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:

• 

  The ForenzGetAboutIt :( - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By Sucker - December 16 - 4:46 am

  Or, more aptly titled, the "Suzuki Piece of Junk." I bought the car in mid-May 2006. It was trouble free for roughly 600 miles. It has been in the shop consistent every month since then for no crank issues, transmission, dropping the entire subframe, plus a host of others. I already have a hefty file going on repairs, etc. There is not enough room here for all of the problems and issues involved with the car. What a farce! I just picked it up from the last go around. The shop had it for a month and the car is still not fixed. I would very strongly recommend checking out other comparable vehicles in this class if you actually want to own a new car that runs and is reliable. It looks pretty, but mechanically I give it a rating of zero on a scale of 1 to 10.

• 

  Not a Good Car - 2007 Suzuki Forenza
  By Matt - December 7 - 12:03 am

  I bought this car used with 13K miles on it. Now I have 29K and I am really beginning to hate it. In the last year I have replaced 3 door handles, 2 sensors for oil pressure, and the tachometer just quit working. My overall thought on the car, it was a good attempt but it stinks. If you are looking into buying a car like this, my best advise to you would be dont buy it. P.S. Tires are ridiculously hard to find and are very expensive!

• 

  Completely Dissatisfied - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By HORRIBLE CAR! - November 19 - 2:00 am

  My Forenza has been nothing short of a nightmare. I have had to take it into the dealership 4 different times for the same transmission problem not to mention a brake light switch burning out. My computer panel falling out of its brackets leaving it dangling by my feet, my rear view mirror coming out of its mount, and having both the passenger and driver side door handles complete snap off. I only have approximately 45,500 miles on my car, and I have had to put up with all of these problems. The warranty is great, but when you have to take the car into the dealership at least once every four months, its not worth it. I am definitely trading it in for something that is not a piece of crap.

• 

  Buyer beware - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By heather_2011 - September 30 - 12:13 pm

  I traded in my beloved Oldsmobile that has 175,000 miles on it for our current Suzuki Forenza that had 30,000. It seemed like a smart idea since we drive between states quite a bit. Were we ever wrong! From the get go this car has been nothing but trouble. I had it into the dealership 5 times for the same problem, corporate offices had to step in and fix it finally. Now it is parked because it wont start and with paying a car payment I just dont have the money to have it into the shop every other week. This was the first car that I have owned that is considered foreign. Ill never do it again.

• 

  buyer beware!!! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By marco - September 1 - 3:20 pm

  When we got our first Suzuki we just loved, not long after that we noticed that the driving was getting really nasty and noisy, the door handles started to brake and fall off, and then the front suspension started to give us problems, all this is aggravated by the fact that we have to deal with such uncaring team on the service department. If you must deal with them please tell them in writing what the problem is otherwise they wont know what to do.

• 

  Hate this car! - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By tamip8400 - June 8 - 5:16 pm

  This car is junk! I havent had the car a yr and the door handles broke off, the key is constantly stuck in the ignition which runs the battery down, the gears wont shift at all, wont start in cold weather, terrible on tires! There are hundreds of people online with the exact problems and no recalls for any of it! BEWARE!

• 

  Buyer Beware!!!!! Cheap paid, cheap made - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By Alisha - March 30 - 5:20 pm

  I purchased my Suzuki in 2007. I have enjoyed the vehicle until just recently. I have started to have transmission problems and I have not even hit 50,000 miles yet!!! The only place that will touch it because of the "great" warrenty is 60 miles away. The Suzuki dealership told me to just drive it in and if it breaks down then I will have to pay for the cost of towing as the warrenty does not cover towing costs that far away. The dealership that sold it to me flat out lied to my face and said they work on Suzuki, but when asked today they said they meant giving oil changes and such. This will be my last Suzuki, next time Im going American and will save myself the stress and headache!

• 

  Beware! - It May Not Start - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By ShenValleyGirl - February 13 - 7:40 am

  If you’re considering buying a Suzuki Forenza, test drive it more than once. “Beware” of the Intermittent "no start" problems occurring on many 2006 models. The A/C output is not good nor is the acceleration. If you’re 5’8" or taller, you may find it’s a bit difficult to get in and out of, especially when wearing high heels. I bought mine in late May, had it all of 7 days and190 miles before the “no start” problem occurred. In fact, it happened two days in a row. I took it back to the dealership (35 miles from my home) for diagnosis and repair after the second incident. I thought the first one was just a fluke. It was there 7 days. I have it back now and the engine revs high and idles rough every morning.

• 

  Worst car Ive ever owned - 2006 Suzuki Forenza
  By jerushah - January 1 - 12:32 am

  I bought the car new from the dealer and have had problems with it from day one. The interior handles broke off, it rattles, jerks when put into reverse, check engine light comes on all the time, dents easily, paint started coming off within a week, have had to put over $1500 into repairs, and now I have to pump the accelerator to get the thing to start. I will never buy another product from them. The car is total junk and should be recalled.

• 

  Never Again - 2005 Suzuki Forenza
  By Very Unhappy - December 29 - 11:46 am

  This vehicle has been a problem from the first month of purchase. First it would jut die while driving, then it idled all over the place, transmission (automatic) is rough and jumps a bit coming out of 2nd gear. And now the engine began making alot of noise so I took it in and the repairs are not being covered by that oh so wonderful warranty. I have been told three different causes for this trouble from the samw dealership mechanic. I dont believe they know what they are doing there. I will never own another suzuki again! Poor quality and poor customer service!