Used 2013 Suzuki Kizashi Sedan Consumer Reviews

A spectacularly underrated luxury sedan

This is primarily my wife's daily driver, and we thoroughly love it. We bought it with low miles and have put about 100,000 miles on it in the past five years. It's been 100% reliable. Other than routine maintenance (oil changes, air filters, and brakes once), we've only had a single issue... and that turned out to be our fault. The front differential started dripping some fluid and we couldn't sort it out. The dealer changed the seals under warranty, and it kept leaking. It turned out the front passenger wheel had been significantly bent in a pot hole and was shaking the front differential so hard that it was leaking. We replaced the bent wheel, and the leak was gone. So, I blame us for that, not the car. The interior is luxurious (nicer than my dad's BMW or my Mercedes), and everyone that rides in it comments on the quality of the leather (contrast stitching) and the comfort of the front seats. It is superb for long trips; we never experience back fatigue. The chassis of the car is overbuilt too. It has truly superb handling that could easily support a couple hundred more horsepower. The chassis reminds me of the sports cars I've owned... taut and grippy. That being said, we've never felt that the stock 185hp was too little. The Kizashi came with more standard horsepower than all the base model sedans in the segment. A turbo or V6 option would have been a nice upgrade, but the 2.4 is a very decent little engine. Acceleration is a little deceptive since the smooth CVT makes it feel slower than it actually is. The CVT isn't my favorite (I prefer manuals), but my wife genuinely likes it. The 2013 had a slight CVT redesign versus the 2010-2012 models; it's never given us any issues, and we're pushing 130k miles on it. I have changed the fluid and 2 filters in it once at 100k (and I suggest others do the same at 100k or whenever the fluid color starts changing). It'll whine a little when you drive up a mountain for a few hours in 90F degree heat, but it's been entirely reliable just like virtually everything else on the car. The only thing that's "failed" was the poorly-designed USB outlet. It can literally be pushed into the dashboard if you plug something in too hard. I modified the replacement USB outlet's retention tabs with a touch of epoxy, and the problem is fixed. Oh, I did read about a lot of Kizashi owners needing to replace their headlight bulbs frequently. So, rather than face that possibility, I just bought an HID kit and installed it (so no problems there, and the lights are bright and beautiful). The Edmunds review bullets indicate mediocre fuel mileage, but I would disagree. In 2010 when the car was released, this was the second most fuel efficient AWD vehicle in America (second only to the smaller Suzuki SX4). It's no Prius, but for a solidly-built AWD sedan, it's very decent (easily over 30mpg on the highway). Don't forget that this only requires regular fuel too; a lot of the competitors require premium fuel to reach their mileage ratings. We're saving plenty of money on gas versus the Honda CRV this replaced (despite the CRV being a lighter vehicle). If I can find a low mileage one, I will absolutely buy another when the time comes to replace this one. Yes, the dealer options stink since Suzuki is gone from the US, but I'm not a huge fan of dealers anyway. I'd rather let a skilled independent work on my cars. Or better yet, get a supremely reliable car like the Kizashi and no one needs to work on it. This is an attractive luxury sedan with solid performance, excellent reliability, and high safety ratings. It's hard to think of any real complaints on it. I will say that based on the car's terrific performance in snow, the AWD may have been an unnecessary option... the FWD version of the car is probably what I would buy next time (just to save weight and fuel). Snow has never been an issue, and my wife frequently forgets to turn the AWD option on during inclement weather anyway. My wife hates it when we rent cars now, because all the new 2020 Kia, Hyundai, Nissan, Chevy and Toyota rental sedans are dull and uncomfortable compared to her beloved "Kizzy." Highly recommended. I hope Suzuki figures out how to return to America one day... and makes more cars like this.