Suzuki Motor Corporation History

The company Suzuki KK (Suzuki Motor Corporation) is a Japanese manufacturer of motorcycles and automobiles in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan.

History 

Company founder Michio Suzuki built the company for the production of looms. This expanded rapidly, and in 1920 followed the stock market as Suzuki-shiki Shokki KK (. 式 織機 株式会社 , English Suzuki Loom Manufacturing Co.). At the time, Suzuki's efforts to develop its own automobile were widespread. At that time, Japan was extremely backward towards Europe and America in the automotive sector, and demand for domestic automobiles rose. In 1936 Michio Suzuki bought an Austin 7. With his engineers, he disassembled the British automobile and studied it closely, whereupon she made a prototype which they presented in the following year 1937.

Although other vehicles were built, but the production was soon switched to war production, which in Japan, the production of "non-vital" goods was severely restricted. The vehicle projects were dropped for the time being. As early as 1937 Suzuki produced ammunition for the Imperial Army. In the following years there were increasingly military orders, Suzuki became part of the military-industrial complex. During the Second World War, many production facilities were destroyed and the production shifted to other areas. After the war Suzuki produced among other things agricultural machinery and fan heaters.

The production of cars began at the gates of the Second World War after the company had been mainly dedicated to the construction of machinery for industry for thirty years. It suffered a natural interruption during the conflict and only resumed successfully in 1955 with the production of Suzuki Suzulight (two-cylinder engine with 360 cc displacement) before the first successful small car. With this vehicle, Suzuki was able to gain a foothold in the automotive sector for the first time. Soon, international expansion began. So, 1963, the US sales company Suzuki Motor Corp. founded in Los Angeles. This opened up the important US market.

Among its most successful cars we can mention: Carry, Maruti (also called Alto on some markets), Wagon R + (together with its twin Opel Agila (1st series)), Liana, Splash (together with its twin Opel Agila (2nd series)) and Swift.

The Japanese company has been producing excellent off-road vehicles for a long time, including the Suzuki LJ80, the Suzuki SJ, the Samurai, the Vitara, the Jimny, the Grand Vitara, the Ignis (out of production since 2009), the Suzuki SX4, produced with Fiat., which marketed it under its own brand, under the name of Fiat Sedici and went out of production in 2015 together with its cousin Fiat which came out a year earlier.

In 1981, Suzuki entered into closer cooperation with Isuzu and General Motors (GM). In October 1990, the name changed to Suzuki KK ( ス ズ キ 株式会社 , Eng. Suzuki Motor Corporation).In 2000, GM doubled its stake in Suzuki for $ 653 million to 20%. 2006, GM reduced this stake to three percent. This residual investment was sold in November 2008 for $ 230 million.  From this close connection originates the vehicle as Suzuki Splash and Opel and Vauxhall Agila.

Suzuki has six production plants in Japan. Other plants are located in the People's Republic of China, Thailand, Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Spain, Esztergom (Hungary) and Egypt. Suzuki maintains 35 major production sites in 24 countries and regions. The SUV models Suzuki Jimny and Suzuki Vitara (under license as Santana 300/350) were u. a. made by Santana Motor in Linares , Spain. (The plant was closed in the summer of 2011.) The Suzuki Swift and the Suzuki Ignis were produced until 2007 for Subaru and sold as Subaru Justy .

From General Motors protection at the end of 2005, shortly after Fiat Auto, Suzuki continued to mount FPT diesel engines, the 75 and 90 hp 1.3 MultiJet, the 120 hp 1.9 MultiJet and the 2.0 MultiJet on its models. II 135 HP on the SUV designed and manufactured together with Fiat Auto: the Suzuki SX4. Furthermore, the stone of the scandal regarding the breakdown of the partnership with Volkswagen was precisely Suzuki's intention to mount the brand new (in 2011) Fiat 1.6 MultiJet Diesel unit in the bonnet of its models. I (intended to replace the valid but by now antiquated 1.9 MultiJet and available in three power levels: 90 Hp, 105 Hp and 120 Hp), instead of drawing on the resources made available by Volkswagen itself, which has a similar 1.6 engine in the range. TDI (from 90 Hp and 105 Hp).

In January 2010, a minority stake was sealed by VW to Suzuki. The VW group takes over 19.9% ​​of Suzuki, in return Suzuki receives for a billion US dollars, about 1.9% of the shares of Volkswagen AG. Suzuki CEO Osamu Suzuki precluded a wider involvement of VW. August 2011 it was reported that talks on the cooperation between Suzuki and VW came to a halt.