There is no way I can sum this thing up in one sentence. I have two completely conflicting viewpoints about it and they won't gel.The Suzuki Wagon R+ is a town car available with either a one-litre engine (the GA) or a 1.2 (the GL). Town cars are in general strange to behold, but the Wagon R+ in particular is deeply, seriously odd. If somebody thrust a photo of one in front of you when you weren't expecting it, you would jump backwards with a startled cry.Very few things look stranger than a photo of a Wagon R+, but one of the exceptions is a Wagon R+ in real life. Even in standard form it is truly an alarming sight.Compared with the GL I drove, however, the standard version is about as alarming as an old sock. All the stylistic atrocities that were somehow missed out of the basic specification are available as bodywork options. You can pick as many or as few of these as your shamelessness will permit, but mine had the whole caboodle, including a front airdam, deep side skirts, a rear bumper extension, a chrome tailpipe and even - woe is me - a rooftop spoiler.Not since I last drove a Ford Scorpio have I been so embarrassed about a car's looks. It took me more than a day to work up the nerve to drive the thing after it had been delivered. I just left it sitting outside and hoped it looked like it belonged to somebody else.Still, one must suffer for one's art, so on day two I cut a pair of eyeholes in a paper bag, slipped it over my head and went out for an exploratory run. Whereupon something really dreadful happened - I realised that I actually liked the wretched object.Quite simply, it does the job extraordinarily well. For a start, it has an amazing amount of interior room, considering the rear wheels are almost rubbing against the front ones. I am approximately the fifth tallest motoring journalist in the UK, and I could almost stand up inside it. You could pack a lot of stuff into a Wagon R+, including under the front seats, where there are storage trays for this exact purpose.Furthermore, the Wagon R+ is laughably simple to drive. Parking in tiny spaces is like clicking the final piece of a Lego sculpture into place (I wonder how that example came so readily to mind?). Even on the black day when someone - either by horrible coincidence or as a cruel joke - parked an Aston Martin right next to it, it still looked perfectly suited to its environment.It's not too bad in the country, either, though the combination of extreme height and negligible length makes you content to leave quick cornering for another day and a different car. But it really scores in town, as even some of my more critical friends were quick to acknowledge as soon as they had finished choking.Be that as it may, the fact remains that although I was very enthusiastic about the Wagon R+ as long as I was sitting inside it, my heart fell into my boots every time I walked towards it.So you see the problem. How can I sum up such a car? I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, yet in the right circumstances I would recommend it to my best friend. Help!Second opinion: This is a car aimed with pinpoint accuracy at a market segment nobody at CARkeys occupies. Full of practical features, no slouch with the 1.2-litre engine - although watch it in crosswinds - and ideal for piling a young family into, on the way to the beach or the Brownies. But the looks, especially with the full body kit!!! The home-market version, narrower than the European type, is the best-selling car in the whole of Japan. Brave people. Ross Finlay. Engine 1171cc, 4 cylinders Power 68bhp Transmission 5-speed manual Fuel 47.9mpg Acceleration 0-62mph: 16.8 seconds Top speed 87mph Price £8430 Details correct at publication date
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