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Suzuki brought a retro hybrid coupe and an autonomous van concept to Tokyo Motor Show

Update: More photos and details of these Suzuki concepts have surfaced since their official reveal at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show. Turns out, the Waku Spo coupe can also be a wagon. We love it. When you swap in the wagon rear end, the rear seat slides back and automatically reclines. All of a sudden, the sporty coupe has turned into a somewhat roomy wagon kei car. Its interior features a fully digital dash that will actually simulate wood grain on the passenger side when in the Normal drive mode. When sport mode is selected, the "wood grain" transforms into a massive screen of dials and vehicle information. The Suzuki Hanare is the van pictured in the gallery and further below. Its drive wheels feature in-wheel electric motors, and the interior is all about customization. The folks in Suzuki's press photos look happy to be hanging out by their Hanares, and we think we'd be pretty happy too. One of the vans has a bar; the other has a massive screen with a map, and the middle van is full of storage for outdoor activity supplies. Lastly, Suzuki showed us the Hustler Concept. It's essentially just a Hustler made to look like an off-road kei car. We're picking up the Jimny vibes Suzuki is laying down. It's wonderfully boxy and features a bevy of neat accessories. Suzuki is celebrating its 100th anniversary at this year's Tokyo Motor Show. To mark the occasion, the company has created two unique concepts that look to the past for style, and the future for powertrain and use cases. One is called the Waku Spo, and the other is the Hanare. The Waku Spo is pictured above, and it's a plug-in hybrid with styling rooted in '60s Japanese cars. It's simple and squared off save for the wide fender flares and charming round headlights. There are dashes of chrome trim around the car and two-tone paint. The fender-mounted rearview cameras are a high-tech twist on a classic Japanese car feature. But if this design doesn't appeal to you, Suzuki says body and interior parts can be quickly switched out so each driver can have a car that's personalized to their tastes. While the Waku Spo is a more traditional, driver-oriented car, the Hanare is more of an autonomous pod. According to Suzuki, Hanare translates to "cottage" and the theme of the van is to be your home away from home. It's meant to be a mobile room to do whatever you want. It also looks like it's intended to be private and secluded, as the only windows are slender pieces that wrap around the roof.

Suzuki's Paris display is a sad reminder we don't get quirky little Japanese cars anymore

The fun thing about foreign auto shows is getting to see all the cars we don't get at home. In the case of Suzuki, it's a reminder that the brand withered in the US and withdrew due to a lack of product a few years back. What makes it even tougher is that Suzuki's stand in Paris is full of little all-wheel-drive things that would probably do really well in the US now. Talk about bad timing. Take the Ignis above. This thing is about the size of a Mazda CX-3, offers all-wheel drive, and manages to look cute and sophisticated at the same time. Americans would buy it. The SX4 S-Cross, which evolved from the SX4 that did surprisingly well a decade ago in the US, gets an update this year and looks a lot more like a crossover, an improvement on the original funky tall-hatch design. If only Suzuki could have held on a little longer the brand might be taking some sales from Subaru and the many makers of little crossovers. We can't leave here without mentioning the wonderful beigeness of the Cervo hatch that Suzuki brought out to tie the Ignis in with its heritage. It's a rear-engined three-cylinder two-stroke with a Giugiaro-designed body. Yep. The model was never sold in the US, but it was known as the Whizzkid in the UK, which is just fantastic. And its adorable tiny wheels – they looked like 12s or so – are pretty highly stylized. They're actually mirrored by the five-pocket wheels available on the Ignis, which is a nice touch. Related Gallery 2017 Suzuki Ignis: Paris 2016 View 13 Photos Related Gallery 2017 Suzuki SX4 S-Cross: Paris 2016 View 10 Photos Paris Motor Show Suzuki Crossover 2016 paris motor show suzuki ignis

This is the facelifted Suzuki SX4 that we won't get

The car you see above is, according to China Car Times, the facelifted Suzuki SX4 crossover. We've always had a soft spot for the SX4, so the fact that it's finally getting a significant update makes us a wee bit sad - after all, Suzuki just announced late last year that it's leaving the US market, so we'll never get this upgraded little 'ute on our shores.
Changes we can see include aggressively resculpted lighting units, interesting mold lines on the front bumper cap, redesigned air intakes and unique trim fillets on the doors.
At least we can take solace in the fact that there apparently aren't any significant alterations under the new bodywork, so our crop of used SX4s should be just as capable out on the road. In China, Suzuki's 1.6- and 1.8-liter four-cylinder engines are expected to carry over to the new year, along with the current model's CVT and manual drivelines.