1988 Suzuki Samurai Hardtop on 2040-cars

Auto blog

The Suzuki Jimny pickup truck might be the best Jimny

Suzuki showed off a Jimny pickup truck concept at the 2019 Tokyo Auto Salon, and it garnered more positive hype for the already beloved new-generation 4x4. But more than a year later, there are no signs that a production version is coming in the immediate future, if at all. So, members of the aftermarket are building their own. Shropshire Quads out of the United Kingdom takes regular Jimny SUVs and converts them into pickups by lifting the vehicle and adding a metal tub to the rear. Shropshire Quads has been building Jimny pickups for years. The company started doing the conversions on used models but has since grown to add the new Jimny to the operation, as well. Here's how it all started:  We are a small family run business based near Cleobury Mortimer in South Shropshire. We are main agents for Arctic Cat and Kymco ATVs. We felt that there was a niche gap in the agriculture/land management sector for a small lightweight pickup with more creature comforts and reliability than your usual UTVs. We went in search, and following lots of research, we decided that the Suzuki Jimny would be the ideal base vehicle. We now convert quality, low mileage Suzuki Jimny's to pickups using the best quality, factory designed and manufactured components. We hope you agree that we offer the best Suzuki Jimny Pickup on the market. The blue example seen here is the shop's first conversion on a new Jimny. According to Farmer's Weekly, Shropshire Quads orders the factory-manufactured kit that was designed for Suzuki from Austria and is the sole distributor and installer in the United Kingdom. Somebody in New Zealand is running a similar operation. As seen in the photos, the kit can only be installed once the rear portion of the Jimny is chopped off. The kit includes a metal rear bulkhead panel that is equipped with a heated rear screen. Plastic side moldings smooth out the conversion into the bed, which is made of stainless steel and aluminum. The rear tailgate is removable, and Shropshire Quads says the kit uses strong high-quality latches. A recessed fuel filler is mounted with cast aluminum and found on the driver's side. As this is a conversion intended for labor, it can be ordered with a one-inch lift or a three-inch lift. For added utility, the Jimny can be fitted with flotation tires or smaller all-terrain tires. The Jimny was already cool, and having one on the farm sounds like a fun way to do chores.

Kayaba, Sumitomo to pay millions for price-fixing in US

Kayaba Industry Co, which does business in the US as suspension parts maker KYB, and Sumitomo Electric Industries are facing payments in the millions to settle price-fixing cases about the components that they make. As part of the Department of Justice's ongoing crackdown of price fixing in the auto industry, KYB agreed to pay $62 million and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to set the cost of shock absorbers from the mid '90s through 2012. The company allegedly worked with co-conspirators to keep the cost of the parts high, and those components then made it into vehicles from Honda, Kawasaki, Nissan, Subaru, Suzuki, and Toyota. "Any collusive agreement among competitors to restrict price competition undercuts our free enterprise system and violates the law," said Carter M. Stewart, US Attorney of the Southern District of Ohio, in the DoJ's announcement. Over the past few years, the DoJ has brought cases against 37 parts suppliers and 55 executives, leading to over $2.6 billion in fines. The investigations haven't always been so successful – some of the Japanese execs fled from the US to avoid prosecution. Critics allege that price fixing is simply how business is done. According to Automotive News, Sumitomo Electric Industries is also facing a $50 million settlement in a civil lawsuit that's related to price fixing of parts like wiring harnesses and heater control panels. The plaintiffs include owners and dealers that purchased vehicles with these parts. The company asserts that the violations are from before 2010, and it now has different process in place to avoid further violations. KYB Agrees to Plead Guilty and Pay $62 Million Criminal Fine for Fixing Price of Shock Absorbers Kayaba Industry Co. Ltd., dba KYB Corporation (KYB) has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $62 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix the price of shock absorbers installed in cars and motorcycles sold to U.S. consumers. According to charges filed today, KYB conspired from the mid-1990s until 2012 to fix the prices of shock absorbers sold to Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (manufacturer of Subaru vehicles), Honda Motor Co. Ltd., Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd., Nissan Motor Company Ltd., Suzuki Motor Corporation and Toyota Motor Company, including their subsidiaries in the United States.

Junkyard Gem: 1991 Geo Metro LSi Convertible

Americans lost the ability to buy a new Detroit-made convertible starting in the 1977 model year (unless you count aftermarket conversions), not regaining it until drop-top Chrysler K-Cars showed up in showrooms in 1981. This gave convertibles a certain magical quality that lasted for quite a while here, and so it seemed to make sense for GM to offer an open-air version of the Geo Metro. Here's one of those cars, spotted in a self-service yard in northeastern Colorado. The Metro was really a second-generation Suzuki Cultus, successor to the 1985-1988 Chevrolet Sprint. While a four-cylinder engine became available in the later Metro (which got Chevrolet badges when the Geo brand got the axe in 1997), all Chevy Sprints and early Metros got this 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine. You're looking at 55 Suzuki horsepower here. The XFi version of the Metro (not available with a convertible top) managed to get better than 60 highway miles per gallon with an engine rated at 49 horsepower. There was an automatic transmission available… for 465 bucks (about $993 in 2022 dollars). That would have added nearly 5% to the cost of this $9,740 car ($20,805 today) and killed the fuel economy, so nearly all Metro buyers got their cars with three pedals. Do you like simple instruments in cars? You'll love the Metro! This one is good and rusty, with some really scary corrosion underneath. I think it sat in a field, buried to the axles, for many years. However, the bra tells us that it once had an owner who loved their then-shiny red convertible. No 1991 competitor could offer a new convertible with a price tag even close to that of the $9,740 Metro LSi. Oh, sure, a ragtop version of the wretched Yugo was available in 1990 and maybe 1991, but that doesn't count. A new Miata cost $13,800 that year, with a Mazda-based Mercury Capri going for $12,588. The 1991 VW Golf Cabriolet cost $16,175, and prices for convertibles just got higher with other competitors. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. How much? No way!