Brilliant little car
Nothing - manufacturers recall was dealt with very efficiently.
Very deceiving space, carries more that you think. Great small family car and takes all our camping equipment. Great mini-MPV and very comfortable to drive. Economical running costs, low insurance and roadtax.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 26th May, 2005
It is a fabulous zippy car that fulfills all of my weekly transport needs
Nothing has gone wrong for me, although the car was recalled by the manufacturer for its front-end suspension, which was replaced very quickly by the dealership.
I adore my Wagon R+. I use it to haul my three kids back and forth to school with their huge book bags in tow, as well as doing errands on the weekends or small trips around our region. Despite my husband having a larger comfy Volvo, we often opt for the Suzuki because it is so zippy. We live near a historic medieval town and my car just purrs right through all of its streets and is so easy to park. And when I take the car onto the auto route for a weekly 150 km round trip, the car handles the speed limit of 130kpm with no problem. I can easily overtake other cars when I need to and have never felt the slightest hesitation in the motor when I buzz down the on-ramp.
I like the visibility the height of the car affords. It is nice to be above all of the other small cars on the road. I am a driver who enjoys the very upright seat position--I think over-reclined drivers should be barred from the roads.
The Wagon R has all sorts of nooks to put things in, although even I admit I would like a tad more space in the spare tire compartment to keep my safety triangle box. But the boot easily takes a load of groceries lined up behind the seat.
The car seems solid and safe for my purposes. There are airbags and five three-point safety belts and good brakes.
I have been noticing more Suzuki Wagon R+ s on the road lately as well as the similar Opel version. I think that it is catching on here in France now that people realize just how deceptively spacious this car is. And for the price I paid, the options I got (air conditioning, automatic transmission, fog lights, metallic paint, roof rack, CD player,) it is a hard car to beat.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 28th September, 2004
Good value shopper, average performance elsewhere nothing to write home about
Door central locking with key, affected by weather, needed lubricant.Eventually needed replacing under warranty.
Drivers electric window winder had to be replaced, under warranty.
Windscreen rubber surround came unstuck.
One spark plug had spark-over causing misfire.
Front wheel alignment out.
Front tires replaced under warranty, because of severe dangerous wear on one of them.
The automatic works well, but has poor speed on a long hill, causing the engine to race.
This car is most reliable, never fails to start, always the tacho is rock steady on idle.
Good visibility all round when rear head restaints are removed.
Being 6ft 3 tall the head clearance is great, the pedal position is good.
The brakes are very efficient, steering also.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 18th November, 2003
Further to the above comment, we missed the Wagon R so much that we have traded the Picanto in for a new 1.2 model Wagon R. They seem to have improved many parts- standard air-con, ABS, EBD, hard back shelf etc, but the back seats are very laid back and not upright. We'll see if it as reliable as the last one...!
Does what it was designed to do
Door locks have been very temperamental: locking or unlocking the driver's door locks or unlocks the other doors only when the 'central locking' system feels like it.
If you are the sort of person for whom this car was designed it is a great buy; if you are after street cred go elsewhere. Mine has been used to lug all sorts of DIY stuff around and it makes a great 'taxi': very easy for older people to get in and out. I find mine a nice easy driving car around town and on motorways: I almost never drive on twisting rural rides where its height might make for less than optimum handing.
One major gripe (I wrote to Suzuki about this on the previous model) is that if you are tall (I am 6'3") you cannot see most of the speedo and the warning lights.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 12th April, 2003
27th Jan 2005, 09:29
We ran a 2001 Wagon R+ for 78,000 miles and loved it, having traded for a cheaper Kia Picanto, we miss it.
Problems over 78,000 miles; tracking out and destroyed 2 front tyres, dealer would not contribute-reading these reports this seems a common fault that others have had sorted under warranty. Dash clock failed. Door locks replaced. Stalled far too easily, especially when reversing uphill-enormous revs needed. Reverse difficult to engage. Very expensive service at 54,000 miles- over £500 with cambelt and brakes. Awful fiddly radio. Many great features and good spec with air-con, elec windows etc, good visibility, excellent rear seat fold down mechanism and easy to use in town. If Suzuki hadn't been so mean on the trade-in we'd have had another. Considering it was a small engine town car and covered over 78,000 in just three years it was very dependable.