Suzuki S-Cross: Too little, too late

What is it?

Originally known as the SX4, the current model dates back to 2021      and shares a chassis with the Vitara.

It brought a major makeover in styling, with a new front and rear-end design.

Inside, the dashboard was updated, with a instrument cluster and 4.2-inch LCD multi-info display from Vitara,

A floating 7.0-inch touchscreen became the focus of the infotainment system.

Driver assistance was also upgraded with a 360 degree camera, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert.

Interior space remains exactly the same as the previous generation.

The SX4 S-Cross is built at the Magyar Suzuki plant in Hungary.

All are powered by a 1.4-litre turbocharged four cylinder petrol engine.

What’s it cost?

S-Cross comes in four grades, priced from $38,990 plus on-roads.

Kicking off proceedings is this the front wheel drive S-Cross, followed by the S-Cross Plus at $41,490, then the all-wheel drive AllGrip from $40,990 and ultimately the AllGrip Prestige from $44,490 — all prices before on-roads costs.

Our test vehicle was the top of the AllGrip Prestige.

Compared to its SX4 predecessor, the compact S-Cross is a step up, both visually, along with cabin trim and equipment.

An aggressive piano black diamond lattice grille and LED headlights have the SUV standing tall, while square wheel arches wrapping polished alloy and silver highlights on the bumpers make for a more robust profile than before.

Body-coloured power folding and heated exterior mirrors, and door handles contrast with 17-inch polished alloy wheels giving the SUV ground clearance of 175mm.

A new 9.0-inch tablet-style touchscreen situated on the centre dashboard provides access to satellite navigation, voice command, DAB+ digital radio, wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto, with Bluetooth connectivity.

Audio consists of four speakers and two tweeters, with a single USB-A olitary USB-A port in front, along with AUX and a 12-volt outlet in the centre bin.

Driver’s Information, consisting of analogue speedo and tacho separated by a digital display, includes instant and average fuel consumption, driving range and a gear position indicator.

S-Cross is still waiting for a safety review and that’s not good enough.

Featured are seven airbags, autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control with stop/start in heavy traffic; lane departure warning and mitigation, electronic brakeforce distribution, brake assist, electronic stability program.

There’s also auto high beam, LED head lights, weaving alert, warning the driver if he or she lets the vehicle go wandering.

Also on hand are blind spot monitor; front and rear parking sensors; hill hold control on moving off on inclines; rear cross-traffic alert and dual sensor brake support.

A camera and sensor warns and brakes for pedestrians.

Front, side and curtain airbags are standard and there are two ISOFix child seat, plus three child seat tether anchorages in the rear.

Like all present-day Suzuki cars the S-Cross is covered by a 5-year, unlimited kilometre warranty and five-year capped-price service scheme, the latter at 12 months or 10,000km intervals.

What’s it go like?

Quality leather appointments are not enough to detract from the firmness of the seats.

Leg room for the average-adult is good, but the back seats lack air outlets.

The dual zone climate control air-con even includes a pollen filter.

Storage consists of a deep centre console box, with padded lid doubling as an arm rest, two cup holders, front and rear and a couple of front and rear bottle slots.

The boot has room for 430 litres of cargo with the rear seat backs up and 1230 litres with seat backs folded.

A space saver spare can be found under the floor.

The engine remains unchanged, with the 1.4-litre Boosterjet turbocharged four-cylinder engine being mated with a six-speed automatic transmission with manual mode and steering wheel-mounted shift paddles.

It produces 103kW at 5500 rpm and 220Nm of torque between 1500 and 4000 rpm.

In this model drive is to all four wheels through a conventional six-speed automatic transmission.

Suzuki’s engineers reckon they have turbo lag by installing the specially developed compact turbocharger attached directly to the cylinder head as well as incorporating the exhaust manifold into the cylinder head casting.

Can’t disagree.

Keyless entry and start provide easy access for the driver.

The carry-over powertrain is already well sorted and provides smooth take-off.

Overseas however it’s offered with a hybrid.

It took ages to get the Swift Hybrid, S-Cross will probably be the same.

S-Cross is spritely thanks to the strong torque factor and overtaking can be performed with confidence.

Steering wheel-mounted paddle shifts add a further level of driver input without dialling up too much excitement.

The driver is aided by an instrument cluster, comprising two old-style analogue gauges with a digital trip computer between, which includes a speedo.

This design has been around for a decade.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?

S-Cross is rated at 1500kg, braked, and 600kg, unbraked, for towing.

AllGrip or all-wheel drive is summoned via a knob on the centre console behind the gearshift.

Auto mode switches between front-wheel and all-wheel drive when conditions demand; Sport sends more torque to the rear and improved engine response; Snow enhances traction on slippery surfaces, maximum torque to rear wheels to get out of such as sand or snow.

A lock button delivers 50:50 front/rear distribution.

Our AllGrip Prestige exhibited good road manners on the bitumen in both wet and dry conditions.

But we wouldn’t be venturing too far off road.

Friends have an S-Cross. Before that they had the SX-4.

They say voice command is useless and it is a bit noisy inside the cabin.

Once you pair a phone, even if you select radio, it often reverts to phone.

With a 47-litre tank, fuel consumption is a claimed 6.2L/100k and it takes 95 premium unleaded.

We were getting 6.5L/100km.

What we like?

• Good acceleration
• Low fuel consumption
• Adequate leg room for the average adult
• Powertrain smooth and linear
• Good road manners

What we don’t like?

• No safety rating
• No rear air vents
• Space saver spare
• No manual mode lockout
• Infotainment has mind of its own

The bottom line?

Like other Suzuki models, S-Cross needs to become competitive with the current crop of small SUVs, particularly those from the Chinese.

Once upon a time it was the bargain of the Japanese offerings. These days it has been eclipsed by a swathe of cheaper, better equipped offerings that perform the same function.

Suzuki’s management has been notoriously slow to respond to changes in the industry. Someone needs to sack the lot of them and bring some new, dynamic blood aboard — it’s not rocket science.

 

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