Suzuki. The first-born SUV
Suzuki Motor Corporation is a large Japanese engineering company, the 11th in the world by the sales amount of compact and small cars. Moreover, Suzuki owns only 16.9% of the shares, a small package of 3.28% is owned by Mitsubishi, and one of the largest shareholders is the Japanese government - it owns 23%. Suzuki cars are sold in many countries. Motorcycles, boat motors, power products, and even electrically operated wheelchairs from Suzuki are sold in more than 190 countries. Suzuki sells about 2 million motorcycles alone a year. Its powerful, reliable, fast motorcycles have won many motorcycle races. Even in the Motocross World Championship, long won by European models only, Roger DeCoster became the winner while riding 500cc class Suzuki. And GSX-R 750 is not only the winner of all motorcycle races but also a real symbol of success!
The history of Suzuki began with weaving looms, continues with motorized bicycles, and followed by motorcycles… The world-famous SUV or Sport Utility Vehicles, including the legendary Vitara, appear afterward. Only in 1955, Suzuki released its first production car. 50 years later, Suzuki is 11th among the carmakers of the world with the sales of about 1.8 M cars per year and became the fastest-growing autioomotive company in Japan. Its sales increased by 22% per year. Now Suzuki occupies half of the market of India – the 5th largest – and in the top three in Japan!
Suzuki is 11th among the carmakers of the world with the sales of about 1.8 M cars per year (as of 2011-2019).
The origin of the company
The machine-tool factory founded by Mithio Suzuki in 1909 produced looms. It was located in Hamamatsu village, the village where Soichiro Honda was born. It was a successful business, Suzuki developed rapidly and even received a national award for the models that were ahead of the English and Dutch machinery. But the sharp-sighted owner of the company quickly realized that cars were the future. And in 1937, he started a new project to make compact cars. But it didn’t go any further than prototypes. Then the Second World War began…
Suzuki returned to the idea of car production in 1951. But it started with… a motorized bicycle – Suzuki Power Free. It was the simplest two-wheeled bicycle with a 36cc 2-stroke engine with only one horsepower was responsible for ‘Power’ mode. But it helped the company turn a corner and proudly rename itself Suzuki Motor Co., Ltd. This time, it was producing about 6,000 motorcycles and mopeds per month. Just a year later, a front-drive Suzulight compact car with independent front and rear suspension was born. And this baby jump-started Suzuki car production.
In 1958, the company started using the letter ‘S’ as a logo to conquer the planet. By the way, only in its homeland, Suzuki is famous for its tiny cars. In the rest of the world, the brand was famous for SUVs.
This all began with a small Jimny, outdated even by the standards of 1970, paved the way for the Vitara. The formula for success an all-terrain vehicle with a motorcycle of the SUV with just a 25-hp engine is quite simple. First Suzuki began to produce small cars, which were something average between a quad and a car, such as 4-wheel QuadRunner LT125 SUV. And already then, ‘having known all the angles around the block’ on K-cars, Suzuki’s management decided that it was not so good idea to compete in SUV production with those who have begun to develop these 25 years earlier, right after the war. After all, it is unlikely to create a worthy rival to Land Rover, Jeep, and Land Cruiser… But what if you enter the market with this “off-road K-car”…
The SUV was born
30 years ago Suzuki has changed the world in 1988 with the first in SUV (Sport Utility Vehicle) ever. It was positioned as a car for those who do sports in their free time. Vitara had nothing to do with big heavy SUVs, it was a holiday car, a car for fun and vacations. On Vitaras, surfers whizzed to the seashore, hunters made their bumpy ride through the woodlands, and holiday-goers made their long way to visit a ski resort or a yacht club. Shortly everyone realized that it was also good for everyday use as well and has many other opportunities in addition to those of a usual urban hatchback. This is how this famous and popular Suzuki model was born – Escudo or Vitara, equipped with a 1.6-L 95-hp 4WD engine.
Suzuki has made a change to the world in 1988 with its first-born Sport Utility Vehicle, the first SUV one ever.
Suzuki continued selling compact cars in Japan. Aerio with a 1.5-L engine, Aerio Sedan, 7-seat Every Landy with a 1.3-L engine, MR Wagon mini-car, Jimny Sierra, Alto Lapin mini-car. All over the world, people have been fond of the small 2-seat Cappuccino, 1-L sub-compact Wagon R Wide and Wagon R Solio, sub-compact Baleno, and, of course, Grand Escudo or Grand Vitara, which is very strong and reliable thanks to heavy-duty steels and alloys in its bodywork. After the Grand Vitara, the company had a shot at the 7-seat SUV - XL-7, the largest Suzuki car in size. Everyone is also well acquainted with Suzuki Splash, specially created for a young family, and Suzuki SX4 - a mini-crossover, developed by the Japanese together with Italian FIAT.
But Vitara remains a universal favorite for its lightness and brightness, for the mood of a cheerful holiday! Modern Vitara in its fourth generation has changed beyond recognition. But it has remained as fast and elegant, overflowing with positive vibes! This crossover constantly attracts attention, as if it adapts itself to its owner, trying to be in tune with his or her mood. This way, Suzuki, changes itself, us, and the world around!
