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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  This is a Great Car! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By Kaley Blesse - October 10 - 5:26 am

  This is a great looking car and it drives wonderfully. I drive about 40 minutes to work everyday and its great on gas! The only thing that I can say I dont like about this car is the size of the tires. No one carries this size tire that makes it inconvenient to find replacements. I had two flat tires in one week. But otherwise this is a great car!

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  Great Car for the Price - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By Louie - October 6 - 8:00 am

  The 2005 Suzuki Forenza is well made and fun to drive. It is a surprisingly nice vehicle for the price. It comes standard with many options that are cost extra on many other cars, cush as power windows and door locks. I have owned a number of Hondas and this car is right up there with the Civic.

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  Door Handles - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By KarmicX - October 4 - 10:00 am

  I just called Suzuki because I heard of the recall on certain Suzuki models. The door handles have all broken. They want to do nothing but charge me a phenomenal rate to fix them. Its a flaw they had when using cheap door handles. I love that Suzuki is standing behind their product. I drive with my kids all the time and this is a safety issue. If you cant exit the vehicle without unrolling the automatic windows and the back passengers cant even reach their exterior door handles to exit doesnt this constitute a severe safety issue.

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  affordable and sporty - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
  By Lorre Toler - September 24 - 2:00 am

  Just a great driving car with everythig at finger tips

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  Small car - a lot of leg room - 2004 Suzuki Forenza
  By Tamara Lewis - September 13 - 10:00 am

  I had a Volkswagen bug and had just had a baby so I was on a hunt for something a little bigger. I wanted a jetta or a smaller suv. The forenza really caught my eye because it looked similar to the jetta. We put my daughters car seat in the back of a couple of small suvs like a rav-4 and when I sat in the passenger seat my knees touched the dash and I am only 52. When we put her carseat in the forenza we were amazed at how much leg room I had. My husband is 61 and he also had a lot of leg room when sitting in the passenger seat. After checking out the inside, cheap insurance, great ratings and the price - we were sold!

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  Great Car - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By Lori - August 23 - 1:30 am

  I just bough the Forenza S, and I love it. I traded a Daewoo Lanos for it, and it is a huge improvement. I love the way that it handles, the room, comfortable seats, and the whole interrior design. The trunk space is great too. If you are looking for a car with basic style plus a little more with a great warranty, I would strongly recomend this little family car.

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  I got duped!! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By nafeeshap - August 21 - 2:17 pm

  This car is the WORST car I have EVER owned. I drive a 2006 Suzuki Forenza. My car does NOT start like it is supposed to. I have spent so much money trying to determine what the problem is. I have to unplug the battery in order for the car to start when im ready to drive it & that does not always work. The car is in the shop right now. I took the car in Saturday 4/21/2012. I got a complete tune-up. I picked the car up Saturday 4/28/2012. I drove home. I parked the car. I went to move the car on Monday 4/30/2012. The car would not start. I took it back to the mechanic. I brought the car with 4 miles on it. It was brand new. I now have 21,000+ mi on it. It makes no sense. I HATE this car!

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  Excellence and Practicality - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By Don LAmb - August 14 - 9:53 pm

  What a deal. To get a beautiful car that is comfortable, fully equipped, and convenient, not to mention the fantastic gas mileage that it gets. I will never buy another American made auto. I got a100,000 mile warranty, which is unheard of in the American car market and the equivalant American car was $10,000 more expensive.

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  Worst Car Experience - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By adam - August 14 - 9:33 am

  This car has many electrical, and powertrain problems that may not be detected until after the standard and powertrain warranty. There are so many complaints floating around that raises questions about Suzuki Autos quality control. Not every vehicle is free of problems, but this is ridiculous. My advice, avoid the Forenza at all costs. The 2005 Forenza Wagon and other problematic models should be put out of their misery. Save your money, do your research, and invest in a more reliable auto. Dont even get me started on trying to get repairs done on this. This by far is the worst car experience Ive ever had. :(

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  Piece of Junk - 2007 Suzuki Forenza
  By ang - August 13 - 11:00 am

  I bought this car new. Since then I had to have my passenger door painted. My windshield wipers are rusted my rear view mirror always has a vibration. Also like many others I had a door handle break. Now every time I drive my car looses the gas my car looses speed. Now it has a leak under the engine as well. This is very unsafe and of course they tell my nothing is wrong with my car. Not reliabe and not safe. Worst car ever I will never buy another Suzuki. Dont waste your money no wonder they dont make these cars anymore.