3.2

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
43,000 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2008 Suzuki XL7:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

problem #1

May 182013

XL7 6-cyl

  • 43,000 miles
This vehicle has the cabin air intake located about 7 inches from the exhaust manifold under the hood directly behind the engine. During any type of driving conditions the air being brought into the cabin through the cabin filter is filled with noxious fumes coming from a slight exhaust leak or just from the extreme temperatures under the vehicles hood. When driving the vehicle I can taste the sweet taste of vaporized antifreeze coming from the heat air conditioning vents. When driving I also experience many symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure headache, nausea, fatigue, sinus barotrauma, ear ache, dizziness, confusion, altered mental state, memory loss, depression. The controls for the heat and air conditioning are impossible to adjust to a state of not allowing the air from entering the cabin of the vehicle. Driving this vehicle to visit a relative on May 11th 2013 myself and a friend were exposed to noxious fumes and possibly carbon monoxide at unknown levels for about 44 hours over a three day period of driving.on the return trip exposure levels to air coming into cabin must have been much worse. Driving over mountains on return trip caused external ear barotrauma and excruciating ear pain and about 90 percent hearing loss. On a subsequent trip June 14th 2013 driving the vehicle at highway speeds for less that 2 hours total made me feel sick again so much so that another person had to drive us home while I sat in the back seat with all of the windows open to get fresh air.after getting home I had to be taken to the hospital for symptoms of carbon monoxide exposure.the results from the visit to the emergency room possible exposure to carbon monoxide. Was informed to not operate this vehicle until servicing is done. I think if the cabin air intake had a longer hose under the hood to the front of the vehicle where the fresh air actually strikes the vehicle would help.

- Wausau, WI, USA