Suzuki adds wasabi to SX4 sushi

The SX4s have been prettied up, and they're more 'intelligent' as well.

The cocky SX4 has become a much-loved pup in Suzuki's small-car litter with more than 2 000 of them having been sold since they were launched in South Africa two years ago.

With the Japanese brand's excellent reputation for making cute and cool small city cars it very quickly re-established a strong foothold in South Africa after an absence of a couple of years, selling more than 7 000 units by the end of January this year.

Powered by a zippy 2.0-litre engine and with the choice of automatic or manual, the SX4 had no problem making friends in South Africa.

Although the SX4 falls into the popular “cross-over” class, the two SX4's were - and are - front-wheel driven. And though they coped well in the dirt they never pretended to be serious off-roaders, preferring the middle-of-the-road appeal of the cheeky looks of a cross-over and the practicality, comfort and ease-of drive of a family hatchback.

A formula that worked

And it's a formula that worked so well that the clever okes with the white coats, thick glasses and long hair in Suzuki's R&D department were quite happy to use the outgoing model as the base and then to improve that by than applying a bit of eye-candy, increasing the power of the feisty 2.0-litre engine (from 107 to 112kW and from 184 to 190Nm) and to do the politically correct thing by making the engines almost 20% cleaner in terms of emissions and also 20% more fuel frugal.

All the practicality, comfort and ease-of drive of a family hatchback.

Ah, but then to add a further touch of finesse they replaced the five-speed manual with a six-speed box and substantially improved the automatic option with a silky smooth CVT with sequential shift.

The result is more than just two face-lifted, revitalised SX4's - the improvement gives them enough ammunition to blow most other competitors out of the water.

Spurred on by this achievement the white coats went into a huddle, sharpened their creative pencils and created the first SX4 with all-wheel drive - and it's got winner written all over its bonnet.

We love getting dirty

South Africans are crazy about playing in the dirt with their vehicles and the new range-topping all-wheel drive version with its selectable two- or all-wheel drive and transmission lock is going to give a considerable boost to the SX4 fan club.

The driver has the choice to click-button driving mode from normal front-wheel drive to all-wheel drive.click to enlarge

In essence, the AWD system operates by shifting torque from axle to axle according to grip, with the driver having the choice to click-button driving mode from normal front-wheel drive to all-wheel drive.

I drove all three new models on long stretches of motorway and gravel roads and then cruelly punished the All-Wheel Drive model over some ugly pot-holed, rocky tracks and they came out tops.

Taken as a range new SX4 is undoubtedly one of the best in its class.

Steady as she goes

The ride quality of all the models is simply stunning. Comfortable, quiet, solidly built and sensibly laid-out the SX4 has that magic instant appeal not many cars have.

All three models felt confidently steady, even at whip-cracking pace.

I thought the top three gears of the manual option were perhaps a little too highly geared, obviously aimed at fuel efficiency, but it did mean having to use the soup spoon quite energetically to keep the revs and speed up on the energy-sapping thin air of the Highveld.

The boot space is ample and the split rear seat translates into versatility in the loads to be carried.

CVT's usually have a rather boring drone and the SX4 is not immune to this, but it's an observation, rather than a criticism, and one gets used to the sound fairly quickly.

The bushmasters still have the edge

Besides, one can easily over-ride this by flicking the flappies on the steering wheel to change gears rather than wait for the CVT to reach its state of cruising happiness.

Ample instrumentation, including a warning when doors are not shut properly.click to enlarge

Certainly the smoothness and convenience of this new-world automatic overrides any negatives one might have, particularly on commuter runs and in slow-fast-slow motorway traffic.

And for the all-wheel drive star of the show there was nothing but praise. This is truly a formidable vehicle and tremendous value for money when you weigh it up in the competitive C segment price range of between R190 000 -R250 000.

Of course it's never going to compete with real bush veterans such as Toyota, Land Rover, Nissan and Mitsubishi and was never designed or intended to.

But it certainly provides a happy high-riding middle of the road option that many life-stylers will find very attractive.

There's even a pollen filter

Besides cheeky looks and quality ride the new range has a long list of appealing features such as climate control with pollen filter, a nine-speaker sound system, cruise control, steering wheel audio controls, keyless start, alarm immobiliser, electric windows and mirrors, child locks on the doors and ISO-FIX child seat anchorages.

The radio controls are relatively simple and straightforward.click to enlarge

And it's not short on degrees either…. ABS, ESP, EBD and BA - and if you don't know what these stand for and how important they are for you and your family's safety it's time to go back to school!

The new SX4s are seriously sexy sushi and the new AWD model is just the right dollop of wasabi to make Suzuki's sales zing.

And to make the SX4s even tastier they also come with a three-year/100 000km manufacturer's warranty, a six-year/90 000km service plan and three-years unlimited roadside assistance.

The new models and prices are:
• 2.0 SX4 six-speed manual - R209 500;
• 2.0 SX4 CVT - R224 500;
• 2.0 SX4 six-speed manual AWD - R229 500.

Specifications