Kizashi Club

Time to jump ship. I was cool before it was cool.

I figured this car once it got to even lower prices than now would fall into hands of interesting and young people... but NOT hipsters

http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2015 ... -cars.html

Hahaha. However, the list is sort of BS. A Hummer H2 as a hipster vehicle? Umm... No.
The Kizashi is also iffy. It's too sleek and modern to really appeal to hipsters.
I would have added the VW New Beetle on this list. It would seem more as a hipster car and given they will go out of production soon, hipsters can rejoice in that they drive something "rare". The Honda CR-Z would also make a good hipster vehicle too.
Most hipsters I know drive something small and fuel efficient. The Prius and Fit are some of the cars I know hipsters to actually own.

Wait a minute, the article didn't say the Kizashi was a hipster vehicle now but that it may/ would become one in the future . Like 20 years in the future. The article also states the car has unique engineering and was well built.
So the question is will these future hipsters have money.

Wonder what the Kizashi will be worth in say 20 years though with as fast as it dropped in price so far.

Sluggo wrote:Wait a minute, the article didn't say the Kizashi was a hipster vehicle now but that it may/ would become one in the future . Like 20 years in the future. The article also states the car has unique engineering and was well built.
So the question is will these future hipsters have money.

The better question is whether there will be hipsters in 20 years or even less. My guess is no, much like how greasers and more recent emos have faded from popularity.

KuroNekko wrote:

Sluggo wrote:Wait a minute, the article didn't say the Kizashi was a hipster vehicle now but that it may/ would become one in the future . Like 20 years in the future. The article also states the car has unique engineering and was well built.
So the question is will these future hipsters have money.

The better question is whether there will be hipsters in 20 years or even less. My guess is no, much like how greasers and more
recent emos have faded from popularity.

Yeah, I'm sure you are right the hipsters will be gone and I don't even know what a emos are. I thought it was a big bird.
I think it would be hard to pick a car that has lost as must value as the Kizashi. As much as I like mine I regret buying it.
As dependable as it has been I'm concerned when I take it on a trip. No matter how reliable a car is it can always break down.

What happens if that break down is in a state that had very few Suzuki dealers and no real service now.
I'm afraid the Kizashi is a car with the draw backs of an exotic but the prestige of an economy car.

Sluggo wrote:
Yeah, I'm sure you are right the hipsters will be gone and I don't even know what a emos are. I thought it was a big bird.
I think it would be hard to pick a car that has lost as must value as the Kizashi. As much as I like mine I regret buying it.
As dependable as it has been I'm concerned when I take it on a trip. No matter how reliable a car is it can always break down.

What happens if that break down is in a state that had very few Suzuki dealers and no real service now.
I'm afraid the Kizashi is a car with the draw backs of an exotic but the prestige of an economy car.

To start, these are emos. I am sure you saw them around several years ago. I think a lot of them became hipsters as the pop culture evolved.


Now, in regards to the Kizashi:
I personally don't have the worries about the Kizashi like you do. I think it's a solid car with good reliability and I don't really worry about it. It hasn't given me reason to. As people have discussed here, the Kizashi's technological age is also its strength. The engine technology is a bit old but it's proven. Without direct injection, turbocharging, or other newer technologies, the Kizashi is simpler and most will make it into high mileage on regular maintenance. As for the transmissions, the manual is very reliable so unless one really doesn't know how to drive, the only things that wear out is the clutch and related components at high mileage. As for the CVT, it's a newer technology that many people have doubts about. However, the Kizashi's CVT unit is one of the more reliable ones and problems aren't too common. The unit is also shared with Mitsubishi vehicles like the Outlander and Outlander Sport which have above-average reliability according to Consumer Reports and others. So while there is always a possibility of a breakdown, the Kizashi isn't a vehicle prone to it. In fact, it's technically a rather good car with few issues. There are many bigger name manufacturers who have far more serious issues with their new models.

Another thing is that the Kizashi is really that not special as in technically unique. Exotics tend to be rare, expensive, and require special service only from authorized service dealers. One cannot even change the oil themselves in a McLaren as it requires special tools to even access it. The Kizashi is rare, but the serviceability is quite universal. Unless a specific part breaks and needs replacement, I don't think we're necessarily at the mercy of Suzuki service locations. I literally visited my local Suzuki service center only twice in the 3.5 years I've owned my car. I've used online Suzuki parts dealers to buy Kizashi accessories more than anything.

In essence, I think the Kizashi makes for an excellent vehicle to own and drive into high mileage without really worrying. It's reliable, refined, comfortable, and very affordable. It doesn't use complicated or bespoke technology so one isn't very dependent on a service dealer. It's rare like an exotic, but isn't a high-maintenance and costly machine like one. Mine gets by very well on just routine maintenance I do myself. Yeah, resale value is dismal but think about what most people paid for theirs. I bought mine practically new (1 year old, 7,500 miles) for 9 grand off MSRP. I paid base model Yaris money for a Kizashi Sport GTS. F*ck yeah! With many cars, its intrinsic value can't often be reflected to a fair cash value given the rather arbitrary depreciation rates. The Kizashi's resale value is very low because of low demand and not because of technical aspects. I like to value cars in terms of how much it means to me; what I get vs. what I paid. In that regard, I think the Kizashi is among the best. It's a lot of solid car for not much money.

Who recalls the Merkur?



I bought my Kizashis to drive.





199,481

I do. No where near Kizashi status IMHO.

Agree.
I bought zero Merkurs; I bought two Kizashis