SUZUKI AERIO ENGINE CUTS OUT ,JERKS AND SURGES ON

I have a 1.6L Liasna/Aerio. 2002.130,000km.
Recently it had a problem, a problem that I seem to see on other websites.
The vehicle was cruising on the highway and suddenly jerked, surged, and cut out. Another case was when it was stopped at the lights and the RPM faded to a cut. Accelerator application would not keep the rpm up.

The common factor in all four cases was that it was a very hot day. Temp was 32-35 degrees C, (around 95 degree F).

I let the vehicle cool down and then got a restart and limped home. Sometimes had a repeat enroute. A dangerous exercise, having the engine cut on a busy highway!

The vehicle then started and ran on cooler days without a murmer.

The local Suzuki shop had a look at it but nothing showed up on the inbuilt computer!

After a fourth incident I took it back to the Suzi shop and this time the service rep said that they had had a few other Liana's come in with the same problem. These vehicles were with the later larger engine, the 1.8L M18A.
The problem it would appear was the CRANK ANGLE SENSOR. A bit of solid state kit it costs about A$100 and is located near the alternator. After replacement I have had no problems but I need to do some driving in hot weather to really find out.
In the trouble shooting game you sometimes need to work on the process of elimination so I also had the air filter replaced as well as the Air Inlet Temp. probe (IAT). (Both inexpensive).
From reading up on Suzuki Liana/Aerio (US) problems I can see more than a few which I can put down to a problem with the CAS.
Some vehicles seem to have a problem in that they will turn over but not start. Again most likely a CAS problem. It would seem to me that if there is one consistant problems with Lianas/Aerios then it is a faulty CAS.

The CAS replaces the older distributor. A gear wheel in the engines turns next to the CAS and that in turn passes a signal to the vehicles computer to fire the spark plugs. The CAS may be a solid state bit of kit but can still fail.

Radiators. The Liana has two radiators, each with their own electric cooling fan. The left unit is for the engine block cooling fluid. The right unit is for the air con unit and for external cooling of the engine block and accessories mounted behind the engine. Both radiators have heat sensors. The left has a temp probe that when high turns on the elec cooling fan. The right cooling fan will come on when the air con unit is turned on or when the engine block gets hot. Be advised that the Liana/Aerio runs cooler than a lot of other vehicles so, even on a hot day, the fans may not come on when you expect them to. The CAS unit is located in a hot part of the engine so when the outside air temp rises, such as on a hot day, the temp of the engine block and the oil inside it as well as the air around the CAS probe rises and that is when the unit fails.
Perhaps I if I were to design or modify the Liama (a great little vehicle) I would direct a bit more cooling air around the CAS.

The CAS is a part of modern cars and I note that the CAS in other cars also fail so it is not a Liana/Aerio only problem. Given time and experience car designers will rid us of this over-temp CAS failure problem with better design.

Comment; If you are having a problem such as described then get the CAS replaced. It may be the item that the mechanics overlook in their trouble shooting but is the key to your problem.

Enjoy driving your Liana/Aerio! I do!