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:

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  Not Too Bad - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By mark - December 8 - 6:56 am

  I purchased this car new in Sept. 06. I have already put 5,000 miles on it and have not had any major problems. The air bag warning light came on and it turned out to be a wire connection in the drivers seat was loose. Next was the check engine light, that one turned out to be the gas cap not sealing properly. As far as the gas mileage goes, I have found that if I use a higher octane 91 or greater the fuel mileage improves. 87 octane is just no good in this car. I drove mine from San Diego to Texas and back and found I was getting about 360+ miles per tank with 91+ octane as opposed to about 300 to 325 mi on 87 octane fuel.

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  Turning Out Very Nicely - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By Rev320 - December 7 - 9:36 am

  I nead headroom, so my choice of cars is limited. The Forenza wagon fits me just right. Loads of features for not a lot of cash. Nice styling. Great interior. Decent handling. Great stereo. Very practical. Dealer is super helpful. Im really picky and found a couple of small problems that were fixed easily. Its made from very proven parts from the world wide parts bin, so it should hold up well. Some people complain that the engine sounds like a 4 cylinder and that the car doesnt handle like a Porsche. The same folks would complain if they bought a cheeseburger and it didnt taste like a t-bone steak. This car is a very tasty cheeseburger indeed.

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  Perfect car for first time buyers... - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
  By wilvalentin - December 3 - 10:00 am

  This is my third Suzuki. I am enjoying this car so far. things that I like the most are color(blue), style, comfot and reliability. But I am a sthrong beleiver that this car would be better with a bigger engine. That is my only complaint, it should be more powerful. After that I like my car alot.

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  Battery Problems & Transmission Censor - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By D.Jones - December 1 - 7:06 am

  I have had my car since 2006 and it has been problem after problem. First my Transmission censor went out which cost me roughly $200.00 dollars. The transmission is still skipping sometimes when I drive. Now the batter will not keep a charge. I have had everything check thoroughly and the watts on my alternator, starter are good. Replaced the batter and the card still have problems. I have checked and there is no recalls on this car for major things such as this.

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  Happy so far - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By Mstarr - November 25 - 6:03 am

  I have had my Forenza now for 2 years. No major problems except for the seat fabric keeps coming off. Fuel mileage is poorer than expected. Ride is ok.

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  Suzuki Forenza - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By kevin - November 25 - 5:33 am

  I bought this car for work. I drive 134 miles per day to and from work. This car is not roomy enough and does not get very good gas millage on open highway. At 70 miles per hour I average just under 27 miles per gallon. My driving is all highway, with only 4 lights each way. I am not very happy with this performance, but the dealership says it is within the specs.

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  Good car for low budget buyers!! - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
  By tom - November 24 - 3:53 am

  Im using this car for the last 4 years. I drove 62000 miles on it. Running good, never gave me any trouble. Im glad that I chose Suzuki Forenza.

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  Poor Choice for Your Kids - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
  By Mic - November 23 - 10:00 pm

  This car has been a real dog from the beginning. The only good thing is its under warranty for 9,000 more miles. However, I doubt we will keep it that long. We have had repeated problems with three different sensors and had to issue a complaint to obtain a car to drive while mine was being serviced because of its poor quality. You couldnt give me one of these things.

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  airbags - 2008 Suzuki Forenza
  By ohwow - November 6 - 1:03 pm

  I just totaled my car Sunday night and it held up very well I flipped it twice and none of the air bags went off, im okay though. But I was very surprised at how well it held up with some of the thing I found out why the price was so low and they just kinda found the cheep way out. But I was very surprised. But I would never buy another Suzuki car

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  Great car! - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
  By kinkyllama - October 28 - 11:10 am

  Ive had my Forenza for over 40,000 miles and Ive taken it to about 20 hours of open track events plus autocrosses and she just keeps holding up! Have only had one problem which the dealer fixed. I have no complaints, I love this car!