#suzuki

Revealed well ahead of its planned official debut at the upcoming Beijing Auto Show, the Suzuki Swift R Concept takes inspiration from (where else) the GSX-R bikes. It sports an aggressive body kit, big fender flares and some larger and wider tires. To go along with there there’s a custom suspension.

Road Race Motorsports (RRM) has just announced that it is offering a ton of accessories for the Suzuki Kizashi, transforming it from a mundane commuter car to a  brilliant performance sedan that actually looks pretty good. And for those already rolling their eyes about it being a Suzuki, RRM is throwing down 300-hp (as opposed to the factory’s boring 185-hp) and the car actually doesn’t look bad.

A recall has been issued on approximately 20,692 Suzuki brand vehicles (including 2009-2010 Equator pickups, Grand Vitara and SX4 models) for defective navigation systems. The vehicles, which were originally equipped with Garmin Nuvi 750; 760 and 765 systems are being recalled for batteries in the nav system that could overheat and potentially start interior fires.

Nissan is denying reports that Suzuki‘s tie-up with Volkswagen will affect their small car ventures in countries like India. Nissan sells a rebadged version of the Suzuki Alto (one of India’s most popular cars) in that market, but a senior Nissan exec was quoted as saying that ““Suzuki and Nissan have done a lot of business for many years. As far as we are concerned, nothing changes.”

Year-to-date sales for August 2010 may look poor, but the numbers are actually much closer to reality now that the Cash for Clunkers scheme has wrapped up. Cash for Clunkers, which offered rebates ranging from $3,000-$4,000 on the purchase of a new car and trade-in of a used car, sent sales skyrocketing in 2009, and the best indication of this is how far down they are in August 2010. The numbers are also a good look at what consumer spending is really like in the absence of government stimulus money.

Suzuki‘s Swift compact car won near universal praise in Europe and Asia, winning Car of the Year awards in the UK and Japan, as well as seeing duty in international rally championships.

As a part of Suzuki‘s ongoing push to drum up interest in the surprisingly good Kizashi sedan, the Japanese automaker teamed up with Road & Track to build a Bonneville Salt Flats racer. Thanks to engine builder Richard Holdener and the fearless driving skills of R&T editor Sam Mitani, Suzuki got the record it was looking for with a 203.720 mph run, clinching the new Land Speed Record for the Blown Gas Coupe Category

For video of the run and more info about the turbocharged Kizashi land speed record car, hit the jump:

With sales falling 75 percent since their record-setting year in 2007, Suzuki has taken the drastic measure of buying out 50 of its worst performing stores in the United States.

Hyundai may have created a lot of buzz with its Pikes Peak record attempt this year but it was Suzuki (yes, Suzuki) that climbed the hill the fastest. Even more surprising is the fact that Suzuki driver Nobuhiro “Monster” Tajima won the race for the fifth straight year, setting a dominant pace that put him at the top of the hill a half a minute before his closest competitor.

In anticipation of Tajima breaking his own world record of 10:01.41 Falken Tire decided to document the 2010 effort. Sadly Tajima’s 2007 record remains, with this year’s run clocked at “just” 10:11.490.

The good news is, that’s a few extra seconds that we get to enjoy the awesome ride-along experience of the 910-hp twin-turbo AWD Suzuki SX4 using up every last inch of the road – and in some cases, even more.

As for what this all has to do with Falken Tire, well, the Japanese tire company is using the video to help promote its new Falken WildPeak A/T tires – which Tajima used during his dominant performance.

Check out the awesome video after the jump:

Fancy yourself a bit of a social media guru? In need of some new wheels? If either of these apply to you then you’re certain to enjoy Suzuki‘s innovative new social media marketing campaign, called the Suzuki AllPoints Rewards Points & Sweepstakes Program.

The way the program works is that users sign up and are then awarded points for posting, linking, tweeting and commenting on Suzuki sites like SuzukiAuto.com, Suzuki’s Facebook page, the company’s Twitter Account and even a YouTube channel. Plus, more points can be won by competing in the Kizashi Ring of Fire online racing game, as well as by getting creative and making your own video for the “Live Large” Video Contest.

In total, Suzuki will give away 250 prizes over several months, with the grand prize being a 2011 Kizashi GTS Sport. Other prizes include a Sony 3D TV a Garmin GPS, a trip for two to any U.S. city, a $1,000 shopping spree and a Sony PlayStation 3. Plus, each week, Suzuki will give away ten $25 gift cards to members just for competing and the AllPoints user with the highest monthly tally will be given a $500 Apple gift card. And there’s one last cool price – a trip to an open-wheel racing school!

The AllPoints program runs until January 3rd. To get involved click the link below and get all the official details after the jump:

Suzuki AllPoints Program Info and Signup

Porsche was the big winner for July 2010 sales, moving 75% more cars than in July 2009, with Hyundai/ Kia, Jaguar/ Land Rover and the Big Three all making solid gains. Japanese auto makers bore the brunt of the market, with Toyota and Honda losing a bit of market share, while Suzuki took the dubious title of “Biggest Loser” as sales fell by 43%.

Road & Track magazine is helping prep a Suzuki Kizashi to attack two land speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats. In conjunction with master race car builder Richard Holdener, the team from R&T will attack the naturally aspirated Gas Coupe class, as well as the turbocharged Blown Gas Coupe category.

Volkswagen is looking to expand its 19.9% stake in Japanese automaker Suzuki by an additional 10 percent reports Automobile Magazine. The reasons for the larger share aren’t entirely clear, with possible reasons being increasingly shared products between the two automakers. We’ve already heard that Volkswagen intends to rebadge Suzuki models as VWs in some emerging markets and there’s rumor of an SX4-based VW crossover called the RockTan. Automobile also suggests the SX4 platform being used for future VW brand models and a new Gran Vitara platform that would also be used across several VW brand companies.

Suzuki is so confident that you will like their new Kizashi sedan, that they are offering customers $250 if they test drive a Kizashi and then purchase one of its rivals.

Suzuki has issued a recall for its new Kizashi mid-sized sedan. A recall is never a good thing, particularly for a brand like Suzuki that is struggling to find a foothold in the U.S. market. It’s even worse when it’s for the bran’s all-new model – which by all accounts has received glowing reviews.