after three weeks....

[babacu]

I also drove a manual which exhibited the same characteristic if driven in the same manner (but on a manual I wouldn't drive at so low revs in such a high gear).

The engine is definately rougher than my last two Mazda 6s and definately rougher than my wifes 2L Kia Cerato (Forte). Even if I drive my wifes car at 1500rpm in top (it's a manual), it's much smoother (it doesn't want to accelerate away from 1500rpm in top, but it's not rough like the Kizashi) and thats a much cheaper Korean car.

I recently drove a Toyota Corolla auto hire car and that was smoother.

My dealer avised that I should contact Suzuki Australia direct and that's what I'm going to do.

The fact that some of you guys don't seem to be experiencing this problem gives me hope that it's a problem that can be resolved and stop it spoiling my experience of an otherwise lovely car!

I think it's all relative. Some people are simply OK with the way the engine sounds/feels, while other ones find it rougher than what they're used to (or compare it to). For me it's an Outlander V6 I compare it with, and I find the Kizashi engine rougher even when idling (I can feel vibrations in the chair in the Kizashi, even more in the steering wheel, when idling, for instance). I know the V6 engines are smoother, but I'm yet to get used to the Kizashi's feel. I noticed this from the first test drive (and that was a different Kizashi, not the one I have now), but I liked the car a lot otherwise, so I decided to get it in spite of this.

Regarding the rpms/speed ratio, I did the following experiment today: drove slowly, just below 40km/h in automatic mode. While maintaining speed, changed to manual. The displayed gear was 5. Once I dowshifted to 4, the car would not let me upshift to 5 again, unless I went over 40km/h. Similarly, below 60km/h in automatic and the corresponding manual "gear" was 6. In manual mode, one would not be able to upshift to 6 if the speed was less than 60km/h. So it's clear that the automatic mode has a tendency to keep the engine at low rpms, even lower than it accepts in manual mode.

Why that is, I have no clue. But I'm getting used to switching to manual mode every time I drive slowly, so I can keep the rpms in a decent range without accelerating.

[autopiolet]

I don't have any vibration and the engine is not what I would call "ruff". Perhaps people who have a ruff sounding engine can explain. The engine is loud when accelerated hard, but otherwise it is quiet.

[KizzyOHIO]

Might as well chime in here as well...

Sure I would love more power (turbo please) and plan on making some modifications (air intake, chip, downpipe, and full exhaust) but for me this feels like a 185 horsepower 4 cylinder engine. The car does a good job of minimizing engine noise and vibration (mounts, insalation, etc.) which helps give the vehicle its near luxury feel. Oh yeah, and I drive a manual so I can't really compare the CVT lag or issues.

Do I have any problems? (1800 miles and counting) yeah one, when driving over 70 mph (which i do frequently) I get a lot of vibration in the car especially the steering wheel. BUT I believe my problem is related to my wheels (16 inchers) and hope to have that rectified in the next couple of months, if not sooner.

Does anyone else notice a significant vibration above 70 mph?

[SX4toKizashi]

My kizashi doesnt vibrate above 70mph. I remember my sx4 did that since day 1 but a simple wheel balance fixed the problem.

[Minority]

Regarding the rpms/speed ratio, I did the following experiment today: drove slowly, just below 40km/h in automatic mode. While maintaining speed, changed to manual. The displayed gear was 5. Once I dowshifted to 4, the car would not let me upshift to 5 again, unless I went over 40km/h. Similarly, below 60km/h in automatic and the corresponding manual "gear" was 6. In manual mode, one would not be able to upshift to 6 if the speed was less than 60km/h. So it's clear that the automatic mode has a tendency to keep the engine at low rpms, even lower than it accepts in manual mode.

Why that is, I have no clue. But I'm getting used to switching to manual mode every time I drive slowly, so I can keep the rpms in a decent range without accelerating.

Yes, I noticed this as well.

How are you going with your fuel consumption using the manual mode at low speed strategy? Fuel consumption is my other major dissapointment with the Kizashi.

So far I am getting worse fuel consumption with my Kizashi than my previous two Mazda 6 (by about 9%) when the official figures suggest it should be better (again by about 9%). My driving style/routes/conditions etc haven't changed, just getting worse, rather than better, fuel consumption!

[lookin]

Is it a possibility that maybe the vibration thing is an australian thing it seems the aussie guys are the ones complaining about the engine roughness am i right

[babacu]

Is it a possibility that maybe the vibration thing is an australian thing it seems the aussie guys are the ones complaining about the engine roughness am i right

I'm in Canada, so no. I'm more inclined to think this is about expectations, rather than absolute performance.

For instance, when your engine is idling, do you see the steering wheel vibrate slightly? Can you *feel* the engine running if your stereo is loud? Do you feel a bit of vibration when you touch the door (or any other car part) with your knee? If you consider that normal, well, some people might find that "not smooth". It's certainly not as smooth as in other cars (not necessarily more expensive or higher class than the Kizashi).

Similarly, for the low rpm vibrations, if you accelerate slightly at low speeds, when the rpms are below 1500 (but not too hard so you get a quick downshift), do you notice a lower tone grumbling (almost diesel engine like) before getting towards 2000 rpm (when it sounds a bit more "round")? If so, that's what I think we're talking about here...

Another related aspect that can contribute to this is the gas. Yeah, I know it only requires 87 and it runs fine with it. However, with my other cars I always managed to find a type of gas they ran smoother with, usually a premium one (but not always), even if the fuel consumption was not significantly different. And different engines find different types of gas better (I have a friend whose V6 Toyota Camry sounded horrible with the same gas my Outlander purrs with), so I'm still looking for the best match for the Kizashi.

[babacu]

Yes, I noticed this as well.

How are you going with your fuel consumption using the manual mode at low speed strategy? Fuel consumption is my other major dissapointment with the Kizashi.

So far I am getting worse fuel consumption with my Kizashi than my previous two Mazda 6 (by about 9%) when the official figures suggest it should be better (again by about 9%). My driving style/routes/conditions etc haven't changed, just getting worse, rather than better, fuel consumption!

It's not stellar. I'm a bit above 10L/100km per tank, most of the time. It gets better when I get more highway driving, but most of the time it's my daily commute, which is not very friendly, 10 km of mostly city driving, with a 3 km stretch of highway where I accelerate hard just to get to break hard once I get to 120km/h or so.

My expectations weren't too high, but I have to admit I was hoping for better. But then, again, AWD and hi-tech gadgetry mattered more to me than fuel consumption, so here I am, quite happy with the Kizashi overall.

[Minority]

Similarly, for the low rpm vibrations, if you accelerate slightly at low speeds, when the rpms are below 1500 (but not too hard so you get a quick downshift), do you notice a lower tone grumbling (almost diesel engine like) before getting towards 2000 rpm (when it sounds a bit more "round")? If so, that's what I think we're talking about here...

Another related aspect that can contribute to this is the gas. Yeah, I know it only requires 87 and it runs fine with it. However, with my other cars I always managed to find a type of gas they ran smoother with, usually a premium one (but not always), even if the fuel consumption was not significantly different. And different engines find different types of gas better (I have a friend whose V6 Toyota Camry sounded horrible with the same gas my Outlander purrs with), so I'm still looking for the best match for the Kizashi.

That's a perfect description of what I'm experiencing and what I didn't expect in the Kizashi!

I also tried a higher octane fuel, 95 RON (as standard the Kizashi runs 91 RON fuel here in Australia), it didn't make any difference to the roughness and I'm only half way through the tank, so we'll see how the fuel consumption goes.

Just had a thought, maybe they only run rough in ex-british colonies

[TheHolyGhost]

Bogging at low RPMs is a common symptom of relatively low power 4 cyl engines whose power generally comes at higher RPMs. As for vibration at idle, I frequently forget that my car is even running at idle. Even my MT shifter is almost perfectly still.