By Shahzad Tabish
Suzuki is a brand well renowned for its diverse motorized product line globally. When we solely talk about the 4 wheel automobile product range of Suzuki, the names that instaneously jump on our minds is “Swift”, “Liana”, “Alto” and “SX4”. Basically, the brand name of Suzuki brings about the imagination of small nimble family cars and hatchbacks, all that has now changed with the introduction of Suzuki “Kizashi” sports sedan.
PSMCL recently launched Suzuki Kizashi in a ceremony held in Lahore. The variant launched is a CBU and will be available at an approximated 5 million pkr. Too many end users that must sound too much money to be spent on a Suzuki, well as a reader if you continue till the end that price tag would be justified through the features on offer.
Starting off from the power plant, the car comes equipped with a 2.4 L petrol engine which provides a peak power of 175 bhp which is enough to power the vehicle to cruising speeds fairly quickly and by that I mean that the car can reach top speed of over 200kph and takes only 8.8 seconds to crack 100kph starting from standstill. Having discussed the power plant now let’s turns our attention towards the rest of the power train.
The car comes equipped with CVT which is amongst the best transmission options available in the market. The CVT enables the driver to operate the car in the normal automatic mode with seamless shifting or in a manual mode where the driver gets the sports feel by extracting the peak power from the engine. In order to enhance the sporty feel while shifting in manual, the car comes equipped with the standard sequential stick shift mode as well as with pedal shifters which enable to driver to shift up and down as per requirement.
When it comes to driving amenities the car is fully packed with the electronic driver aids inclusive of standards like Power steering and ABS. This car being the high end variant also comes equipped with Electronic Stability Program (ESP) and Traction Control (TC). This ensures that the car behaves and remains well within control of even the novice drivers. The ESP module can be turned off at the push of a button which means that the driver can make the tires squeal if he wants to on a track day. The car also features Cruise control facilitating the driver for long drive routes which has become the standard feature in the luxury car segment.
As far as other features are concerned, the car comes equipped with electrically adjustable seats allowing the driver to not only adjust the position of the seats but also the lumber position of the seat. The seat has 3 memory functions as well to suit the adjustments of 3 individuals.
The car comes equipped with standard headlamp leveling system and headlamp washers. The lightening system of the car can also be set to automatic mode which determines the surrounding lightening through photo sensors conditions and illuminates the headlamps and tail lamps accordingly. A unique feature of the car is the auto dimming function of the rear view mirror which dims whenever a high intensity beam is focused on it from behind the vehicle to ensure that the driver visibility is not hindered. The car also features rain sensors which rain sensors which operate the wipers and washer nozzles accordingly. The car also features parking sensors mounted on the front and rear of the vehicle which activate and produce a beeping noise to alert the driver of any obstacle while parking the vehicle.
Talking about the practicality of the car, the car housed a large boot space with seats that fold down to enhance the storage capacity of the vehicle. Cup holders and bottle holders are found in the right places for both front and rear passengers as well. The car features dual AC system with temperature control provision for individual passenger and driver needs. The car also comprises of a very powerful sound system with multiple speakers and tweeters to ensure the perfect sound surround.
As far as safety aspects are concerned the car comes equipped with all the standard equipment necessary to satisfy European regulations. We have already discussed the active safety elements inclusive of ABS and ESP earlier. Along with the active elements the car comes equipped with 6 standard air bags inclusive of 2 frontal, side and curtain airbags and the body has the right combination of crumble zones and rigid areas to ensure maximum impact absorption. The car also features auto pinch function for the power windows, which detects any obstacle presence while closing the windows in automatic mode in order to avoid any injury to any human.
Concluding we may say that Suzuki Kizashi lives up to its name and expectations with the luxury and sports features on offer. With the price it has been offered in the local market it still is the most affordable luxury vehicle available in comparison to its arch rivals; whilst not compromising the luxury or the sporty feel. So all those looking forward to earn the luxuries of driving in comfort and style watch out for Kizashi!..
Originally published in Monthly AutoMark Magazine’s printed edition in March-2015