Suzuki cars is dead in the US. Chapter 11 filing

M_Bolc

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Not a surprise really

American Suzuki Motors files chapter 11, will no longer sell cars in the United States - Autoblog



As much as we knew it was a possibility, we have to say that Suzuki's announcement this afternoon that it is filing chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings caught us a bit off guard. American Suzuki Motor Corporation - the sole distributor of Suzuki automobiles in the United States - will realign its business to focus on motorcycles, ATVs and the marine market.

What does this mean in simple terms? In short, new Suzuki cars and trucks will no longer be sold by Suzuki in the United States once current supplies run out. Period.

Suzuki cites "low sales volumes, a limited number of models in its lineup, unfavorable foreign exchange rates, the high costs associated with growing and maintaining an automotive distribution system in the continental US and the disproportionally high and increasing costs associated with stringent state and federal regulatory requirements unique to the US market."

Motorcycles, ATVs and watercraft will not be affected. Current owners of Suzuki cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles will have their warranties honored, and parts will reportedly be made available. Suzuki will continue to sell automobiles in other countries, naturally, including its home market of Japan.

Source:
http://m.autoblog.com/2012/11/05/american-suzuki-motors-files-chapter-11-will-no-longer-sell-car/
 
Glad I didn't accept their job offer 2 years ago :)
 
They were still around? :|
 
And I win the "automaker dead pool" at work, yay.

Potentially next to be kicked off US Auto Market Island: Mitsubishi.

On the other hand, you should be seeing Suzuki-badged vehicles at fire sale prices shortly. If you wanted a Nissan Frontier, now is an excellent time for you - a Frontier with the Suzuki Equator badge will shortly be screamingly cheap.
 
Crap marketing, poor dealer network (although they were surprisingly strong here in my area...) and questionable cars during the GM days didn't help.

Some of that stuff wasn't that bad (Verona) but the rest was pretty poor.

The Kizashi's always been a hidden gem (and was supposed to be their comeback car...but they refused to market it in any appreciable fashion) and the Vitara/Grand Vitara a decent value that still looks good. Ditto SX4.

Suzuki shouldn't have resisted being subsumed by VAG, maybe they would have been an outlet for Skoda....
 
Crap marketing, poor dealer network (although they were surprisingly strong here in my area...) and questionable cars during the GM days didn't help.

Some of that stuff wasn't that bad (Verona) but the rest was pretty poor.

The Kizashi's always been a hidden gem (and was supposed to be their comeback car...but they refused to market it in any appreciable fashion) and the Vitara/Grand Vitara a decent value that still looks good. Ditto SX4.

Suzuki shouldn't have resisted being subsumed by VAG, maybe they would have been an outlet for Skoda....

The Vitara/Grand Vitara design is now almost half as old as you are. It desperately needed to be taken out back and shot. Save the Kizashi, the rest of their US product lineup was neither competitive or attractive and nobody had been interested in them for years.
 
The Vitara/Grand Vitara design is now almost half as old as you are. It desperately needed to be taken out back and shot. Save the Kizashi, the rest of their US product lineup was neither competitive or attractive and nobody had been interested in them for years.

The platform only dates back to 05 on the Grand Vitara. Is the overall design (rear drive w/ 4WD capability) a bit old school in a world of front drive crossovers? Yeah, but the car has aged very well from a looks perspective.
 
The platform only dates back to 05 on the Grand Vitara. Is the overall design (rear drive w/ 4WD capability) a bit old school in a world of front drive crossovers? Yeah, but the car has aged very well from a looks perspective.

The 05 'redesign' was just a stretch of the earlier design - which dates back to the 1980s. It wasn't very good to start and it didn't get better with time.
 
I would disagree that it's aged well. I think it looks incredibly dated and one of the more homely-looking cars in the class/any class. The SX4 is "fun" and "inexpensive" but utter shit, and the Kizashi was "suprising," "better than expected" and "their best car in years" doesn't exactly make up for a crude engine and a still-cheep-seeming interior (compared to a lot of the competition.)
 
A little less diversity in the market. I don't like it.
 
Consider that this is the same Suzuki that can make some amazingly powerful and reasonably durable engines for motorcycles.

Consider that they actually got Porsche to design them a little jewel of an inline six for them to use in their FWD cars.

Then consider that they completely muffed the execution and the engine not only turned out to be made of fail, so did the car it was attached to.
 
I would disagree that it's aged well. I think it looks incredibly dated and one of the more homely-looking cars in the class/any class. The SX4 is "fun" and "inexpensive" but utter shit, and the Kizashi was "suprising," "better than expected" and "their best car in years" doesn't exactly make up for a crude engine and a still-cheep-seeming interior (compared to a lot of the competition.)

o_O I thought the interior of the Kizashi was pretty well executed. I'd rate it above the loser that was (sorta still is) the Camry. I also thought that the Grand Vitara interior was well done with pretty high quality materials. A bit dated looking maybe, but the design and materials were solid.

Well this is poor timing...they've apparently just refreshed the Grand Vitara: http://www.suzukiauto.com/grand_vitara/

Consider that this is the same Suzuki that can make some amazingly powerful and reasonably durable engines for motorcycles.

Consider that they actually got Porsche to design them a little jewel of an inline six for them to use in their FWD cars.

Then consider that they completely muffed the execution and the engine not only turned out to be made of fail, so did the car it was attached to.

I thought the Porsche designed engine in the Magnus was Daewoo's idea to replace their crap 4 banger in the Leganza? TIL I guess. :D

Fun fact time:

C&D's Verona EX Road Test said:
Raise the self-supporting hood, and you'll be pleased to find that the hoary old four has been euthanized in favor of a brand-new inline six, co-developed with Porsche. The engine sits sideways, Volvo S80-style, and drives the front wheels through a four-speed automatic. To squeeze six pots into an opening where four usually line up, the engine derives its 2.5 liters of displacement from closely spaced, narrow 77.0mm bores pumping a long 89.2mm stroke, much like the Volvo 2.9-liter six does. But whereas Volvo tucks its Hydra-Matic transmission in back of the engine, the Verona's ZF-designed box sits in line with the motor. We expected the big, wide powertrain to limit how far the front wheels could turn, resulting in a nautical turning radius. But at 34.8 feet, the Verona needs 2.1 fewer feet of road than any Accord does to hang a U-turn, despite having an engine that's four inches wider stuffed into a slightly smaller track between bigger standard tires. That's clever packaging.

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/suzuki-verona-ex-road-test

I found that turning circle fact pretty cool when I got that issue of C&D in the mail ages ago, still do. :p
 
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o_O I thought the interior of the Kizashi was pretty well executed. I'd rate it above the loser that was (sorta still is) the Camry. I also thought that the Grand Vitara interior was well done with pretty high quality materials. A bit dated looking maybe, but the design and materials were solid.

Rick, what's the Rick Rule, again? :p

If people agreed with you, they would have bought Suzukis. Nobody did. So either you're in need of recalibration again or they're all insane. Since I'm sure they're not all insane... :p
 
Rick, what's the Rick Rule, again? :p

If people agreed with you, they would have bought Suzukis. Nobody did. So either you're in need of recalibration again or they're all insane. Since I'm sure they're not all insane... :p

Why does everything I like either get killed or sell poorly?

I mean this isn't a compelling package?


Smitten. Great color, nice updates (love the chrome strip!) and of course...my favorite interior color combination ;)
 
Why does everything I like either get killed or sell poorly?

Because everything you natively like and don't have to be forced to take upon threat of having a concrete blivet dropped on you is terrible and nobody outside of Pennsylvania will buy it? :p

I mean this isn't a compelling package?


Yes, it's compelling. It compels me to not buy one.
 
We forgot something important, given the raison d'etre of this site: how long before some troll here blames Top Gear US for killing Suzuki due to them using an SX-4 as the Small Car?
 
We forgot something important, given the raison d'etre of this site: how long before some troll here blames Top Gear US for killing Suzuki due to them using an SX-4 as the Small Car?

It's totally TG USA's fault! :mad:




*?jk
 
We forgot something important, given the raison d'etre of this site: how long before some troll here blames Top Gear US for killing Suzuki due to them using an SX-4 as the Small Car?

Eh, Suzuki was clearly terminal long before TGUSA appeared. Those with two brain cells to rub together will realize this is why they were able to get disposable little cars so cheap. :D
 
Aw...I still like the Swift GTi and the Swift Sport.
 
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