Young working male's view: Since I have recently been accused of judging things by their looks I will start there with the Forenza. It isn't bad and I wouldn't feel badly about fixing up my buddy with it, but this Suzuki is just too plain for my apparently jaded taste. (Can you tell I'm between girl friends?) The Forenza is not offensive inside or out, has a meat and potato type of driving feel, and makes you feel at home.
Behind the wheel the seats offer some nice manual adjustments or tilt, lumbar, and enough room for the long legged. The cupholders are okay, but if you have a tall drink and are driving a stick shift beware. At night, the ignition switch has a nice glow that makes finding it easier than in the day. Once up to speed, which does not take long, the stereo is easy to figure out, although the equalizer is a bit primitive for my tastes, but at least it has one, and the layout of the radio is too busy for me. What bugged me the most about this Suzuki was the location of the switch for the power mirrors near the front driver's side mirror. It worked, but not smoothly. The Forenza is easy to drive well, but think seriously about the automatic transmission because the clutch take-up is high and it gets tiring to constantly shift in thick traffic.
The rear bench seat is okay, there isn't much problem getting in and out if you are small, and the rear fold down center armrest has cupholders. I would rate the rear seats are average.
Family conference: Money talks, and so the Forenza doesn't shout look at me too well. It needs some thought before buying because of its shortcomings in fuel, lack of side airbags, and resale. (http://www.nada.com) On the positive side the Forenza offers a lot for the money and the 100,000-mile transferable warranty with a seven-year limit is a comforting financial pillow.
Sometimes, new cars can be very surprising, for better or for worse. Expecting the comfort and civility of a Corolla, the Matrix can seem harsh and cheap; but expecting the cost-cutting interior of a Focus or the ride of a Civic, the Suzuki Forenza seems especially well-made and comfortable. What makes it even more remarkable is the low starting price of under $12,000.
As with many new low-end cars, the Forenza sports an expensive-looking exterior which leads people to think it is much pricier. More interesting is the extent to the which the interior picks up cues from more expensive vehicles, such as Mercedes and new Chryslers, and executives them quite well. The general look of the dashboard is pleasing, with a chrome-style smooth plastic covering most surfaces, and textured grey and black panels covering the rest, in a scheme that is echoed on the doors. Tight tolerances keep it looking good, and we must admit we didn't hear a single squeak or rattle - putting it above even the Camry we recently tested.
The instrument panel features silver trim rings around the gauges for a luxury look, accented by an intelligent choice of typefaces and the large white-and-black speedometer. There are luxury cars that don't look this good.
The sheer number of conveniences and features in this $16,000 car (the top of the line EX model, which lists for $4,000 more than the base model) are astonishing. We can start with an unusually good stereo, featuring excellent stereo separation and both CD and cassette, built in equalizations for different types of music and voice as well as optional bass boosting and on-wheel controls, air, four-speed automatic, speed-sensitive steering, cruise, tilt steering, driver's seat height adjustment, leather, alloy wheels, fog lights, remote, power windows, locks, and mirrors, and moonroof. Topping off that rather amazing feature list is a 100,000 mile, seven year transferable powertrain warranty, roadside assistance, and free loaners for certain warranty repairs. Our fully loaded test car did not have, and did not need, a single option.