One less Kizashi owner

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Sluggo
Posts: 134
Joined: Fri Nov 30, 2012 11:47 pm

Yep, I am no longer a Kizashi owner. After 50,000 trouble free miles, except for the too many recalls, I sold my Kizashi.
Like a Lemming I have joined the SUV crowd with the purchase of a Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring with the 2.5 Turbo.
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

That's exactly how I felt, like a Lemming, when I ditched the Heep for the CX-5. I just wish somebody, anybody, would compete w/ the Wrangler. I'm keeping the Kizashi until it dies or costs too much to repair.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
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KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

I honestly don't think CUVs are bad vehicles. In fact, they make a lot of sense to me and probably make the best kind of car for me personally. I am not at all surprised that CUVs have taken over not only America, but all over the world. They combine what most general consumers want in a vehicle best, IMO. They are far more comfortable than truck-based SUVs while being more efficient, quieter, and safer due to everything from their unibody chassis to the type of tires typically installed on them. While they don't handle as well as lower sedans and coupes, they handle the road significantly better than SUVs with traditional body-on-frame designs. Then consider that CUVs easily haul things that sedans never can. I had to call my brother to haul a couch I bought that was impossible to load on my Kizashi. I barely fit a mini-fridge in my rear seats and scratched my car doing so given the tight fit. Meanwhile, loading large items is a total breeze for my brother's Kia Sorento.

As for foul weather, nearly all CUVs are available in AWD while sedans are mostly FWD save for some models. More importantly, CUVs have the ground clearance that often matters more than AWD to clear snow or off-pavement driving. While CUVs are not superb offroaders, they will get most people to about 95% percent of any adventure they would ever care to go. With modern powertrains, CUVs are also getting fuel economy better than sedans of yesteryear. I'm seeing V6 AWD CUVs that gets comparable or better fuel economy than my 4 cyl. FWD Kizashi that averages 24 MPG.

I plan to keep my Kizashi a long time but I think you can all guess what kind of vehicle the replacement will be.
P.S. The CX-5 with the turbo has got to be one of the best non-luxury CUVs out there. Congrats.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
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Drem
Posts: 85
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2011 3:03 am

Both of my parents drive a CX-5. Mom got one then dad had to have one too. I rode in it... I'd want one too if I was in the market for a car and had that much money. The ride is dreamy smooth. The Kiz rides so rough, can feel everything. I've put a small gash in my car putting stuff in the back seat too.

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2011 - Sport SLS AWD - Platinum Silver
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KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

Drem wrote:Both of my parents drive a CX-5. Mom got one then dad had to have one too. I rode in it... I'd want one too if I was in the market for a car and had that much money. The ride is dreamy smooth. The Kiz rides so rough, can feel everything. I've put a small gash in my car putting stuff in the back seat too.

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The rough ride is very likely the result of the condition and age of the suspension. I've noticed it too. My Kizashi isn't as smooth as it used to be and newer cars ride very smoothly in comparison. However, my dampers have nearly 100K on them. It's not the car so much as the condition of its aged parts. Dampers (shocks and struts) have a lot to do with ride comfort.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
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Ronzuki
Posts: 2382
Joined: Wed Nov 17, 2010 5:33 pm
Location: Lancaster County, PA

CX5s, or any other run of the mill me too vehicle, are only expensive if you simply hand over whatever the stealerships say you should. The bartered price of my mid-level 2018 CX5 Touring was 24k even before trade/tax/tags . It stickered at over 30k as I recall. The Kizashi's bartered price was 20.4 or 21.4k...can't recall any longer or what it stickered for. The tide of the ridiculous prices of new vehicles is going to change here shortly.

The Kizashi's suspension was always road sensitive, even new. Yes it's 10 years and 90k+ miles aged now, but, when I'm throwing it around in the curves, I feel very little, if any, 'looseness' many other vehicles I've owned demonstrated at the mileage currently on mine. Solid suspension engineering on the K for sure. I drive it the same as I did 60-70k miles ago...possibly harder even. What I don't do, ever, is beat the snot out my vehicles' suspensions by hitting jarring road imperfections and the like. That's been a life-long driving habit I'd developed because, well, it's expensive if you don't treat the suspension nicely. Doesn't matter what kind of vehicle, even the Heeps I had. Once in a while the occasional hole or missed manhole gets me, but it's rare. I always used to cringe when sitting at the kids' schools watching nearly everyone fly across speed bumps like they weren't even there. That'll age any suspension prematurely, guaranteed.

New tires on a Kizashi go a very long way in improving ride quality, and of course, handling. Even when it was new, my family didn't care for the ride or crispness of the steering/handling and the way the car 'feels' the road. To each his own I guess.
Ron

2010 Kizashi GTS, CVT, iAWD (3/10 build date)
2011 SX4 Premium Hatch, CVT, iAWD (12/10 build date)
2018 Mazda CX-5 iAWD Touring
2014 Wrangler JKUW (GONE, traded :D :D )
1991 Samurai, 5-Speed, EFI, Soft-Top ( :| sold)
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Woodie
Posts: 1167
Joined: Sun Apr 28, 2013 10:09 am
Location: Laurel, MD

Wheels/Tires are going to make a bigger difference than anything else mentioned here. Take off the incredibly heavy 18" wheels with two wraps of electrical tape around the edge and put on some 16" 70 series tires. You'd be shocked at how much more comfortable it would be.
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KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

Woodie wrote:Wheels/Tires are going to make a bigger difference than anything else mentioned here. Take off the incredibly heavy 18" wheels with two wraps of electrical tape around the edge and put on some 16" 70 series tires. You'd be shocked at how much more comfortable it would be.
If you put on 16 inch wheels with 70 series tires on a Kizashi then you might as well be driving a CUV or a mid-2000s Camry! :lol:
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
rossirob73
Posts: 55
Joined: Sun Jul 07, 2019 11:06 am

Woodie wrote:Wheels/Tires are going to make a bigger difference than anything else mentioned here. Take off the incredibly heavy 18" wheels with two wraps of electrical tape around the edge and put on some 16" 70 series tires. You'd be shocked at how much more comfortable it would be.
How was the ride height as a result of the change.
What about your Speedo.. was it out ?

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Woodie
Posts: 1167
Joined: Sun Apr 28, 2013 10:09 am
Location: Laurel, MD

Haven't done it myself on the Kizashi, but I have on other cars. Pretty sure that member WESHOOT2 has put on 17" wheels.

The car came from the factory with either P215/60R16, P215/55R17, P235/45R18 tires. All of these are pretty much the same diameter and will have minimal effect on ride height or speedo/odo accuracy.
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