Suzuki has just launched a turbodiesel 3-door variant of the Suzuki Grand Vitara in the UK. I thought I might cover it so you guys can see the 3-door version. Our local market has the 5-door version going for RM 143,738.60 on the road.
The Suzuki Grand Vitara 3-door turbodiesel is powered by a Renault 1.9 liter DDiS turbodiesel making 129 PS and 300Nm of torque peaking at 2,000rpm. Despite it’s cute appearance, it has offroad abilities as well, with a center diff lock and permanent all wheel drive with low range ratios. The 3-door turbodiesel joins existing 1.6 liter VVT and VVT+ models for the 3-door model.
Somehow I missed this piece of news. The 4 robotic welding lines for the upcoming locally assembled Suzuki Swift has been up and ready to run since the end of February. The welding line is involved in assembling the Suzuki Swift 1.5 liter for the local market. Production will begin by the end of April, with an initial run of 300 units a month.
However, low usage despite high capacity is a tell tale of a weak market. DRB-HICOM group managing director Datuk Mohd Khamil Jamil said Automotive Manufacturers (M) Sdn Bhd (AAM) assembly plant in Pekan only put out 12,000 units assembled last year despite a ready maximum capacity of 60,000 units.
Suzuki has unveiled the Suzuki SX4 Sedan at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show, with it’s American debut set to be at the New York Auto Show in April. Based on the Suxuki SX4 hatch which is in turn based on the Swift, perhaps you can say this is one of them cheap and cheerful cars that apparently don’t exist.
The Suzuki SX4 sedan shares the same wheelbase as the SX4 hatch and softroader, except it is longer. The high roofline helps to create a larger interior space. There’s ABS, dual frontal airbags, and optional stability control. For the safety conscious, side and curtain airbags are an option. The car is front wheel driven by a 1.6 liter VVT petrol engine, mated to a 5-speed manual or 4-speed auto.
In the spirit of entertainment, Best Motoring pits a bunch of Japanese compact cars against each other on the race track. You have the Honda Jazz 1.5 VTEC, the Suzuki Swift Sport 1.6, Mitsubishi Colt Ralliart Version-R 1.5 MIVEC Turbo, and the Daihatsu Boon X4. The first two are naturally aspirated, while the last two are turbocharged, and the Boon X4 has the advantage of all-wheel drive while the rest are front wheel driven. Oh, and all the cars are stick shifts. Video after the jump!
EON is definitely trying to bring in new sources of income from it’s dealership network, with the most recent dealership deal being awarded being a Suzuki non-exclusive dealership for the Kepong area. This isn’t really a surprise, as DRB-HICOM owns most of EON and also owns Suzuki Malaysia. The agreement will last for 2 years starting from March 1st 2007, and will be automatically extended for another year annually, if everything runs fine of course.
You can expect this deal to be a lucrative one, as many will surely be attracted to the cheaper Suzuki Swift that we will be able to buy soon once local assembly of the cute compact car begins.
While spyshots of this car have already been available for quite some time, here are official images of the Suzuki SX4 Sedan, to be unveiled at the 2007 Geneva International Motor Show early March. Other than the sedan, Suzuki also has a SX4 Sport Concept, though it is not really clear whether the sport concept version will be based on the sedan, hatch, or the crossroader body - but it will most likely be the sedan version. Suzuki plans to enter a SX4-based car into the 2008 World Rally Championship (WRC).
Remember the Suzuki SX4-based sedan that was posted in this blog back in September 2006? Suzuki will be unveiling it to the world at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show next month. Despite the Suzuki SX4’s all-wheel drive capability, the SX4 Sedan will be a front wheel drive vehicle, featuring the same 109hp 1.6 liter engine in the Suzuki SX4. Read the related post to view all 4 photos of the new sedan based on the Suzuki SX4.
Suzuki Malaysia Automobile Sdn Bhd intends to go forward with it’s Suzuki Swift local CKD assembly plans, expected to begin in Quarter 1 2007. Also in store for the local car market in 2007 is the Suzuki Swift Sport (which is supposed to have a tuned up 1.6 liter engine) and a 4X2 version of the Vitara, which will appeal to those who do not need all four wheels to be driven - there are obvious cost and fuel economy advantages with a two wheel drive system instead. I’m also hoping that the upcoming Suzuki SX4 sedan might somehow find it’s way here to give us an alternative to the City and the Vios.
Blogger Peter Tan might be very interested in this. While the rest of the automotive industry is focusing on applying fuel cell technology on cars, Suzuki is applying the technology in the powered wheelchair market - and its latest prototype, the MIO, features a fuel cell that uses methanol as a fuel source to generate hydrogen and therefore electricity, which is then stored in a Li-ion battery which also acts as a backup power storage.
The Suzuki MIO has a 4 litre tank that gives it a range of approximately 25 miles. Theres also an LCD display showing fuel level and power sources. Therefore, unlike wheelchairs that rely solely on mains charging of the battery, it addresses users fears of being stranded at some distance from their home.
Suzuki Motors may establish it’s presence here in Malaysia officially, as part of it’s plans to take control of the marketing and strategic direction of the Suzuki business here. This would give Suzuki control over matters like marketing strategies and pricing strategies of vehicles. Suzuki Malaysia Automobile Sdn Bhd currently has a 3 model line-up in Malaysia - the Suzuki Swift, the Suzuki APV and the Suzuki Grand Vitara.
Following GM’s footsteps with Hicomobil, Suzuki is reported to be interested in at least a 51% controlling stake in Suzuki Malaysia Automobile Sdn Bhd. Some may think that this looks like DRB-HICOM is losing the confidence of the principal companies, but in reality DRB-HICOM views this as inviting the principals to take a more active role in Malaysia so that the businesses can grow further.
EON is definitely trying to bring in new sources of income from it’s dealership network, with the most recent dealership deal being awarded being a Suzuki non-exclusive dealership for the Kepong area. This isn’t really a surprise, as DRB-HICOM owns most of EON and also owns Suzuki Malaysia. The agreement will last for 2 years starting from March 1st 2007, and will be automatically extended for another year annually, if everything runs fine of course.
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