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Suzuki Vitara shows its face ahead of Paris debut

The death of Suzuki's American automotive operations can be chalked up to many, many things. One thing it cannot be blamed on, however, is the arguable goodness of its products. The company's criminally underrated offerings included the Kizashi sedan, the SX4 compact and your author's personal favorite, the Grand Vitara.
The GV rode on a radically different version of General Motors' Theta platform, which underpins the American manufacturer's current crop of crossovers, like the Chevrolet Equinox. What made the Grand Vitara special, though, was that it wasn't just another run-of-the-mill CUV. Buying the cheapest model meant living with rear-wheel drive rather than the Theta's typical front drive. Spend a bit of money, though, and you'd end up with an honest-to-goodness off-roader, sporting selectable four-wheel drive complete with low-range gearbox. It also comfortably sat five, was reasonably efficient and was quite handsome. We aren't totally sure how it turned into this.
This, of course, being the new Vitara (it replaces the Escudo, the vehicle Americans know as the Grand Vitara), and it will make its global debut at October's Paris Motor Show, which has ditched its four-wheel-drive system for a part-time all-wheel-drive system called Allgrip.

Suzuki Jimny pickup concept heading to Tokyo Auto Salon

Some of the best news this year is coming at the tail end of 2018. Suzuki's Jimny is already pretty awesome, but for the upcoming 2019 Tokyo Auto Salon, Suzuki is preparing something quite special for its little off-roader: a Jimny pickup! Suzuki based the concept on the Sierra trim level. The truck is designed to be an active sidekick for customers who need the convenience of a pickup for either DIY stuff or adventuring. The retro style is immensely cool: gold bodywork, wood sides, different grille, light bar, white roof and matching white wheels with chromed hubcaps — the entire thing is like a 1970s Suzuki aftermarket parts catalogue applied to a new Jimny. The cab has been shortened to ditch the rear seats, and a short bed has been tacked on without lengthening the wheelbase. If you ask us, the wheelbase even looks shorter than stock. Accompanying the pickup is a "Survive" concept that looks ready for adventuring. The stock bumpers have been replaced with sturdy metal ones that improve the approach and departure angle. There's also an external rollover cage, a winch, custom wheels and some Defender-style aluminum diamond plate. Suzuki says the Jimny Survive has been outfitted for traversing "severe nature" under extreme conditions. We'd happily take both of these mountaineering or even for a weekend trip to the cottage. While both of these trucks are obviously concepts, they show the direction where a Jimny owner could feasibly take their truck. And since some earlier generation Jimnys have been available as pickups, it's not totally improbable to imagine a production Jimny pickup somewhere in the next decade. Here's hoping. Related Video: Image Credit: Suzuki Tokyo Motor Show Suzuki SUV Concept Cars suzuki jimny

New investor allows Suzuki to fend off VW

After years of legal wrangling, the long-soured partnership between Volkswagen and Suzuki looks finally to be coming out of arbitration, according to Bloomberg. As a sign of the Japanese brand's improved fortunes, hedge fund Third Point LLC recently bought an undisclosed stake in the company. The investor reported seeing a major opportunity in the successful Maruti Suzuki business in India. As an investment, the only major problem that Third Point found with Suzuki was its legal battle with VW. "The company's greatest asset is its low-cost manufacturing process for vehicles for the emerging market consumer," the fund said in a letter, according to Bloomberg. Third Point reportedly also wants a seat on Suzuki's board, despite being a minority shareholder. The alliance between Suzuki and VW goes back to late 2009. In the deal, the Japanese brand was meant to get access to cutting-edge tech, and the German firm got a helping hand towards better establishing itself in India and Southeast Asia. Things didn't go as planned, though. Less than two years later, Suzuki's boss publicly derided the deal. Eventually, the allegations started going back and forth, and the two have been working out a way to untangle practically ever since. Among the biggest issue has been how to get back the 19.9 percent stake that VW purchased. According to Bloomberg, the arbitration is now technically over. With the divorce nearly final, the two sides are just waiting on a decision on how to split things up. Suzuki may even just buy VW's stake to get the shares back.