Overview & Reviews
At some point in their lives, most people find themselves in need of a small, inexpensive car that gets them around with minimal hassle. While the names "Civic" and "Corolla" come up in most every small sedan buyer's research, the trouble is that you often pay dearly for these household names. In hopes of attracting people on a tighter budget, Suzuki offered the Forenza from 2004-'08.
This value-oriented compact came in sedan and wagon body styles. It boasted a low price of entry, a roomy interior, European-inspired design, a host of standard features, competitive power figures and a seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty.
At a glance, the well-equipped Suzuki Forenza appeared to offer terrific value. But in our evaluations, we found that it fell short of the segment leaders in terms of performance, fuel economy, handling and interior refinement. Unless you really need the extra space of its available wagon body style in a used car, we recommend that you focus on one of its more worthy competitors.
Most Recent Suzuki Forenza
The Suzuki Forenza debuted in 2004, with the wagon model following in 2005. The Forenza was actually built by the Korean automaker Daewoo and rebadged as the Forenza for the American market. It was offered as a four-door sedan or wagon in a single trim level with various available packages. Standard equipment included four-wheel disc brakes, air-conditioning, front seat side airbags, full power accessories and a CD/MP3 stereo with steering-wheel controls. Notably, ABS was an extra-cost option.
The Forenza was powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder with 127 horsepower and 131 pound-feet of torque. This engine performed adequately with the manual transmission but felt burdened and underpowered when saddled with the four-speed automatic. To make matters worse, it wasn't particularly fuel-efficient or refined, either.
The Forenza's cabin was something of a mixed bag, too. It was spacious, with lots of stylish metallic accents, but this was offset by inconsistent materials quality and an overall lack of refinement and quality compared with class leaders. If you can get past that, there was lots of rear legroom for adults and a 60/40-split-folding seatback for extra utility. The sedan provided 12 cubic feet of trunk capacity, with the wagon offering nearly 62 cubic feet of space with the rear seat folded.
On the road, the Suzuki Forenza exhibited soft, rubbery handling and a poor ride quality compared with its competitors, as well as excessive wind noise on the highway. Although it was compliant enough, it exhibited little suspension control over bumps and ruts. Handling around corners was loose and unsure, with excessive body roll and minimal grip from the tires. When merging into traffic, automatic-equipped Forenzas accelerated weakly, and any such maneuver took some advance planning.
Changes were slight during the Suzuki Forenza's run. For 2005, side impact airbags became standard for all Forenzas. The Forenza was freshened up a bit for 2006, receiving a new front fascia, redesigned seats, new wheels and revised trim levels. Bluetooth became available for 2008.
User Reviews:
Showing 101 through 110 of 426.00-
Forenza - Another Citrus Fruit - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
By J - June 24 - 8:43 amAt 6,000 miles, my 2005 Suzuki Forenza needed a new oil pump. At 9,000 miles, it needed a new transmission. No wonder Suzuki touts the best warranty coverage in America. If you buy one.........youre going to need it!
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WARNING: WORST CAR EVER OWNED! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
By chelbel4 - June 22 - 7:53 amI have had this car less the three years and have had over 8 major problems! Everything brakes all the time and not the regular ware and tare. The gas tank had problems, the windshield montior already went, door handle broke, the rims crack if you hit a pothole and the check engine light is always on due to default censors. Plus the dealers, service dept. and customer serivce are uncaring and unhelpful.
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Impressions - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
By Toby Michael - June 17 - 10:00 amMy first impression: I didnt like it. Then I saw it in person and drove it. Second impression: I bought it 2 days later. Its an incredible little car. It looks so much nicer than the others in this segment, at least in my opinion. Coming out of a Pontiac Sunfire Convertible, Im amazed at this cars excellent feel.
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Neat Car - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
By Steve - June 12 - 11:33 amI love the VW Jetta-like interior dashboard look of my new Suzuki Forenza. The inside is very nice for such a low priced vehicle. The outside reminds me of the typical Hyundai look and it did not surprise me to learn that these are built in S. Korea at the GM Daewoo plant. i live in SoCal where everyone drives in the 80s and this car has no problem keeping up but the gas mileage suffers at 24 mpg. I backed it down to the 70s and now im getting 28 mpg and Im okay with that. I have the 5 speed. I test drove the gutless and wonderless automatic transmission and passed. The car is a little slow building rpms in 2nd gear, but with all of the features this is one neat little car. The locking system is strange, I seem to always have an unlocked car?
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Fun to Drive/ Huge leg room - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
By Deion - June 9 - 7:56 amIt has huge leg rooms in both front and rear seats. It is very comfortable to drive with less noise. Its been a real great car for its price. The problem is this ones strengths are not well publicized in the market yet...
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I hate this car - 2008 Suzuki Forenza
By LW - May 23 - 11:50 pmWe bought this 2008 Suzuki Forenza new. We took it back to the dealer three times within the first 3 months for them to check the transmission. It was shifting from one gear to the next unpredictably. When driven down hill it jumps into gears. When driven up hill it drags then jumps into gears and will excelarate unpredictably. The mechanics in the Suzuki dealership told us the car will stop doing this after 6K miles that because it was new this was expected and normal. It is past the 6k mile point, we have about 12k miles on the car and we still have the same unpredictable shifting and excelaration I am not comfortable driving this car any more and am wondering why there hasnt been a reca
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Car Has a Hard Time Starting! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
By valerie - May 20 - 3:10 amI bought my car brand new in June of this year and it has been in and out of the shop for 53 days. They have put new spark plugs and a new computer and it still diont want to work. I have been just getting the run around fron Suzuki and my dealership.
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Wow, lots of bad reviews here - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
By bb4t - May 10 - 11:14 amAfter driving it for a week, the clutch plate was slipping according to them so they fix it for free of course. Since then, the car has been great. I now have 95,000 miles and I literally have done nothing to it expect oil changes! My battery lasted until 94,000 miles! Sure I have issues...need rear shocks replaced, leaking a little antifreeze but hey, I aint paying for it if I dont need to. I actually prefer a small antifreeze leak, it saves me from spending hundreds of dollars flushing the system. I love driving this car with a manual. Those of you burning through tires, I do too but thats bc I like driving rough. You can get different tires with more tread if youre concerned.
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Keep the Gas Stations in view - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
By Steve - May 5 - 9:40 pmNice package with all the LX or EX models. In a real city , Chicago, with the 4 speed auto trans, keep your wallet and gas stations in view. Gas mileage miserable at 13.5 to 14.5 mpg. This is a real shame for otherwise a nice vehicle and what could have been an excellent value. Forenza Wagon LX with 4 speed auto and 4 wheel abs.
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Keep the Gas Stations in view - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
By Steve - May 5 - 6:20 pmNice package with all the LX or EX models. In a real city , Chicago, with the 4 speed auto trans, keep your wallet and gas stations in view. Gas mileage miserable at 13.5 to 14.5 mpg. This is a real shame for otherwise a nice vehicle and what could have been an excellent value. Forenza Wagon LX with 4 speed auto and 4 wheel abs.
