is it more expensive to maintain..than others

[Bedelian]

I saw a 2004 Suzuki Verona with 32k miles. I was almost about to buy it, when someone told me about the high cost of parts and maintenance on Suzukis. Is this true? I understand that Suzuki would be more expensive to maintain than a Toyota or Honda, but more than a Mercedes…..How can it possible.?

[Jminer]

That's not true. The Verona service schedule is actually better than most others because of it's metal extended life timing chain. Plenty of Hondas and Toyotas still use belts which need to be changed more frequently. And don't forget, the Verona carries a much better warranty.

[livingintx]

At first I thought it was going to expensive to maintain as well, especially the first time I took it to get the oil changed. It's recommended that synthetic is used plus it takes 7.4 quarts to fill. Of course anything that's over 5 quarts is an extra charge and the synthetic oil is well lets face it, more expensive. But put it into perspective, your time and energy to get the oil changed every 3 months or get it changed twice a year. It works about the same in cost.

Other than that, I haven't incurred any other expenses to maintain the car. I did replace the tires to a much better and beefier tire than what came with the car but that was to satisfy a look that I was going for.

Livingintx@yahoo.com

[Jminer]

livingintx, which tires did you get, and in what size? Did you get new wheels too? When the time comes to replace mine, I'd like to have some insight into what works well and what doesn't on this car. Any information would be appreciated.

[livingintx]

Jminer,
The tires I got are Goodyear Assurance. The size is P215-60R-16. The tires just look so much more beefier than the original Hanooks. A couple of things I noticed right off was the road noice wasn't as loud, a better grip on the road and the car actually stays on the road when it's raining. I got them at Discount Tire at about 6,000 miles on the car. One of the originals ended up with a huge hole in the side that was not repairable and didn't want to spend a whole lot of time trying to find a Hanook dealer so I went ahead and replaced all 4 at once. More for my peace of mind than anything. The tire dealer did give me some trade-in value on the remaining 3 which was good on their part. The new tires have a 80,000 mile warranty so I think it was worth the money. Didn't even think about new wheels at the time but I'm pretty sure they will be purchased in September. Love the chrome wheels but not on my budget so it will have to be the silver coated ones, from Discount Tire as always.

You might notice that the wheels are just the exact opposite of Chevy's Equinox. Not much imagination on their part if you ask me considering GM's involvement.

Livingintx@yahoo.com

[Jminer]

Thanks for the info livingintx, I wasn't sure how wide a tire we could fit under there. P215's will be a nice upgrade when I decide to do it.

[livingintx]

When I responded to what type of tire I didn't know that Goodyear makes several named Assurance. The ones on my car are Goodyear Assurance TripleTred which has a very cool tire tread pattern to it.
Livingintx@yahoo.com

[t549665]

Is there any matter on the resize of tyre? my Magnus is having tyre of 205/55R16 so is it possible to upgrade to 215/60R16?

[mm9351]

I'm not convinced that "upgrading" from a P205/55R16 to a P215/60R16 is a "beefier" tire nor will handling be enhanced. The Goodyear's may offer a quieter ride and also better handling, because it is simply a more advanced tire with improved handling characteristics. If you had changed to the same size Goodyears, the performance would have actually improved. Here's why:

You went from a 55 series to a 60 series. The 55 series is actually more performance oriented, because the sidewall aspect ratio of 55 means that this tire's height is 55 percent of its width. Tires with lower numbers are referred to as low-profile tires. Low profile tires handle better !

The dealer you bought the tires (Discount Tire) has no idea what he is talking about! I'll bet he didn't have your size in stock and sold you on the 60's. Sorry.

[Ming]

About the oil change -- kinda makes sense considering the engine was co-developed with Porsche.