2007 Suzuki Forenza Low Miles Auto Clean Great Mpg on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Toyota and Suzuki are looking at an R&D partnership because they admit they're behind

The Chairman of Suzuki Motor Corporation, Osamu Suzuki, and the President of Toyota, Akio Toyoda, have convened at Toyota's Tokyo offices to declare plans to join hands regarding research and development. According to Toyoda, Toyota "hasn't been good at creating alliances," and its partnership with the small carmaker Daihatsu has been the most well-known collaboration so far. Perhaps the comment has a tinge of regret from Toyota and GM's NUMMI days in Fremont, especially as the statement released by Toyota says that "Toyota is conscious of the fact that it may be behind competitors in North America and Europe when it comes to the establishment of standardizations and partnership with other companies." But as different technologies advance at breakneck speed and it is difficult for companies both big and small to stay competitive, let alone ahead of the game, Toyota is accepting the need for collaboration. Toyoda referred to passenger safety, environmental issues, automated driving, and hydrogen technology, all of which are key challenges for any carmaker looking to stay relevant, and all expensive to experiment with. Spreading the cost over more vehicles should help. "We received an offer from Suzuki regarding collaboration possibilities on advanced and future technologies such as in information technology. Suzuki made a frank proposal to us, and in understanding that Toyota is facing the challenges which I had mentioned earlier, we thought that with the relationship between both companies, there is an opportunity for a business partnership to help solve such challenges. As such, we decided to explore such possibilities together," said Toyoda. In the future, Daihatsu will still be Toyota's tool in emerging markets, but now Toyota could have access to Suzuki's small-car know-how. Osamu Suzuki acknowledges that "Suzuki's current business focuses on minivehicles in Japan and India," as Suzuki withdrew from the US and Canada in 2013. A joint effort will help Suzuki remain relevant, and as a manufacturer of predominantly small vehicles it has been focusing on competitive pricing more than cutting edge technology. Related Video:

Suzuki Jimny gets confused by American guardrails

The reborn Suzuki Jimny 4x4 has faced some crosswinds in the time it's been on the market: It earned only three stars in its Euro NCAP test due to a badly-inflating driver airbag and troubles with pedestrian protection. The automatic emergency braking function also had some issues in NCAP testing, but now the Jimny's AEB system is facing an another problem — it appears to be confused by guardrails. Two German-market Jimnys had been shipped to Los Angeles for the World Car of the Year testing, Australian journalists found that on some corners of the California test route, the AEB was seemingly triggered by a guardrail in a curve in the road. The problem was found with both Jimnys, and Suzuki's Jimny chief engineer was present to look into the matter; later, Suzuki engineers were able to replicate the glitch with these particular vehicles on the same road. While U.S. sales of the Jimny are extremely unlikely, test data acquired on American roads still seems to be highly valuable for Suzuki, as tests in Japan could not replicate the problem. It appears the road condition, tilt angle, curve aspects and vehicle speed all conspired to puzzle the AEB system, which is now being evaluated for a software or calibration change. The jerky correction by the electronic stability program, audible on the CarAdvice video, happened at 45-55 mph, which is not overly fast for even the narrow and tall Jimny — it is possible that the AEB mistook the guardrail for another car. Suzuki stated: "There is a possibility that the (stability control) is instantaneously switched on (by) reacting to the vehicle sway when departing the S-shaped curve — and then consecutively switches on because the vehicle is circling the curve at high speeds. [...] The intervention of the stability control may give a sense of discomfort to the driver but is not an event that would disturb the vehicle's direction of movement." The driver safety assists are a good addition to the Jimny, of course, given that the 1980s second-generation truck was the subject of a beef between Consumer Reports and Suzuki North America due to its reported tippiness in corners. Related Video:

Suzuki's next Jimny won't veer too far from The Way Of The Samurai

Suzuki might be gone as an automaker in the US, but the brand is still driving along in other parts of the world. In fact, it even has new products in the pipeline and among them is a replacement for the venerable Jimny compact SUV (better known as the Samurai in America). The last all-new Jimny hit the market back in 1998, but the little SUVs have grown quite a cult following, especially in the UK. Farmers love them because the compact vehicles can go just about anywhere, thanks to a relatively high ground clearance, small size and four-wheel drive. With the new generation due in 2017, according to Top Gear, that's nearly 20 years of hard work for this off-roader. Though, Suzuki refreshed the Jimny slightly for the 2013 model year (pictured above) across the pond with a revised front end. Don't expect the future iteration to go soft, though. Unlike the similarly long-lived Land Rover Defender, which is rumored to be a bit friendlier in its next generation, Suzuki wants keep the model's abilities as capable as possible, while adding some modern assistance systems. "The next Jimny will be an evolution. It will follow the same recipe. When you see it you'll know it's a Jimny," said the automaker's UK sales boss Dale Wyatt to Top Gear. "If you were a sheep farmer in the Scottish hills you'd see the car is perfect; no argument to change it." If all these promises about the future come true, we might get to hear about the Jimny driving around the world or pulling a huge truck out of the snow for many years to come.