SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Most, but not all, the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

My most recent drive is on the home page. Archived reviews and opinion pieces are in the active menu down the left side. Hover your cursor over a heading or manufacturer's name and follow the drop-down.

Editor's note: SA Roadtests accepts multi-day vehicle loans from manufacturers in order to provide editorial reviews. All vehicle reviews are completed on our turf and on our terms.

For out-of-province vehicle launch features however, travel costs are covered by the manufacturer concerned. This is common in the motor industry, as it's far more economical to ship journalists to cars than to ship cars to journalists.

Judgments and opinions expressed on this site are our own. We do not accept paid editorial content or ads of any kind.


Beyond facelift: 2019 Suzuki Ciaz

New features are a bonus.

Pics by Motorpress
Posted: April 28, 2019

The numbers
Base prices: GL manual R214 900, GL automatic R229 900, GLX manual R244 900, GLX automatic R259 900
Engine: 1462 cc, DOHC, 16-valve, four-cylinder naturally aspirated
Power: 77 kW at 6000 rpm
Torque: 138 Nm at 4400 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 10.2 seconds (tested in India)
Maximum speed: 190 km/h (tested in India)
 Real life fuel consumption: About 6.6 l/100 km
Tank: 43 litres
Luggage: 480 litres (VDA)
Standard tyre sizes: GL – 185/65R15, GLX – 195/55R16
Spare: 185/65R15 steel
Ground clearance: 160 mm
Turning circle: 10.8 metres
Warranty (promotional): 5 years / 200 000 km
Service plan: 3 years / 60 000 km

There are cosmetic differences and a new, more powerful engine in this year’s (Maruti) Suzuki Ciaz; some new features too, but it’s what's unmentioned that makes it special.

The grille is wider and has gained chrome strips above and below, headlights have changed, the lower air intake is wider and the fog light surround has been reshaped and embellished with chrome.  Tail lights look a little different and the rear reflector wells received chrome treatment too. Little has changed inside apart from GLX models gaining seven-inch touchscreens to replace the old TFT displays surrounded by buttons.

Suzuki is upgrading some of its 1.4-litre models to the new 1500 cc, K15B engine with dual overhead camshafts and 16 valves with variable timing. In this application it puts out 77 kW and 138 Nm, increases of seven kilowatts and eight Newton-metres over the old power plant. Despite a mass increase of about 50 kg (more later) it’s noticeably quicker, getting up to 100 km/h 1.3 seconds sooner and topping out, according to a test conducted in India, at 190 km/h. Although the engine only develops its maximum torque at 4400 rpm, it cruised comfortably at 120 km/h at 3200 revs. Further, provided you maintain about 100 km/h or more, the car feels unstoppable up most hills found in everyday travel.

Equipment grades, GL and GLX, remain as before. Changes to GL include a downgrade of that model’s air conditioner to manual, headlights upgraded to halogen projector and a new automatic transmission variant. That makes four varieties altogether, with prices ranging from R215 000 to R260 000.

Standard kit on GL includes two airbags; disc and drum brakes with ABS, EBA and EBD; powered windows and mirrors; fabric upholstery; 15” steel wheels; switch operated central locking; repeater vents in the rear; six-speaker entertainment system with Bluetooth, remotes on the tilt-adjustable steering wheel and a trip computer.

GLX ups the ante with one-touch for the driver’s window, folding function for wing mirrors, leatherette upholstery with driver’s seat height adjustment and 16-inch alloy wheels.

New features on GLX include LED lights all around with automatic headlamps, automatically dipping interior mirror, reversing camera, rear parking sensors, cruise control and the touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and app mirroring capability. Suzuki calls it Smartphone Linkage Display Audio (SLDA). Punching a little above its perceived fighting weight, its USB input plays WM4 files as well as MP3. There’s also a pair of dials showing power and torque outputs in real time.

Not mentioned in the official literature is that the car looks and feels better with interior fit and finish a step up from one we drove in 2015. Noticeable improvements include the properly trimmed boot lid, slightly better carpeting throughout and increased headroom. Our tall tester found almost a fist’s width of space between hair and hood lining, rather than barely two fingers’-worth previously and just-sufficient head space when seated in the back. He’d had to slouch or bend his neck uncomfortably in the old car.
 
We estimate that about 2.5 centimetres of internal height was found somewhere. That’s without making the car’s body any taller - all outer measurements remain as before. A side effect of the added and improved trim material is that doors and boot lid now close with a satisfying “whump” rather than a clang. Those few points alone are almost worth the R5000-to-R6000 price increase over outgoing models. The new features are a bonus.

Test unit from Suzuki Auto South Africa press fleet

We drove the previous model in 2015


All pics are of GLX

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.