I have kept track of my Forenza wagon fuel economy on a few (mostly 70 mph plus highway) trips. My fuel economy has ranged from 23 mpg with a car grossly overloaded with my daughter's college stuff and a with a roof top carrier to as high 33 mpg with a driver and 3 passengers. (I have the automatic.)
No, it's not great, but mine beats the EPA ratings. It weighs in at almost 3,000 lbs . . . very solid. It also has effective but restrictive intake and exhaust silencing, and is tuned for very low emissions. It does not have variable valve timing, which might hurt the fuel economy a bit. The horsepower figure is not high, but the engine produces its torque at a fairly low RPM, so drivability is better than other cars that produce peak torque near red line.
There is an online forum dedicated to Suzuki cars called
Suzuki-Forums but unfortunately it's mostly populated by adolescent racer wanna-be types with poor English skills.
I bought my Forenza S wagon with automatic for $13,100 plus tax. Even at $3 a gallon, I'd have to drive a comparably equipped Matrix for a LOT of years to make up the price difference with fuel savings. Plus (especially since I took off the Suzuki Forenza emblems) I can have some fun with people trying to figure out what it is.
[ November 12, 2005, 01:17 AM: Message edited by: BigAl ]