1992 Gmc Suburban on 2040-cars

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Suzuki recalling 200K crossovers over airbag woes

Suzuki may not be selling any new cars in the US anymore, but there are still plenty of them on American roads. Nearly 200,000 of those will need to be taken off said roads - for a little while, at least.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has issued a recall for 2006-2011 Suzuki Grand Vitara SUVs and 2007-2011 SX4 crossovers due to a faulty airbag sensor. The issue apparently results from the front passenger-side floor mat causing the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor to malfunction over time, so whether there's a kid or an adult in the front seat, the airbag could deploy in the event of a crash.
As a result, Suzuki Motor of America is calling in 193,936 vehicles to replace the front passenger-seat cushion assembly. That's a whole lot of cars to recall, but it comes as no big surprise. Owners can expect to be notified in October. Full details in the recall announcement below.

Land-speed racer Bill Warner dies from motorcycle crash at 285 MPH

Motorcycle land-speed record holder Bill Warner died yesterday after crashing during an attempt at setting another record. The 44-year-old was clocked at 285 miles per hour on the runway of a former air base in northern Maine, before he lost control of his modified Suzuki Hayabusa motorcycle and veered off the runway.
It is not known what speed he was traveling when things started to go wrong and unclear what caused the crash, which happened shortly before 10:00 AM. Warner's crew suspect there were mechanical difficulties on his last run, in addition to a slight breeze, according to the video news report. Warner was conscious and able to speak after the crash but died an hour and 15 minutes later at a hospital in Caribou. The event and runway were closed for the rest of the day as police investigated the incident.
Warner was participating in "The Maine Event" at Loring Air Force Base in an attempt to reach 300 mph in one mile. Warner's best land-speed record, set in 2011, was 311.945 mph in 1.5 miles on the same runway, according to the Loring Timing Association, a record that still stands today for open-cockpit motorcycles. After that run, Warner said the scariest part was stopping the bike before the end of the runway. Be sure to check out the video news report after the jump.

This is the facelifted Suzuki SX4 that we won't get

The car you see above is, according to China Car Times, the facelifted Suzuki SX4 crossover. We've always had a soft spot for the SX4, so the fact that it's finally getting a significant update makes us a wee bit sad - after all, Suzuki just announced late last year that it's leaving the US market, so we'll never get this upgraded little 'ute on our shores.
Changes we can see include aggressively resculpted lighting units, interesting mold lines on the front bumper cap, redesigned air intakes and unique trim fillets on the doors.
At least we can take solace in the fact that there apparently aren't any significant alterations under the new bodywork, so our crop of used SX4s should be just as capable out on the road. In China, Suzuki's 1.6- and 1.8-liter four-cylinder engines are expected to carry over to the new year, along with the current model's CVT and manual drivelines.