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A station wagon?

Get with the program, Suzuki. The market has moved away from wagons andinto sport-utility vehicles based on car or truck or station-wagon platforms.

Oops. Maybe Suzuki isn’t so dumb after all.

It builds the Suzuki Sidekick subcompact sport-ute, with a redesignedversion coming out early next year as a ’99 model.

The new ’98 Esteem wagon companion to the ’97 sedan is offered strictlywith front-wheel-drive for 1998, but an all-wheel-drive version is sold inJapan and Europe.

Could be that Suzuki has learned a lesson from Subaru, with its Outbacksport-ute rendition of the Legacy wagon, and is going to make a similar movewith the Esteem wagon. That way it would have a 4WD Sidekick sport-ute for SUVenthusiasts, a 4WD wagon for those a bit more conscious of mileage and price.

Gary Anderson, vice president of sales and marketing for Suzuki, doesn’trule out such a move, but for now the wagon is a wagon and nothing else.

Suzuki previewed it in the northern suburbs last week–a pleasant vehicleif you understand and accept its limitations.

The Esteem wagon is a four-door subcompact that’s low on price (no firmprices until it goes on sale in August, but about $12,500 for the base GL and$16,000 for the top-of-the-line GLX+) and high on mileage (27 m.p.g. city/33highway from the 1.6-liter, 95-horsepower 4-cylinder with automatic, 30/37with manual).

It’s not a fashion trendsetter, but not ugly, either. You can hold fouradults in comfort with a week’s worth of groceries or the vacationsuitcases.

The rear seats fold flat and the hatch opens high and wide–aided by one ofthe lowest liftover heights in the industry–for easy loading and unloading.

If we could make a few changes, we’d eliminate the built-in rear-seatheadrests that force your shoulders forward and get mighty uncomfortable aftera short time. Also, the rear seat is slightly ahead of the rear axle to keepharshness to a minimum. But to get in back you have to slip over the rearwheel-well opening and could dirty your clothes.

Also, the key locks all four doors when you slip it in the driver’s orpassenger’s door, but it unlocks only the driver’s door, when returning to thecar.

But the wagon offers a lot for the money. All models have, as standard,dual air bags, power steering and brakes, air conditioning, AM/FM stereo withcassette, rear window wiper/washer, dual outside mirrors, remote fuel door andtailgate release, slide-out cupholders, roof rack and a washable plastic traythat hides under the cargo floor and holds a variety of items such as snacks,swimsuits, towels and the like.

The GLX adds power windows, door locks and mirrors, 14-inch tires andspoiler, and the GLX+ adds tilt/slide sunroof, cruise control and ABS asstandard (about a $1,000 option in the others).

Practical, functional, high mileage, low price for those who puthead-turn ing styling and peppy performance lower on their want list. Withall-wheel-drive, the best is yet to come for this wagon.