Anyone who's ever watched a doctor drama is no doubt familiar with the famous defibrillator paddles, but there's another common treatment for cardiac arrest -- a drug called atropine -- that's also used to help speed up an unusually slow heart. With Suzuki's U.S. automotive operations in danger of flatlining (sales are off a whopping 55 percent so far this year versus 2008), the automaker is hoping its new 2010 Kizashi midsize sedan will be the shot of atropine it needs to get its sales rate back to normal. Otherwise, the paddles are likely coming next.

The Kizashi is Suzuki's first homegrown midsize offering (its previous midsizer, the Verona, was a rebadged Daewoo) and the Japanese automaker went with a more unconventional approach while designing the stylish sedan. Since the discontinuation of the Daewoo-sourced Reno and Forenza, Suzuki has been working to reposition itself as a brand that appeals more to enthusiasts rather than those in need of cheap transportation.

So does the Kizashi hit the mark?