Junkyard Gem: 2008 Suzuki XL-7

The American Suzuki Motor Corporation filed for bankruptcy in 2012 and sold its final Kizashis, SX4s and Grand Vitaras here the following year. In the decade prior to that, a big chunk of the Suzuki lineup involved rebadged Daewoos, but South Korea wasn't the only outpost of the far-flung GM Empire helping out with Suzuki hardware. After the Saturn Vue debuted as a 2002 model, its platform ended up everywhere, including beneath the second-generation Suzuki XL-7. Here's one of those machines, found in a Denver self-service car graveyard recently.

Prior to 2007, the XL-7 name had been applied to a stretched version of the body-on-frame Grand Vitara, a pure Suzuki design.

The 2007-2009 XL-7 looked quite different from its closest relatives, the Saturn Vue, Pontiac Torrent and Chevrolet Equinox. Assembly took place at CAMI Assembly in Ontiario, birthplace of many a Geo Metro and Suzuki Swift.

The engine is the 3.6-liter version of the 60° High Feature V6, rated at 252 horsepower and 243 pound-feet.

A five-speed automatic was the only transmission available.

This one is a base model with front-wheel-drive and seating for five. Its MSRP was $21,599, or about $34,419 in 2024 dollars.

The radio has an AUX input, a fairly unusual feature in 2008.

Inside, one of the most heartbreaking notes I've ever found in a junkyard car. Does the Tooth Fairy give money to kids who knock out the teeth of other kids and steal them?

It's like a Suzuki motorcycle, but with more cargo capacity.

Those Suzuki-riding bikers know a good SUV when they see one. Who knew that it wouldn't be long before motorcycles and ATVs would be the only new Suzukis available here?

By Murilee Martin