2002 Suzuki Aerio Review (continued)
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Walkaround

Driving around rural South Carolina in a polar white Suzuki Aerio SX could not have attracted more attention if we had landed in a space ship with Elvis in the rumble seat. The Aerio SX looked otherworldly in the Low Country. Styled in Italy, the Aerio SX follows parameters laid out by the Ford Focus ZX3/ZX5. Like the Toyota Matrix, the Suzuki goes a step further in edgy styling.

A triangle theme is repeated from headlamps to profile to taillamps. The liftgate has a black painted area below the rear window that makes lighter colored SXs easy to identify from a distance, emphasizing its unusual shape.

The profile does create an illusion, however, that makes even the 15-inch wheels look small. Suzuki broke up the large slab sides with cladding around the wheel arches, the rocker panels and the bottom of the doors, plus little dents in the front and rear bumpers. The side marker lights look like they were borrowed from a trucker's supply store and tacked on rather than integrated into the design, no doubt because this car is sold in markets around the world with differing lighting standards.

The SX comes ready for a roof rack: slide off the four little caps to expose mounting loops for dealer accessory roof racks. That could come in handy for skiers and mountain bikers. The Aerios we saw were all preproduction models, produced prior to regular production began, and had considerable orange peel in the paint.

Overall, it's a love-it-or-hate-it design, and will be viewed as either fresh, innovative and out-of-this word-or something from the outer limits.

The Suzuki Aerio is also available in a traditional sedan body style. In this regard, Suzuki follows the trend set by the Toyota Matrix, Ford Focus ZX5, and Mazda Protege5, all of which are offered in sedan versions (the Matrix sedan is called a Corolla). As such, the base Aerio S and GS share the distinctive front end styling of the SX but have a conventional trunk. Suzuki anticipates two-thirds of Aerios sold to be sedans, but we'll concentrate on the crossover SX just because it's different.

The Aerio SX is short. Unlike the Ford Focus models, which are all exactly the same length, the Aerio SX is 5 inches shorter than the Aerio S and GS sedans. The SX is an inch shorter than the Focus and 5 inches shorter than the Toyota Matrix. This makes the Aerio easy to fit into short parking places.

Interior Features

The tall profile (61 inches tall, or 7 inches taller than the Esteem) means oodles of headroom front and rear. The chair-like seat height translates into more leg room in a short vehicle, as legs can go down rather than out.

The Suzuki Aerio has one of the tiniest instrument panels we have ever seen. Set in a symmetrical dash, it's a tiny wedge only several inches tall containing an LCD analog tachometer, digital speedometer and tiny temperature and fuel gauges, all in orange on black. There's a similar wedge-shaped panel on the passenger side. No doubt this facilitates configuring the car for sales in right-hand-drive countries. We thought we got rid of digital in the Eighties, but this system works well enough, and it's set deep enough that it isn't washed out in sunlight, always in shade.

The center stack houses the standard AM/FM/CD audio and heater/air conditioner controls, all easy to understand and operate. The inside door handles feel flimsy, but otherwise, fit and finish are good. The interior is all plastic, but quality-look plastics. The dash has an industrial-look texture, and despite high styling for the most part, function hasn't been compromised by style.

The big, tall doors make entry easy front and rear, and the rear hatch opens wide. The rear can accept a lot of cargo.

Aerio sedans have a 14.6 cubic foot trunk that's huge for their size.

The back seat folds down, after first tilting the seat cushion forward, to make a flat floor. Remove the SX cargo cover and there's enough cargo volume for a weeklong camping trip without putting anything on the roof. Tie-down hooks would have made a nice addition here, and some people may prefer a non-carpeted load floor, such as the one found in the Toyota Matrix. Two nice SX features: hidden storage under the floor, and a storage tray under the front passenger seat.