Suzuki have a long track record in small all-wheel drive cars and the SX4 benefits from that experience.
You wouldn't would you? I mean, look at the Suzuki SX4. It's not the sort of car you'd wilfully take off road. Despite having almost as much ground clearance as the Grand Vitara 4x4, the SX4 isn't really cut out for off road antics. Instead, think of it as a vehicle that's perfectly equipped for the sort of weather the unpredictable British climate likes to deal us once in a while.
Part of my route to work involves a few miles of quiet country lanes that are almost perfect for putting a sports car through its paces. I recall being in a very powerful BMW once when I rounded a corner to find the entire road underwater. I had time to jump on the brakes and slow the car down and then pondered my options. Turning round and going the other way would have tacked another twenty minutes onto the journey and besides, the water didn't look that deep. Deciding that a tentative crawl through was the most judicious course of events saw me halfway through the flood, water approaching bumper level, when I spotted a Range Rover coming the other way. He wasn't slowing down much. As he entered the water, a bow wave bore down on me. I sat there in resignation, catching a glimpse of the other driver's face. His laughing face. I cursed his ability to plough through without worry. The ground clearance of the Suzuki SX4 gives its drivers a little of that insouciance but it also makes tackling obstacles like speed humps, car park kerbs and grassy tracks that little bit more stress free.
At this point it's worth explaining that there are two distinct SX4 lines, priced from £10,515. GLX and 4GRIP models are distinctly SUV in appearance with alloy wheels, wheel arch extensions, side protection mouldings, side under protection mouldings and front and rear skid plates. The GL grade emphasises the passenger car characteristics with fewer SUV elements. The 4GRIP all-wheel drive variant has the intelligent 4wd system that's well worth the extra outlay. This added facet to the SX4's character makes it an intriguing proposition.
The all-wheel drive system is similar to the Haldex system used in something like an Audi TT insofar as it diverts power from a slipping pair of front wheels towards the rear to restore grip, but Suzuki have given the driver plenty of control over how this system is marshalled. Most of the time, the SX4 is best left in a default economy mode where it functions as a conventional front wheel drive hatch. If the going suddenly gets really slippery, a lock mode ensures that front and rear axles are locked together to provide ultimate traction. A clutch system allows a small amount of slippage once under way and once you've reached 37mph, the system switches to its third mode, auto, which is the driver-selectable part-time 4wd mode.
"The SX4 is an intriguing and capable car but one which will, by its very nature, appeal to only a very select group of potential customers"
Get your head underneath the SX4 and you'll realise that most of the vulnerable bits are tucked well out of the way, giving the all-wheel drive model a green lane capability that's far beyond what you'd at first expect. The front suspension is a conventional MacPherson strut setup while the rear end features a compact torsion beam arrangement, in this case sculpted to make way for the prop shaft and, if you opt for one of the Outdoor Line versions, the rear differential.
Three engines are available to UK customers. The petrol engine is a 107bhp 1.6-litre but of more interest are the Fiat-sourced 120bhp 1.9-litre DDiS and the Peugeot-sourced 89bhp 1.6 DDiS diesels. The Fiat link is interesting and it would be understandable if you concluded that this tie-up was due to both companies' General Motors connection (Fiat tried to offload its car making arm to GM and the American giant has a 20 per cent stake in Suzuki) but Suzuki has a remit to control its strategic partnerships as it sees fit and there was a good 'fit' with Fiat who could supply state of the art diesel engines and who needed a car of this type. Therefore Suzuki's Magyar plant in Hungary will turn out not only 40,000 SX4 models, but 20,000 Fiat Sedicis, a badge-engineered model that sports a different nose and interior detailing.
It's certainly not a 'proper' compact 4x4; the sort of car that goes head to head with the Nissan X-Trails and Land Rover Freelanders of this world. It's just too small for that sort of thing and the tale of the tape shows that the Suzuki measures about the same overall length as a Ford Focus. The interior packaging, however, isn't the most generous. There's certainly no shortage of room up front but rear seat legroom is rather stingy and the boot measures a modest 270 litres with the rear seats in place. Unless you drop the rear seats, you'll carry more in a Porsche Boxster. The rest of the interior news is pretty good. The fascia is well screwed together and attractively designed although materials quality looks a little way removed from the class best. Perhaps the best thing that can be said for it is that it's unthreatening and very intuitive. It is, perhaps, a little short on showroom wow actor.
Suzuki have in the past brought us any number of interesting cars. Unfortunately interesting doesn't always translate to success in terms of sales and much as the SX4 intrigues, it's tough to see too many buyers seeing this car as the solution to their problems. Still, if you like the Suzuki Swift but find it just that little bit too small, the SX4 could be the answer.
source: buyacar
