Owners have filed 156 complaints on the Suzuki Sidekick, covering 1989–1998. The system named most often is Suspension (25 reports). Worst years by volume: 1996, 1997, 1995; cleanest: 1990, 1989, 1991. 13 reports describe a crash, 6 a fire, 1 a death. On average the car was 3.4 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Suzuki Sidekick
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 156 Sidekick complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Suspension 25 Read
Vehicle lost contol/rolled over on dirt road, resulting in injuries
Instability when cornering, severe instability in windy conditions, top heavy, and transmission shifting roughly when engine is cold
Consumer was told that wrong size gas tank is equipped on vehicle. *ak premature clutch failure, driveshaft failure. Bolts vibrated out of exhaust namifold. Recurring noise from engine pulley area
Engine And Engine Cooling 21 Read
Engine compartment fire, cause unknown. While driving smoking started coming through vents inside vehicle, heard popping noise. Vehicle with dealer for inspection
Thermometer, temperature gauge
Our sidekick is a 98 and the engine broke down on the highway we have also had to buy new head lights every tree months
Power Train 17 Read
When making a turn transmission went into neutral, rpms raced, causing vehicle to hit a curb, resulting in a rollover. Minor injuries were sustained. Manufacturer has been notified
I had just pulled onto a major highway, luckily was only going 40 mph in 4th gear when the driveshaft came off the motor mount, but stayed attached to the rear. My truck came up off the ground 3 ft. According to a witness who was behind me at the time. I was able to pull off the highway. Per the ser vice mananger at…
These parts were replaced when I had transmission failure
Service Brakes 15 Read
I suddenly heard a whirring and sound and the brakes started to grind when trying to stop. I had not experienced any braking problem prior to this event
While driving approximately 55-60mph front right tire started smoking. Pulled to side & checked. Noticed a problem with brakes. Had vehicle towed. Mechanic found nothing. Had pads, rotors & shoes changed. After trying to stop, had no brakes. Brake pedal went to floor
When brakes were applied vehicle experienced improper idling, almost stalled, but didn't. Also vehicle shuttered/vibrated from side to side
Seat Belts 14 Read
During impact, the driver side seat belt released from the belt buckle. Please describe
The rear seat belt locking clip broke, when trying to secure the css it will not lock the child in because of the broken seat belt in the rear
After stopping at destination, took child car seat out and when unbuckled seatbelt to do so, seatbelt went in as normal, but locked and will not come out, cannot use that side at all w/ usage of seatbelt. Expecting another child, and am worried
Electrical System 11 Read
Consumer states that her vehicle caught fire. She states that she got into her vehicle and inserted the key. She said that when she turned the key, it sounded as if the battery was dead. She states she turned the ignition off, waited and then turned the ignition on again, then she smelled and saw smoke, then there was…
While driving 25 mph vehicle stalled. Towed to dealer, who found ignition coil was too close to engine block, and had shorted out. Dealer rewired ignition coil
After a long trip or after using (4) wheel drive the engine quits unless you keep the accelerator pressed. This has happened twice since purchasing in october of 1996 at 1500 miles and 4400
Air Bags 10 Read
- the contact stated that while driving the 1996 suzuki sidekick sport on an icy afternoon he pulled into the driveway at 5 mph and hit the utility pole, and both airbags deployed. The passenger side airbag popped and burst into flames in the center of the bag. A neighbor saw what happened ,came over, opened the…
On 6-28-99 airbags deployed violently when vehicle went in a ditch causing serious injury to the driver and passenger
Consumer had a head-on collision at 30mph. Smashed the front end completely, and the air bags did not deploy, as a result the driver dislocated shoulder. *ak
Structure 8 Read
Cross member of vehicle is held in place by one bolt, bolt fell off while driving, vehicle was shaking badly. Hard to control, almost lost driveshaft
Straps/hooks that lock seats in down position to form cargo area, releases upon sudden stopping, causing seat to snap back into upright position
Vehicle's rear folding seat strap that keeps the seat up will not hold the seat up, has had short strap repaired twice
Sidekick years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Air Bags | 3 | — | |
| 1997 | Air Bags | 3 | — | |
| 1996 | Air Bags | 3 | 3 | |
| 1995 | Electrical System | 3 | 1 | |
| 1994 | Electrical System | — | 1 | |
| 1993 | Electrical System | — | 1 | |
| 1992 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 1991 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 1990 | Seat Belts | 1 | — | |
| 1989 | Engine And Engine Cooling | — | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 124 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.3 |
| Worst single series | 6 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 3.4 years |
A model average of 1.3 hides a worst series at 6. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Sidekick?
By complaint volume, 1996, 1997, 1995 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Sidekick years are the cleanest?
1990, 1989, 1991 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Suzuki Sidekick have?
156 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1989–1998. Of those, 13 describe a crash and 6 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.