Suzuki S-Cross GLX 2014 Review

It's a strange beast, Suzuki's S-Cross – Not really an SUV, not quite an MPV. The TV commercial shows young urban professionals enjoying themselves in the S-Cross, but where are the stodgy old pensioners who'll get the most out of the Suzuki's increased ride height and good interior space? Other reasons for the aged to consider the Suzuki? Well, it's easy to drive and it's light on the hip pocket too with a starting price of $22,990 (plus on-road costs).

During its week in our care the S-Cross proved a practical family car that sipped petrol slowly, but still delivered respectable performance from its 1.6-litre engine. The test car was a mid-spec GLX front-wheel drive model with CVT (continuously variable transmission).

Drivers who hate CVTs need not apply to buy this car. Even among others of its ilk, the transmission in the S-Cross falls within the range of 'fair-to-middling'. It's nowhere near as noisy as that of the Subaru XV, for instance, but nor is it as clever as the transmission in the Forester XT.

While the CVT allowed the Suzuki's engine to stretch its legs at intermediate speeds, the S-Cross wasn't all that lively from a standing start. The engine itself was a hard worker across the rev range, but its meagre power and torque struggled moving even the lightweight S-Cross off the line rapidly –without a clutch to ride.

There is good news, however. The CVT provided some (limited) engine braking on downhill grades and acceleration was fine once the car was on the move. Due to the combination of small-displacement engine and the predisposition of the CVT to hold the revs low and at a constant level, fuel consumption averaged 8.1L/100km, according to the trip computer – and that's 'City' consumption rather than 'Combined', since the car spent very little time on the freeway.

Owners who spend more time on the open road will see significantly lower fuel consumption than that, since the engine revs fall below 2000rpm at a steady speed of 100km/h. And using less throttle accelerating up to speed around town will keep revs very low indeed. That is one redeeming feature of the CVT – even low torque will produce adequate performance without dipping too deep into the fuel tank.

The CVT also masked some of the power delivery shortfalls of the engine, picking the right ratio to hold the car at a set speed on a hill, for instance. And the transmission usually shifted into a higher ratio before the engine reached 5000rpm, where the 1.6-litre four started to sound a bit thrashy. When it came to keeping engine revs below the redline, and conserving fuel – and being easy to manage around town – the CVT was highly effective.

On well sealed roads the S-Cross was quiet, with acceptably low tyre noise most of the time, although there was noticeable bumping and thumping over potholes. Since the engine was frequently running as low as 1100 or 1200rpm on light loads labouring vibration was often encountered in urban driving.

There were a number of build-related noises heard in the car over bumpier roads. One of these was a persistent buzz in the dashboard on the passenger side and there was also some noise from soft materials and loosely fastened fixtures. Build quality of the S-Cross was not quite what buyers might expect from a vehicle marketed by a Japanese company. While the car's interior was reasonably stylish, the glovebox lid and the dash didn't line up with the moulded sculpture lines on the door panels, as one example.

But if the S-Cross lacked perfect gaps and funereal ambience, it at least came across as pretty robust.

The S-Cross rode with poise over the sort of ill-formed bitumen typical of Aussie country roads and struck a neat balance with the handling, which was a pleasant surprise too. Although the car would skip over mid-corner bumps, it turned in promptly and maintained a nice tight line, even with power applied. Weighted for lightness, the steering provided a reasonable level of feedback, although the electrically-assisted system was slow responding to driver input at the straight-ahead.

The driving position was commendable, with plenty of legroom and enough reach adjustment in the steering column for most to find a comfortable setting. Instruments were easy to read and the controls were located where they should be. Seats were not only really comfortable, but occupants are sure to feel very secure, held fast if the driver is pushing on a little harder.

A high hip point made access easier, and the S-Cross was quite spacious in the rear, with plenty of kneeroom and headroom for adults. The rear seat headrests need to be raised for adults seated there; otherwise they poke into the back between the shoulder blades. Raising the headrests takes a bit more muscle than is usually the case in other cars.

There were no eyeball vents in the rear, which may pose a problem for kids and others in the rear seats during the summer months.

The boot measures 430 litres, but looked smaller than that, given the overall footprint and rear-seat accommodation of the S-Cross. A tray, which contributed to the noise in the cabin on bumpy roads, sat above the boot floor for added storage and to act as a cargo blind, concealing from view any valuable items placed beneath it. This upper tray locked into brackets to be held in place tilted while goods were loaded underneath. It's a handy system.

Under the boot floor proper was a space-saver spare, and the boot floor was raised higher than it should be in a front-wheel drive car, to accommodate the rear-drive mechanicals of the range-topping all-wheel drive variants.

As a final comment, the HID headlights in the GLX variants were nice to have in a car at this price. They made light work – if you'll pardon the expression – of illuminating country roads at night. To my mind, it's these and the parking sensors that tip the value in favour of the upmarket S-Cross GLX, ahead of the base-grade S-Cross GL. The higher grade also gains three extra audio speakers (taking the total to seven), a 6.1-inch touchscreen, sat nav, climate control (in lieu of manual air conditioning) and 17-inch alloy wheels (rather than 16s).

At $30,990 drive-away, the S-Cross GLX will certainly find buyers – but perhaps not young ones.

2014 Suzuki S-Cross GLX (FWD) pricing and specifications:
Price: $30,990 (including on-road costs)
Engine: 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 86kW/156Nm
Transmission: Continuously variable
Fuel: 5.8L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 137g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP

What we liked:
>> Practical, easy to operate, cheap to own
>> Unexpected ride/handling balance
>> Adult-appropriate rear-seat accommodation

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