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 151 through 160 of 426.00-
Bad Company - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
By cliffmc - May 8 - 5:38 amWe bought 2 Suzuki Forenzas from Dealership in New Smyrna Beach, FL. the first brand new and the second used. The A/C climate controls broke on both, only 43,000 miles on the second one! Right after warrantys were over of course! A $300.00 part! Had to pay the Dealership $90.00 to look at it and say "yep its broke" so they could send a report to the Manufacture in the hopes of fixing it free of charge or some kind of help? But of coarse they declined to help at all! This Multi Million Dollar company screwed over a loyal customer for $300.00!! The Dealership has never been very helpful or that friendly after you buy! I Would highly recommend everyone to stay away from Suzuki!! Built cheap!
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My Forenza - 2008 Suzuki Forenza
By john - May 2 - 4:06 amThis car is economical with gas. It gets you to where you want to go in a relaxed way. I love it so much.
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Piece of Junk - 2007 Suzuki Forenza
By matt - April 17 - 6:50 amMy 07 Forenza only starts when it wants to, the check engine light comes on all the time, and it has a very bad trade in value! Say no to Suzuki!
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my suzuki - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
By paul yaffe - April 16 - 10:00 amI bought my forenza in march i have had nothing but very good experiences with it. It is fun to drive and very comfortable. It is worth the price asked for it. I get really good gas mileage. It doesnt have alot of horsepower but enough for its size.But I could always increase the horsepower at any time that I please.
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I like !! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
By roy71 - April 8 - 6:12 amWell, we got the Forenza 6 months ago with 29,000 miles. It now has 36,400 miles and only "problem" was one bent rim, which was no cost to us, the dealer even put a new tire on it for us =) I think its fun to drive, we have the 5speed manual. The design is really awesome, it beats the boring civic or corolla hands down. It has proven reliable so far. It seems like you get a really bad Forenza or a really good one. Ive read the reviews, after we bought it, if i would had read them before we bought it, honestly i probably would not have purchased it, but i dont regret purchasing it =)
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Very Nice - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
By Trenlor - March 15 - 4:36 amWe walked in the dealership and told them what we wanted to pay and BAM... They showed us Suzi ;) Super nice for the price. We paid $8,999 with 26k on it. Runs like a top. Gas mileage for a so called econo car is pretty bad. We get about 23 MPG with 87 octane. But, thats ok! We love the interior to this car. Very sharp looking. People say its noisy in other reviews and I can tell you that this car is quiet!! Maybe they drive on gravel roads and go 4 wheeling. Driving this car is an absolute pleasure!! Handles nice but does have some sway to it. Drive like a human and this car will treat you right. Overall we love this car. Super features for the price.
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scared to depend - 2007 Suzuki Forenza
By marline - March 13 - 10:43 pmI bought this car so that I would be able to go home when I wanted to. 4 hour drive. Now Im afraid to go that far. Transmission sensor was just replaced today, still feel a small hiccup though. Not sure what that was. Tires were defective when I purchased the car, but the dealership says that theres nothing wrong with them. Started shaking at 60 mph a month ago I was informed that car was just out of line. I have to admit though, my dealership is awesome about getting it in and getting it fixed. I just Wonder when theyll get tired of it. Oh back door just started sticking as well. No one uses that door. Hmm! Does anyone else pay higher insurance because of the safety rating on this car.
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2004 Suzuki Forenza - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
By Roberet F. Breton - March 13 - 1:46 pmI am very pleased with the overall performance and quality of the vehicle. I have owned or driven several Nissan Altimas and this car performs as well. A great car for the money. I would not hesitate to recommend this car to anyone.
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Road Hazard - 2008 Suzuki Forenza
By tester - March 9 - 7:26 pmEngine Light ON and breaks fail before 30,000 miles. NOT WORTH THE MONEY
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not so good...do your research: recalls, reliability, parts - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
By girlwithacar - March 7 - 8:21 pmYou would be better off investing in a good, credible, affordable vehicle. Suzuki no longer makes cars; therefore, the parts are difficult to find and most of their car dealerships are few and far between (in other words, very few exist to service those with Suzuki cars.) I purchased a 2004 Suzuki Forenza in 2006, and it had about 20, 000 miles on it. It stopped working in June 2013 because it needed a new PCM ($1,230 to repair) and it had about 103,000 miles. However, between the time that I had it and the time that it died, the car had major issues with gasket, valve, oil, trans sensor. Also, it had at least 4 recalls on parts so be sure to do your research.
