It’s a tough gig I got.
While driving new cars all the time I have to take notes — mental and with pen and paper. And, it’s annoying to hop from car to car not knowing where the light switch is or flipping the lightswitch when trying to find the windshield wiper gizmo.
Like I said, it’s tough, but somebody has to do it. Before you cry me a river or call me ‘negative? let me say it was only slightly embarrassing when I stalled the 2004 Suzuki Aerio SX while trying to back out of a parking spot at Oxford Bank, there in downtown Oxford. It had nothing to do with the 2.3L, DOHC 16-valve four cylinder engine. No design flaw with the foot pedal configuration. Nope. I just forgot I was driving a stick. Luckily, no one in the parking lot recognized me.
The Aerio is a quick, responsive little car and pleasing to look at. If I were to put it in a category, I guess I’d put it in with the likes of the Pontiac Vibe. The manufacturer puts it in the ‘small station wagon? category. To say I am a ‘small? anything kind of guy would be less than truthful, yet, I was able to fit in the driver’s seat with comfort. I think what most impressed me with the Aerio was its roominess — almost 50 inches of hip room for the driver (if you must know, the Pontiac Vibe has over 51 inches of hip room).
Prior to experiencing the Aerio SX, I have had plenty of time in ‘small? cars. From those exciting days of yesteryear in a Vega, to Chevettes to Geo Storms — I’ve driven them all. What I didn’t like about those was an uneasy feeling of being too close to the pavement. Not so with the Aerio. The 15-inch tires set the car up nice. I did not have that icky feeling of being too low. Nor did I have a feeling of impending doom when I merged into north bound I-75 traffic at the Sashabaw Road entrance.
I drove the car from Orion all the way up to Flint and many places between. I used mainly the back roads and in a week’s worth of travel I put no gas in the 13.2 gallon tank (though it was close to empty when I returned it). Suzuki says this car will get 25 miles to the gallon in the city and 31 on the highway.
The base price of $14,999 includes cruise control, six-disc CD/AM/FM stereo, remote keyless entry, power windows and locks and a 100,000 miles, seven-year limited powertrain warranty and roadside assistance. Check out the car at this website: www.suzukiauto.com.