Sport SLS 4dr Front-Wheel Drive Sedan
2012 Suzuki Kizashi Review

Sporty midsize sedans.

Introduction

The Suzuki Kizashi line of sporty sedans compete well against the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion, Nissan Altima, and Mazda 6. Kizashi ranked tops in the 2012 J.D. Power & Associates APEAL study. It was judged Best Sedan in AutoPacific's Vehicle Satisfaction Awards. And we liked it, as well.

All-wheel drive is available, giving the Kizashi good all-weather capability. Called i-AWD, it's a sophisticated system that can be turned on and off so that you can use front-wheel drive on dry pavement for better fuel efficiency.

All Suzuki Kizashi models come with a sporty 2.4-liter aluminum four-cylinder with variable valve timing that makes 185 or 180 horsepower, depending on whether it's mated to the 6-speed manual transmission or Continuously Variable Transaxle. The CVT operates automatically or can be shifted through six steps using paddles on the steering wheel.

Fuel economy is an EPA-rated 23/31 mpg City/Highway when equipped with front-wheel drive and the CVT, or 23/30 mpg with all-wheel drive.

The balance between ride quality and handling is excellent. The MacPherson strut front and multi-link rear suspensions deliver good handling for hard driving, including on a race track, and a nicely damped ride over rough roads. Much of the credit for this balance goes to the rigid chassis. The brakes we found to be pitch perfect, also.

Kizashi looks elegant and sporty, with lovely lines that look a bit like Audi and Lexus. No overachieving swoops or flares, no gratuitous chrome trying to grab your attention. The Kizashi GTS and Kizashi SLS feature special Sport bodywork, including a more muscular front fascia and lower grille, side sill extensions, spoiler on the trunk lid, and 18-inch alloy wheels. The crossed mesh grille is titanium colored.

Interior materials are high quality, especially the sport seats that come standard. The layout of the controls and instruments is clean. These cars come well equipped, including climate control vents for the rear seat. Sport models get special steering wheels, and the SLS Sport gets contrasting stitching on its leather seats.

Kizashi comes with no less than eight airbags. Advanced stability control using the ABS comes standard. Suzuki says the Kizashi has surpassed the federal government's 2014 standards for side pole impact and offset front collision.

Lineup

The 2012 Suzuki Kizashi comes in four models, Kizashi S, SE, GTS Sport, and SLS Sport, all of which use the same 2.4-liter engine.

Kizashi S ($18,999) comes with auto dual-zone climate control with rear seat vents, cloth upholstery, sport seats, fold-down pass-through rear seat, projector beam headlamps, keyless pushbutton start, ambient footwell lighting, power locks, power windows, power mirrors, illuminated visor mirror, intermittent wipers, security system, 16-inch steel wheels, and pre-wiring for seven-speaker audio, but no actual radio. Kizashi S is available with a 6-speed manual or CVT ($20,999); the latter adds cruise control, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and a seven-speaker AM/FM/CD/MP3 stereo with steering-wheel audio controls. XM Satellite Radio can be added as a dealer accessory. Kizashi S is also available with all-wheel drive and the CVT ($22,349); that combination adds heated outside mirrors.

Kizashi SE ($22,299) comes only with the CVT and adds 10-way power driver's seat with three memory positions; leather-wrapped steering wheel, shift knob, and parking brake lever; paddle shifters; cruise control; a USB port; and wide-profile 18-inch tires on alloy wheels. Kizashi SE is available with AWD ($23,649). New for both SE models is a leather-upholstery option ($1600) includes heat and power adjustment for both front seats.

Kizashi Sport GTS ($22,249) features sporty body work, including a muscular front fascia and lower grille, body side sill extensions, trunk spoiler, silver-accented steering wheel, sport bumpers, fancy 18-inch alloy wheels and a lowered, sport-tuned suspension. The GTS also adds fog lights and a 10 speakers, 425-watt Rockford Fosgate system with iPod connectivity (replacing the USB port). The GTS 6-speed manual model drops the power driver's seat to reduce weight and cost. The GTS with CVT ($24,399) and CVT AWD ($25,749) get back the 10-way power driver's seat and add a moonroof, too. Bluetooth phone connectivity with steering-wheel controls is optional ($250).

Kizashi Sport SLS ($25,099) upgrades with leather upholstery with contrasting stitching, heated seats, power passenger seat, heated mirrors, auto headlights, auto-dimming rearview mirror, rear parking sensor, HomeLink garage door opener, rain-sensing wipers, and Bluetooth phone equipment. The SLS offers a choice of 6-speed manual, CVT ($26,199), or CVT AWD ($27,549). XM Satellite Radio ($350) becomes a factory option, along with a navigation system ($1,399) that includes a rearview camera.

Safety equipment includes eight airbags: two frontal, two side curtain, and one for each door. Active safety features include antilock brakes (ABS), electronic stability control, electronic brake-force distribution. The government-mandated tire monitor is there, also. Suzuki says the Kizashi already meets some of the 2014 crash standards, including side pole crash and front offset collision. More than 100 Kizashis were crashed by Suzuki during testing. Optional all-wheel drive can enhance safety in slippery conditions. The basic warranty is 3 years or 36,000 miles, but the powertrain is covered for 7 years or 100,000 miles.

Walkaround

Kizashi looks like a Suzuki sports sedan should, not a would-be or wannabe sports sedan, but a modest sports sedan on the way up. Nothing is overdone. Well, maybe just a little bit, the twin chrome integrated angular tailpipes. A touch of cool. We're okay with that. The 18-inch alloy wheels are eye-catching.

Kizashi has a rounded, Audi-like stance. In profile, especially the roofline and front valance with the S and SE models, it's Lexus-like, with a neat little nose. The hood is a small bulge, with no extra contours other than its natural overall shape. The shape of the grille is totally Suzuki, as if that big S in the center didn't already say so. Headlights fit just right, and the lines are clean to the three other air openings, with the two outside slots holding the fog lights.

Kizashi SLS and GTS models come with Sport trim, which includes special bodywork. The fascia on Kizashi Sport models is full and rounded, reminiscent of the aerodynamic nose on the Kizashi that Suzuki and Road & Track magazine took to Bonneville in 2010 and set a class record with, an astounding 203.7 mph, thanks mostly to a big supercharger.

Kizashi looks quite tidy from the rear, although you can't really tell it's special until you see the chrome Kizashi nameplate, in racy Japanese-y script.

Interior

Kizashi's interior is comfortable and free of small inconveniences, and that's saying a lot. High-quality materials make even the base Kizashi S feel like a more expensive car. The layout of the center stack is slick and efficient, finished in black and aluminum plastic. You can easily understand and operate the knobs and controls, everything in its logical place, handsomely so.

The instrumentation isn't as clean as it might be, with dozens of little lines as increments on the tachometer and speedo, running all the way to a dreamy 150 mph; and there's a reflection at night that blurs the edges of the smaller gauges. There's a 2x4-inch digital display between the tach and speedo, with access to everything from outside temp to instantaneous fuel mileage. We mostly watched our average mpg, which ended up 23.8 mpg.

The Sport SLS that we drove had handsome cross-stitched leather seats with high-density, low-fatigue foam. The 425-watt 10-speaker Rockford Fosgate sound system sounded beautiful, but the FM reception was often weak (though this was in bad weather). The leather-wrapped shift lever feels good.

If your Kizashi has the CVT, you'll be using the paddle shifters a lot. The paddles are sized and shaped just right, unlike some. There's a nice 3-spoke steering wheel with controls; it feels good in your hands when driving through the twists. Fold-down rear headrests improve rearview visibility. Overhead and footwell ambient lighting is cool.

We've put a lot of miles on various Kizashi models. There was one all-day run on choppy pavement in the Sport models with lots of turns to toss your butt and shoulders around, and another couple hundred miles on a dark curving interstate in a hard long drizzle, with puddles all over the freeway. The fit of the seat made it all no sweat, and we enjoyed the hours and concentrated driving.

We got more seat time in an S model with cloth upholstery that was smooth and elegant in charcoal. If you skip the leather you'll still have a stylish car. You can keep the Kizashi's price near base MSRP, and still get the good stuff.

There are cupholders in front, and in the rear they slide forward out of the dropped center armrest. Nice leather door grab handles. A standard folding rear seat that opens up the trunk is always useful in a car; in addition, there's a hatch to the trunk for skis, 2x4s, and other long cargo.

The legroom in the rear is adequate, although it's a couple inches less than the Subaru Legacy, a competitor with a base model at that same under-20K price (and offering all-wheel drive). The Legacy is also a couple inches longer in wheelbase and length. But what the Kizashi lacks in legroom, it might make up in temperature comfort, with that rear seat climate vent.

There's a lot of sound insulation, so the cabin is very quiet. The Kizashi offers extensive corrosion protection, including resin panels under the body, zinc-plated steel sheets, and hot wax imbedded in the suspension mounting points.

Kizashi comes with keyless ignition: Press the Start button to fire it up.

Driving Impression

Chassis and suspension are the best parts of the driving impressions. And brakes. Engine is good too. That about covers everything.

The Kizashi was developed on the Autobahn, alpine roads in Switzerland, cobblestone streets in England, and on the Nurburgring racing circuit. The firm KYB shock absorbers don't swallow the bumps or smooth them out, but neither do they transmit them. They follow the undulations in the road, and that's not uncomfortable but confidence inspiring. You know they're paying attention. At high speeds on a curvy freeway, you can still feel the shocks working. The car moves a bit as it follows the road, so you have to stay alert.

Suzuki put a great deal of time and pride into the suspension and chassis with torsional rigidity higher than some European competitors. The Kizashi chief engineer, Hide Kumashiro, a former motorcycle road racer, stressed handling as his highest priority, which is why high-performance KYB rear shocks are used, with a carefully designed multi-link rear suspension with imbedded aluminum. We pushed the Kizashi on the road, over undulating and sometimes rough surfaces, quick changes of direction under braking, and it never gave us an unsatisfying moment of wobble or softness. Nor did it ever jar us, not once, which might be saying even more. We weren't in the Alps, merely the Gifford Pinchot National Forest around Washington's Mount Adams, but we'll take it.

The Kizashi feels sportier than the Mazda6 we recently tested, especially the engine. It's smooth, sharp, and sounds nice, from zero to 6500 rpm redline, but 6000 rpm is a sweet spot to upshift with the 6-speed gearbox. The engine characteristics are steady. Against its competitors, the 185-horsepower Kizashi is solid; by comparison, the Acura TSX has 201 hp, the Mazda6 170 hp. But the Kizashi is quicker from zero to 60 than either of them, and a lot cheaper than the TSX.

We also drove a Kizashi with the CVT, running it hard for about 80 challenging, curvy miles. The CVT sucks 5 horsepower and brings the redline down to 6000 rpm, and compromises the sportiness. It shifts with paddles through six steps (like gears in a gearbox, but not), and you have to shift like mad to keep the engine in the powerband, even with good torque.

At full throttle, the engine jumps to 6000 rpm and just stays there and buzzes away as the car gains speed. The response of the CVT is sharp, but it just changes the power delivery too much, if what you want is the throttle feel of an old-school sports sedan. It changes the whole dynamic and sound of the engine. But if you don't care about driving hard over curving roads, you'll be happier with the CVT. Around town, you can forget it, or you can use the paddles if you want. In that way it's like an automatic transmission, only more efficient.

We found the SLS with the 6-speed manual quiet under acceleration and even quieter at a cruising speed. Eighty miles per hour is only 3000 rpm in 6th gear, and the car might as well be gliding, for all its smoothness. And because the torque is a healthy 170 pound-feet at 4000 rpm, there's enough torque at lower rpm in 6th gear to accelerate when needed, without downshifting all the time. While we were at it, we got nearly 25 mpg cruising at 80 mpg.

We got about a dozen hot laps around Portland International Raceway in the Kizashi. A rev limiter intrudes (mildly) at 6500 rpm, so shifting at 6000 rpm works well. The clutch and linkage are neither short-throw nor aggressive; in fact the clutch feels a bit soft, but that's not a bad thing. It's a mild sports sedan.

On Portland International Raceway, it didn't understeer. That's rare for any front-wheel-drive car, including some of the expensive sports sedans. Suzuki brought a test mule to the launch, a Kizashi fitted with a Suzuki/GM 3.6-liter V6 engine making more than 250 horsepower, and we took some laps in that hotrod; driven with appropriate restraint, it didn't understeer either. No V6 is planned for the Kizashi, but the point was proven, that the Kizashi suspension is built to take a lot more horsepower. A turbocharged Kizashi is said to be on the way.

Fuel economy is an EPA-estimated 23/30 mpg City/Highway for a Suzuki Kizashi SE with the CVT. The CVTs generally get better fuel economy than the manual transmissions, beating them by 2-3 mpg around town. All-wheel drive costs about one mpg: A GTS FWD CVT is rated 23/30 mpg, with a GTS AWD CVT rating 22/29 mpg. Best rating is from the Kizashi S CVT with 23/31 mpg; we're guessing the actual difference is likely a fraction of 1 mpg attributable to the lighter weight and skinnier tires of the base model.

As for the brakes, we found the touch to be beautiful, using them frequently on the curves on the road, and heavily around PIR. We can't imagine anyone in a sports sedan like this one needing more.

The optional all-wheel drive moves the Kizashi into exclusive territory along with the Audi A3 and Subaru Legacy. Called i-AWD, or intelligent all-wheel drive, it's turned on by the driver, and moves up to 50 percent of the torque to the rear wheels.

Summary

The Suzuki Kizashi is a small sports sedan that offers more standard equipment than its competitors, including safety features, at a slightly lower price. The S and SE models offer much, and for more money there are Sport models, plus optional all-wheel drive. The engineering is excellent, with a solid four-cylinder engine, transmission choices including a high-tech CVT with paddle shifters, an exceptionally rigid chassis, tuned suspension offering a compliant ride and great cornering, and precise brakes.

Sam Moses filed this report to NewCarTestDrive.com from Washington's Columbia River Gorge.