Review: 2005 Suzuki Aerio

[Ming]

Review: 2005 Suzuki Aerio
cars.ign.com

March 16, 2005 - Suzuki throws us another strike. Like in bowling, not baseball. We're getting the impression that Suzuki is consistently cranking out cars that are well-built, and even better-priced. The Aerio SX is no exception. Though we do have a few minor criticisms, our overall experience with it has been mostly a positive one, and always enjoyable.

Our test vehicle was the "SX" which translates into English as "5-door", as opposed to the "Sedan", which, well, nevermind. The two cars are fundamentally identical, save for the extra cargo space and "sport-wagon" visual appeal of the Aerio SX. And speaking of visual appeal...

Our first impression of the SX's styling was okay, but we grew to like it more over time. Justin loved it right off the bat. But then again, Justin's affection for wagons is nearly indiscriminate.

The SX does have a lot of elements working for it. The front fascia is sweet! It looks like a well-done aftermarket job. Think: A toned-down version of the Lancer evolution V without all the nifty vents. By the way, this car comes with available AWD, so maybe that'll jog your imagination a little.

Wrapped around the sides are some very unique skirt and body pieces. We have no idea what inspired them, but they look good. The rear of the car is probably the area we have yet to fall in love with visually. The rear window is integrated to a much larger black area. The result is this obtrusively-large black oblong-shaped eyesore.

Furthermore, we cringed at the site of another Altezza-style tail light cluster. Call us conservative, but can't we leave that crap to the aftermarket? On an otherwise chrome-free car, why put it there? Auto designers generally use a pleasing shape (outline) when designing the clusters. To visually interrupt it with a bunch of flash should be a felony. The tail on the SX isn't all bad, though. The spoiler with integrated brake light is nice. So is the Roof-mounted antenna.

Alloy wheels are a good thing, and the six-spoke design on the SX looks great. But they're 15's. We think a 16 inch wheel (or larger) would look a lot better. Then again, a larger rotating mass would put more stress on the rear drums.

Wait did they say drums? Yep, that's what we said. In this pretty bitchin' little 155 hp, 152 lb.-ft. machine with available "Quad-Grip" AWD, all that's backing up the front discs is a drum brake setup in the rear. Granted, the system is probably adequate, but the brake pedal felt quirky, even after a week. However, this was with the optional ABS, which is something we don't typically care for anyway. Besides, we're talking about a brand new car here, so we're pretty sure it's no big deal.

Those power numbers of 155 and 152 are the result of a 16-valve engine pushing it's four cylinders through 2.3 liters of displacement. The result is a respectable (rated) 25 mpg on streets that aren't as crowded as those in L.A., and 31 mpg on freeways that... aren't as crowded as those in L.A.!

Full Article Continues Here: http://cars.ign.com/articles/596/596722p1.html

[PURPLEIMPALA]

Doesn't it look a lot like the chevy Aveo ?

[jro4566]

I browsed around the website and it looks like IGN is a gaming website...yet the review cars? Granted, they fail to realize (like the NY Times did with the Cobalt) that every other compact vehicle has rear drums, including the beloved Corolla.

[ElmerMCR]

Originally Posted by PURPLEIMPALA

Doesn't it look a lot like the chevy Aveo ?

I don't think it does at all. The only similarity that I can find is that they are both 5-Door Hatch/Wagons.

[SonicAerio]

Aveo and Aerio are nothing alike, and even if your were to say that they were similiar....the proper was is: Doesn't the Aveo look like the Aerio?

The Aerio is a hidden treasure that's been out since 2002, but it took a bunch of other companies to make weird looking cars for it to become noticed and accepted, not to mention, dulling the interior by throwing out the cool digi dash, for the run-of-the-mill analog. It's a great car, I have had mine for almost 2 years with no problems.

It's also fun to blow known cars like Corollas and Eclipses away, they always wonder what it is. From what I have heard, with the arrival of SWT, for now they have mostly appearance accessories, but we have word from a worker at Zuk that a strut bar is on the way as well as other more performance parts that have been desired by the rest of us.