Suzuki Aerio SX
A really *chuckle* hot little car. Lots of goodies. Amazing
amount of headroom and legroom. The AWD is awesome in the snow. Even little
attentions to detail like that the windshield washer resevior holds exactly
one gallon, and it has a dipstick as part of the cap.
Basically I'm someone who always buys a car new and looks for a good vehicle to keep for a 'few' years. My last car - '95 Dodge Neon with 210K(!) - still looks good and runs well. It even has a new home as a friend's son's first car.
I looked at a Toyota Matrix (not bad), Honda Element (dealers 'surcharging' $1,000 or so, unimpressive AWD), VW Golf and Jetta diesel (new timing belt every 40K!), Ford Focus (Ford) and then I found the Aerio. I was amazed with the standard features, price, apparent reliability and warranty, and a *gasp* timing chain. I ended up with the SX AWD with ABS. I'm not a big believer in ABS - as I know how to brake (and spell it!) but the 03/'03 Consumer Distorts magazine did a test on the Aerio sedan, and they really felt ABS was warranted.
Also, those who know me, know I know there's always room for improvement...
Antenna Painting
Unscrewed the antenna and cleaned it with denatured alcohol. Lightly
sanded with 400 grit Norton sandpaper. First coat of Rustoleum
primer was done (as with all paints) in two to three light coats. A thin
coat is stronger and less likely to run.
Second coat of red was actually Dupli-Color DFSM 306 Cardinal Red. Note not specifically for Suzuki Racy Red, but extremely close. Sorry, I cannot suggest other color options.Third coat of clear was Dupli-Color WP319 Clear Polyurethane wheel paint. This is not shown. Looks pretty good. Yes, the car was dirty when the photo was taken; I'd like to wash it but the day the photo was taken it was -12F (yes, a 'minus' or 'negative') that morning; as I took the photos it's a whopping 15F!
Straps Under Cargo Cover
I installed a set of Velcro straps under the cargo cover, so I
can strap in long items such as the matching red umbrella. I may make this
available as a kit - it only needs 4 holes drilled in the cover. If interested,
e-mail me so I can let you know
when a kit is available.
Battery Hold-Down
There's at least one aftermarket battery hold-down I've seen marketed
for the Aerio. I was tempted as they are very nice but then just looked
in my scrap bin in the basement machine shop, and found a nice piece of
extruded aluminum. I drilled two holes, made a couple of end caps from some
plastic, and voila.
Suzuki Hood Protector
As I drive a fair amount, I usually install a stone chip guard
on the hood of my vehicle. I know there are options of bras (potentially
damaging and a bother, based on experience) and the 3M stick-on clear
tape (not 'invisible' and it adheres to the paint) but I went with the factory
issue Suzuki hood protector. Although very nice (no drilling to install)
one limitation in the design is that the entire leading edge of the hood
is not protected. To cover the exposed lip I used red door edge guard material
from Sportwing - the red matches
Suzuki Racing Red perfectly. I carefully trimmed it and ran a length
between the yellow arrows indicated in the picture below - it's flexible
enough to go around the tight curve on the hood.
Air Horns
As I share the road with a lot of people whose view of the road
is that the asphalt and the lines painted thereon are merely a suggested
route to travel, I usually supplement the stock horn in any vehicle with
an air horn. The tankless units are around $20-30 at any decent auto supply
store. As I recall I previously measured them an honest 120+ deciBels at
1 meter. I'd love those air horns that go up to 132 dB, but these are very
expensive, around $300.
In the picture below the yellow arrows point to the compressor and relay, respectively. The compressor can be mounted to a small 3" bracket attached to an existing radiator mounting bolt. I wrapped the compressor with foam insulation to minimize any chance of rattling. The relay mounts to an existing hole in the sheetmetal. Be sure to wire an in-line 20A fuse from the battery positive terminal to the relay. I would not recommend connecting the stock horn wiring harness to the compressor due to the current requirement.
In the picture below the green arrows point to the horns. Yes, I was so happy they were red. Again I was able to attach these to existing radiator bolts using small brackets fashioned out of sheetmetal. The good news is that the stock horn can easily be disconnected so you can honk the airhorns the conventional way, as opposed to hunting for a horn button in a panic situation. To use the existing horn connection you have to remove the 4 bolts at the top of the front fascia. This allows you to pull the front away, and get your hand in to reach the wiring harness connector. From the front screen you can insert a flat-bladed screwdriver to loosen the wiring harness connector clip. The horn throats are tucked inside the fascia - above the screen - and protected from all sorts of road gunk, water and other horn-plugging nasties. The sound is not really diminished at all, however. Trust me; my 5-year old wanted to help and 'tested' the horn before I was able to cover my ears!
In the picture below the white arrow points to the stock connector. I'd like to eventually get a horn off a junker, to get the proper connector. However, you can fashion a very serviceable one from spade lugs with one leg trimmed off. With enough heat-shrink tubing it's as weatherproof as a stock connector.
I do plan to wire up the stock horn again, for those times (such as seeing another Aerio) when I'd want to give a friendly 'tootle' as opposed to an eardrum-shattering 'YEEEELLLP'!
Rear Wiper - Longer is Better
The stock rear wiper is 12 inches long. It has a wiping area as
shown below, indicated by the yellow line. A 15 inch-long wiper has a wiping
area as indicated by the green line in the picture below. Which would you
choose?
Yes, the 15 inch wiper goes up under the rear spoiler. Note you may have to trim the tip off the 15 inch blade to keep it from hitting the spoiler, but not much, maybe 1/4-inch.
And for those who ask, the "CT" sticker is from the Mini Cooper ads that included the New England states on stickers; it's been laminated and glued to magnetic paper (yes, that's what it's called).
