Category: Suzuki

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SUZUKI LOOSENS GRIP ON S-CROSS COSTS

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It’s been a long and lonely road for the Suzuki SX4 since it landed Down Under in the mid-noughties. For a start, the compact SUV created about the same enthusiasm as pair of sensible shoes, and after a decade, had a name change. It’s now the S-Cross.   With all-wheel drive models first up, Suzuki has come to the party with a couple of S-Cross front-wheel drives at up to $5000 less than their AWD siblings. All are powered by the same 1.4 litre turbocharged petrol engine, mated with a six-speed automatic… Read more

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JIMNY DOORS OPEN FOR GREATER OPPORTUNITY

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Who’d have thought that, with a name sounding like a sleeveless under garment, or fitness centre for tiny tots, the Jimny would have cornered the market in its segment as an all-round, on-road / off-road compact. A matter of three doors has not held the small SUV back. In fact it has become something of a cult car. Now a five-door version has shown up Down Under. In GLX premium spec, the newbie is not just a stretch version, sitting on a 340 mm longer wheelbase. The ladder frame chassis… Read more

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FIVE-DOOR SUZUKI JIMNY IS FINALLY HERE

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Over the years, the Suzuki Jimny compact SUV has become something of a cult figure with its retro looks and its semi-serious off-road ability. To date it’s only been available with three doors and so limiting its potential buyer base but now the long-awaited five-door version has arrived. Built in India, the new five-door Jimny joins the ongoing three-door Jimny and Jimny Lite and comes in a single variant, tagged XL – as in extra-large – although at 3820 mm long it’s hardly that. It is however 340mm longer than… Read more

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SUZUKI ALTO 2009 – 2015

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Suzuki has long been renowned for designing small cars and SUVs. The Alto is a small five-door hatchback that’s built in India by Maruti Suzuki. We’ve toured that factory and while it looks rather aged by today’s standards build quality is up there with the best in class. Altos hold their value well so if you do find one at a very low price it may have problems – or you have been really lucky to find a desperate seller. If it’s the latter there’s a good chance they haven’t… Read more

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SUZUKI JIMNY HERITAGE LIMITED EDITION

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It could be having trouble getting stock, but that hasn’t stopped Suzuki releasing a ‘heritage’ edition of its tiny Jimny off-roader. Just 300 of the cars will be up for grabs, tapping into Jimny’s enviable 4×4 history from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s – where it all began. Jimny Heritage will be available in manual only, with a choice of four colours: Jungle Green, Bluish Black, Medium Grey and White. In addition to the GLX grade on which it is based, the heritage edition adds: * Red front mud flaps… Read more

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IGNIS: NICE WORK . . . IF YOU CAN GET IT

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Forget retro styling with modern features, fuel efficiency, or staying true to traditional Suzuki design elements, it’s the interior of wide-open spaces that sets the Ignis GLX apart from other compact sports utility vehicles. There are no claims here of seating for five (the base GL covers that area), but four occupants have little to complain about as far as living room in the GLX, with its sliding and reclining 50:50 split fold two rear seats, is concerned. The test vehicle had ample leg room all round for the average-size… Read more

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JIMNY CRICKET! SUZUKI STAR STOOD DOWN

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Picking up the new Jimny press car, I asked the Suzuki man when a prospective buyer would be able to take delivery of the test car variant, a GLX three-door automatic. “Try next year,” he replied. It gets worse. Suzuki Australia says unprecedented demand and the global computer chip issue, have stalled the MY23 Jimny three-door automatic until production catches up. Customers with an order already inked, can keep waiting or switch to the bigger five-door, due Down Under later this year. The three-door Lite manual is still available to… Read more

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SUZUKI LEADS FROM THE FRONX

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Suzuki has a brand new, never before seen model, on the way called Fronx. Based on the same platform as its best-selling Baleno hatch (and Swift), Fronx will replace the Baleno – at least for the time being. That’s because the current Baleno has come to the end of the line and Suzuki Australia is waiting on a replacement. Fronx is designed and built in India by the Maruti division and will slot between Ignis and Vitara in the Suzuki range. Suzuki says all-new Fronx is a new-genre SUV with… Read more

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SUZUKI KIZASHI 2010 – 2016

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Though Suzuki is usually better known for motorbikes it also makes cars. The Kizashi is a stylish machine with a powerful appearance that gives a look of sportiness. In August 2010 the Suzuki Kizashi Sport arrived Downunder. As befits its title this Kizashi has a full-on sports body kit, 18-inch alloys and lowered ride height that further enhanced its already strong appearance. It took the European route of being offered with all-wheel drive for better traction on slippery surfaces. Ice, snow or rain. However, it’s an AWD, not a 4WD… Read more

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SUZUKI GETS A GRIP WITH S-CROSS

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In pre-politically correct times ‘The man in the street’ was a term used to describe the ordinary male (person). In 2006 I was in Japan watching early SX4 vehicles roll off the assembly lines at Suzuki’s Hamamatsu plant, noting its bland physical characteristics. This MITS manner was reinforced on an extended drive of the small sports utility vehicle on the company’s test track, with its performance providing an uninspiring driving experience. Little has changed over the years, with the SX4 generally flying under the automotive radar, while its siblings –… Read more