alots thank you

Popular Canadian Fast Food RU-vidr KBDProductionsTV (Ken Domik) owns one of these cool cars.

I feel like car manufacturers put uncomfortable seats in the cheap models to entice you into buying a more expensive model or trim package. I had a Nissan Versa as a rental that was a legitimate penalty box.

Funny thing is the hatch was sold as Fiat Sedici in Europe

You still write better than chat GPT does.

Back in the day the SX4 was the cheapest msrp vehicle that had awd.

Wish Suzuki would come back to the U.S. and bring the new Swift and Jimny

Lol. This was my first car! It was the manual though.😂

These are so cool!

does Suzuki Swift exist in USA? they are brilliant hatch

I owned a 2009 sx4 awd hatchback, fully optioned AND 5 speed. Bought it with 90k miles and only one owner for a winter beater and I sold it after 1 winter. While it did excellent in the snow, it was generally a piece of shit. A perfectly fine handling chassis that could have made a good econobox absolutely ruined by a dogshit drivetrain. So slow. SOOOOOOO slow. And it constantly leaked oil. Id change one seal and a new one would start. I constantly had to mess with it to keep it running. And that's the rough part. FINDING PARTS. There aren't suzuki dealerships anymore and most of the auto stores around me didn't have anything in store so good luck if you need parts immediately. There isn't really a powerband, it consistently is weak across the entire range. Finally by spring it started to burn oil at highway speeds so I sold it for 4800 to carvana at the peak of the used market. GOOD RIDDANCE.

I'm in TX. And just to disagree with yall I never see these anymore. Used to years ago occasionally. I like the styling of the car, perhaps better marketing was needed.

Looks kinda like a Versa sedan, more futuristic looking than the Versa sedan of that era though.

2:26 ur riding on an airplane. It’s LOUD 🤣🤣🤣💀💀💀

I love the new swift and vitara 😭😭😭😭😭

Wow, that CVT rev was painful!

There's a car you don't see any more. It's a shame the cheap crappy car market has almost disappeared. Kia has moved upmarket, Nissan is trying to move upmarket, only Mitsubishi is still hanging on. There is still a niche for cheap small cars. Besides the Jimny, I don't know what Suzuki could try to reenter the US car market with. I saw a Kisashi the other day. It was a sporty design for a compact but too late to save Suzuki's US sales. I've also seen a faded yellow Aerio hatchback occasionally in my area.

How do you use paddle shifters in a car without gears? What does that even feel like haha

How much do these go for??

It’s quirky to the point of ugly like Suzuki thought the Toyota echo set the standard for car design. I don’t love that sushiki is not in the US market anymore but it’s not hard to see why. While making some of the coolest motorcycles, their cars couldn’t be any more different. I always thought Suzuki and Mitsubishi are proof not all Japanese cars are reliable.

am i the only one that notices that suzuki S looks very similar to the old sony playstation logo?

That chat gpt eulogy was the best eulogy I’ve ever heard for a Korean car; definitely overkill, over the top, way more than the car deserved, and to know that it got written in 5 seconds, wow! Imagine writing a eulogy for a brand of appliance from 20 years ago that no one remembers. And yet there’s nothing wrong in the eulogy; the machine did make our lives better. Anyhow, I think this car is very nice looking for the money, but miserable to drive.

If you put Toyota badges on it, it could be an Echo.

Cool 🥰

The only Suzuki Americans still or ever ------------, is Ichiro.

nice car

Suzuki SX4: What if the Hyundai Accent was worse?

Quirky Fiat based little thing

5:43 and 6:00 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Mitsubishi mirage S

Indian model doesn’t have this kind of spec ihave 2010 sx4

Allow me to write the eulogy he told ChatGPT to write. "My dear friends, today we gather here to say our final goodbyes to a beloved friend that has been with us for over three decades. We mourn the loss of the Suzuki car brand from the US market and our hearts are heavy with sadness. For more than 30 years Suzuki has been a part of our lives. It has been the car that took us on our first road trip, the car that brought us to our first job interview and the car that took our children to school every day. It has been a reliable and trustworthy companion, always there for us when we needed it the most. But now as we bid farewell to Suzuki, we realize that we are not just losing a car brand. We are losing a part of ourselves, a part of our memories and our experiences. We are losing a piece of our history. We will miss the innovative design and the affordable prices of Suzuki cars. We will miss the fuel efficiency and the compact size that made them perfect for city driving. We will miss the quality and the reliability that made Suzuki cars stand out from the rest. But most of al, we will miss the spirit of Suzuki, the spirit of adventure and exploration. Suzuki cars were not just vehicles, they were a symbol of freedom and independence. They allowed us to go where we wanted, to see what we wanted and to do what we wanted, they were a way of life. So let us not remember Suzuki with sadness, but with gratitude and appreciation. Let us cherish the memories and the experiences that we shared with Suzuki cars. Let us continue to honor their legacy by continuing to explore the world and to live our lives to the fullest. Rest in peace Suzuki. You will be missed but you will never be forgotten."