Suzuki to Stop Selling Cars in US

[tatum]

In Japan and much of Asia, Suzuki remains a strong seller of motorcycles and small cars, especially microcars popular in still-growing countries such as India. Five years ago, the Japanese company had its best year ever in the United States, selling nearly 102,000 vehicles. Today, it announced it was putting its U.S. sales arm into bankruptcy and would stop selling cars here, done in by tougher competition, bad luck and a lack of imagination.

The company announced in Tokyo on Monday night that it would focus its U.S. business on motorcycles, ATVs and boat engines, while honoring warranties on vehicles already sold. Suzuki's fortunes declined dramatically following its 2007 sales peak of 101,887 cars and trucks; it had bought out dozens of dealers and stopped most marketing. Last month, Suzuki sold just 2,203 vehicles; even auto industry wags had trouble remembering that Suzuki sold the SX4, Kizashi or Suzuki Equator, a rebadged version of the Nissan Frontier.

Known mostly for motorcycles, Suzuki started selling cars in the United States in 1983 thanks to an ownership stake taken by General Motors; the two companies would collaborate on several models until GM sold its shares in 2008 before bankruptcy. Suzuki had planned to expand its U.S. sales beyond the Samurai-sized cars and SUVs it was known for with the Kizashi midsize sedan, but the company launched the car amidst a recession into the most competitive part of the market. Meanwhile, the growing strength of the Japanese yen meant Suzuki was losing money on most of its models imported from Japan to the United States.

And after nearly 30 years on these shores, the company had failed to craft much of an identity among American consumers. In China, Malaysia and elsewhere, Suzukis are seen as cheap yet stylish transportation, an image that it could never build here. Suzuki's models were never top of their class in any particular measure; the 16-year battle with Consumer Reports over its pillory of the 1988 Suzuki Samurai didn't help. Among motorcycle enthusiasts, the Suzuki Hayabusa remains legend as the world's fastest production bike, but Suzuki never found a way to translate the enthusiasm for its two-wheeled products to those with four.

Suzuki leaves U.S. car business to focus on small vehicles elsewhere | Motoramic - Yahoo! Autos

[Em-squared]

That sucks, they don't sell well here but I have always thought the Kizashi was kind of cool. I see very few of them around.

[crownr0yal]

Originally Posted by Em-squared

That sucks, they don't sell well here but I have always thought the Kizashi was kind of cool. I see very few of them around.

My little bro just bought one from CarMax to replace his Wrangler. They offer a lot of high end features but ... meeeeeh. If it's not used, it can be a little pricey.

While I was shopping, I went to a joint Suzuki/Toyota dealership. I was impressed but .... couldn't get past the S badge. I wonder what kind of incentives they will be offering to sell through the last little bit of inventory!

[someguy]

Originally Posted by crownr0yal

My little bro just bought one from CarMax to replace his Wrangler. They offer a lot of high end features but ... meeeeeh. If it's not used, it can be a little pricey.

While I was shopping, I went to a joint Suzuki/Toyota dealership. I was impressed but .... couldn't get past the S badge. I wonder what kind of incentives they will be offering to sell through the last little bit of inventory!

If you can get a Suzuki Equator pickup its basically a rebadged Nissan Frontier so parts shouldn't be tough to find. Who knows about warranty service though.

[sbr711]

Our network had a Suzuki franchise.. last ditch they brought it into our store.. did not sit well with us Hyundai techs.. luckily Suzuki cut off most USA franchises couple yr ago, we got rid of it, and us Hyundai techs really happy..

Around here, people gots to travel 2 hr either direction to major city to dealer for service.

[Em-squared]

Originally Posted by crownr0yal

My little bro just bought one from CarMax to replace his Wrangler. They offer a lot of high end features but ... meeeeeh. If it's not used, it can be a little pricey.

While I was shopping, I went to a joint Suzuki/Toyota dealership. I was impressed but .... couldn't get past the S badge. I wonder what kind of incentives they will be offering to sell through the last little bit of inventory!

Yeah, you are right in that the "S" badge is IN YOUR FACE. I think I just like the idea of driving a car that nobody else has. One of the last cars on earth I would buy would be a Camry.

Ok, deviating a bit, but I was walking by some street parking today, and saw, within a block, literally NINE Camrys.

Kizashi seems relatively sporty. I would check it out still if I were in the market.

[PostalBound]

I have a 2009 SX4 AWD 5 spd (4 door hatch) and still enjoy the car. It has been my daily driver for last 3 years. Nary a problem so far.

They say warranty work will still be honored and the cars are still being sold in Canada and Mexico so parts should still be around. The basic parts are (filters,bulbs) are the same as most other small cars and can be found about anywhere.

It was ironic that this month was my last payment on the car. I've got close to 100K miles on it so warranty was out for me anyway. It is still fun to drive and runs well. I'd consider getting the Kizashi if it had a deep discount.

Overall I still really like the car and probably would have bought another one. Like em-squared said above, I like something different. I live about 25 miles from where they make the Camrys and you can't throw a rock without hitting one around here.

[lovemysantafe]

I briefly considered the Kizashi when car shopping but the price threw me off. That's a shame because I like how it looks and the interior seems well put-together, albeit a bit bland.

[JaySi09]

I really like the looks of the kizashi but I don't see myself driving one. For the price they were selling it for new I could get a nice car from a more familiar brand. Then again I said the same thing before I bought my elantra, told myself I would never own a hyundai but here I am now a hyundai owner.

Sent from Samsung Galaxy S3 using Autoguide.com free app

[Em-squared]

You guys are right about the price. Suzuki is/was not a super-popular car brand, so they should have positioned themselves at a bit cheaper price point to make themselves more competitive and draw in a larger customer base. Just as you guys pointed out, you liked the Kizashi but dropped it like it was hot because of the price. Wonder how many potential customers were lost over the same reasoning...