2010 Press Kit

Anything related to the Kizashi can go here, but please look at the other headings first. Your topic may fit better under something else.
Post Reply
User avatar
cityplanner
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2011 2:36 pm

Hello Kizashi enthusiasts. While taking on the much-needed cleaning job of my garage recently, I came across the 2010 Suzuki press kit jump drive that had been sent to me by Suzuki's director of public relations years ago. In 2008 I emailed Jeff Holland at Suzuki and told him about my interest in the Kizashi based on the Concept 3 debut in New York that year. He sent me quite an enlightening response (which I've pasted below for those who are interested) and we subsequently exchanged a few emails which led to the press kit being sent my way.

I've attached some of the more interesting pics from the drive and am more than happy to share others, although I don't know if someone else on the forum has already done the same. Just thought I'd start the weekend with some Kizashi "history". I hope everyone and everyone within their circle of family and friends is faring well.


August 14, 2008:
Good evening Mr. Ganum, and thank you so much for this (very timely) note. I, myself was just reading the current issue of MotorTrend and noticed under the future product section our gorgeous new Kizashi concept. I am glad it struck all the right chords with you as I know, from the volume of notes I receive, it has with quite a few others. It is a beautiful design statement from the company and, as a fairly recent addition to the Suzuki team (I came over from GM in March), it gives me continued hope that we are on the right track as a car company here in the US.

Let me also say that I couldn't agree with you more completely. In fact, on Friday, I just presented my Kizashi (Internally referred to as the YW1) communications plan to our new American Suzuki president, Kevin Saito. He was receptive to some of our ideas, which included prototype drives, engineering, design and product development stories on the web and in print and the like so we might spread out the news value and maintain interest in this vehicle. Internally, we consider this the single most important launch in Suzuki's American automotive history, so I don't think the point was lost on him. I can also share with you the fact that our parent company in Japan is a very cautious and brilliant engineering organization. I think they are still learning the US market from a marketing and communications perspective, which is a bit of a challenge, but my hope is that we will be able to do this car justice for all of our collective benefit. We can promote the car, our customers will want to purchase the car and everybody wins.

Whether we are able to publicize the car the way we would ideally like to do or not, I can tell you that after driving a few of the prototype vehicles over the last couple weeks, you absolutely will not be disappointed. Both the 4 cylinder and 6 cylinder are great driving experiences and your family will love it. It was benchmarked against cars like the Alfa Romeo 159 and Ford Mondeo in Europe and performed better than the Audi A4 here in the States, which is encouraging for the price point we are discussing.

Thank you again for your note and please let me know if there's anything else I can do for you.

Cheers
Jeff Holland

Jeff
Attachments
2010_kizashi_testing_3Z8A6540.jpg
2010_kizashi_testing_3Z8A6540.jpg (244.53 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
2010_kizashi_testing_43W0880.jpg
2010_kizashi_testing_43W0880.jpg (168.92 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
2010_kizashi_testing_3Z8A5862.jpg
2010_kizashi_testing_3Z8A5862.jpg (232.45 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
2010_kizashi_safety_SOUNDPROOFING.jpg
2010_kizashi_safety_SOUNDPROOFING.jpg (136.38 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
2010_kizashi_reveal_Kizashi_Front_7-8 - resized.JPG
2010_kizashi_reveal_Kizashi_Front_7-8 - resized.JPG (149.27 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
2010_kizashi_reveal_Kizashi_Reveal - resized.JPG
2010_kizashi_reveal_Kizashi_Reveal - resized.JPG (136.73 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
2010 press kit jump drive.jpg
2010 press kit jump drive.jpg (155.1 KiB) Viewed 4177 times
old tech
Posts: 705
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2018 1:51 pm
Location: n/w pennsysvania

Interesting. I want to know more useless but fun knowledge. On the Proto types four-cylinder and V6, does your buddy give you any information or pictures as to what drive trains they were using ? Also on the car colors, pictured is a desert sand color but I’d like to know if any other country got that color. Here in the states we have eight colors the Kizashi‘s came in. Vapor blue, navy blue pearl white , black , charcoal gray , silver, pull me over red and Crimson red. Crimson red was a strange color because it came out for the 2012 and 13 model years and must not have been available on the sport trim that I’ve ever seen . What other colors were produced and shipped elsewhere? I’ve seen the plum color here on the Kizashi site.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
KlutzNinja
Posts: 286
Joined: Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:58 am

I remember seeing that gold painted Kizashi in at least one article before it was released. I think it was nothing more than a pre-production marketing model. If the lack of orange reflector bumps on the fenders are indicator, it wasn’t a model for the American market. Did the Japanese market get any unique paints colors? I tried looking for a moment and didn’t find anything.
The wheels were intriguing, too; I’d still take the 18” wheels from the Sport trims, but these IMO are nicer than everything else.
Current: Blue 2018 Mazda 3 GT 5-Door
Previous: Blue 2010 Ford Focus SES,
Black 2013 Kizashi Sport GTS-L (CVT; FWD)(RIP)
User avatar
KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

KlutzNinja wrote:I remember seeing that gold painted Kizashi in at least one article before it was released. I think it was nothing more than a pre-production marketing model. If the lack of orange reflector bumps on the fenders are indicator, it wasn’t a model for the American market. Did the Japanese market get any unique paints colors? I tried looking for a moment and didn’t find anything.
The wheels were intriguing, too; I’d still take the 18” wheels from the Sport trims, but these IMO are nicer than everything else.
You're right. It was a pre-production press model. The JDM only got three colors for the Kizashi: Black, White, and Silver according to a JDM brochure I own.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
User avatar
KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

A bit more info:
I recall reading a lot of press materials and auto-journal articles before I bought my Kizashi in 2012 and a lot after too. The reviews were largely why I decided to look for a Kizashi but the articles showed the high aspirations and hopes Suzuki had for the Kizashi before it all came crashing down. Some articles I read gave a good overview of the prospective powertrains that never realized:

The "4 cylinder" was the Suzuki J24B that we all have. It was the inhouse base engine that Suzuki already had from the Grand Vitara. It was not intended as the only engine but rather the introductory base engine. For the reasons below, it became the only engine ever in production models anywhere.

The 6 cylinder, from what I recall reading, was a pre-production engine from GM. Again, not surprising that they also lifted this engine from the Grand Vitara which had a V6 option from GM for a while. The reason why this engine didn't make it into the Kizashi is the same reason the GV lost it in its final years: Suzuki and GM disbanded their partnership around the time the Kizashi was entering the market. This explains why pre-production testers had a V6 but production models didn't. The Kizashi entered the market sans V6 and the GV also became a J24B-only model then.

The 4 cylinder turbo: This engine was supposed to come from VW; the company that pretty much bought the shares in Suzuki that GM sold. Unfortunately, this deal was awful for Suzuki because VW didn't really offer them anything anywhere and mostly acquired Suzuki shares to tap their success in Asia with small cars. Suzuki was hoping for a turbo engine like in the VW Jetta and Audi A4 to fill the spot the GM V6 was supposed to take. VW never delivered and also failed to deliver small diesel to Suzuki in Europe. When Suzuki got fed up with VW and sourced FIAT for their diesels in Europe, arbitration ensued. They now have nothing to do with each other. Much like the V6, Suzuki was trying to outsource a turbo and it failed.

The Hybrid: This powertrain was conceptual from what I read as Suzuki didn't really have the tech at the time. Suzuki now has a hybrid powertrain for the Swift in Japan but it's a mild Hybrid and not anywhere at the level of Toyota technology. In reviewing the Kizashi EcoCharge Hybrid Concept, it's clear that the concept didn't have actual hybrid technology. The engine of the EcoCharge concept is clearly the J24B though the literature stated the powertrain would be a 2.0 liter engine mated to hybrid tech. I read that much like the V6, Suzuki was hoping for GM to provide the mild hybrid tech.

So for these reasons, Suzuki was left with only the base engine for all production models. It was like the earlier current-gen Mazda6 in that it also only had one engine for many years until the recent addition of its own turbo. For Mazda, they needed the turbo for their larger CUV, the CX-9, after they split with Ford that previously supplied a V6 for it. After developing that turbo 2.5 liter, they since put it in many models ranging from the Mazda3 to the CX-5. For Suzuki, it made no sense to develop a more powerful engine as their larger cars like the Kizashi and Grand Vitara weren't their strong sellers globally. It's no surprise that as Suzuki scaled back from markets that demanded larger cars, they killed off the Kizashi and the GV and focused on smaller models with smaller engines primarily intended for Asia.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
KlutzNinja
Posts: 286
Joined: Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:58 am

From what I understood about MotorTrend’s evaluation of the Kizashi during their Car of the Year testing, the Kizashi’s chassis was (initially) a bust due to its interrupted development. The Kizashi’s development began during the end of the GM era, but we all know how that partnership ended.
I read somewhere, maybe here, that Suzuki began chassis development anew post-GM, using a proprietary platform instead of whichever one that underpinned the Malibu. Seeing how the Kizashi apparently fared so poorly back then in MotorTrend’s testing was surprising, although their long-term tester and subsequent test models garnered a lot of praise. I know without a doubt that the Kizashi would have at least been a COTY finalist instead of a mediocre contender if MT got a model with the final chassis tuning. Their COTY model was likely from very early production, if not pre-production, and maybe defective for all we know. A broader powertrain lineup might have actually sealed a win.
I wrote all of this because I was under the assumption that the Kizashi developed during and after the end of the partnership. The change in development also caused the Kizashi to be way more expensive to develop than originally projected and is one reason why Suzuki is sour about the Kizashi (and its disappointing sales).
This all happened before I got into cars so I’m not 100% sure on everything.

The interrupted development with GM is also likely why some uneducated people claim the Kizashi is merely a Chevy. A Cruze at that (roughly the same size, in fairness). When I took my car in to get the window regulator issue looked at, the first thing the shop owner said was “so this thing’s a Chevy...” Not asking me if it was, just assuming it was because of the partnership. I had to hold my tongue lol. He figured a Chevy might have the same regulator because of this; I never found out because I ended up getting a replacement from a salvage Kizashi on eBay.

The only time someone recognized what the Kizashi was, he went on a tangent about how it was a Chevy Cruze from a different market or something, that this Cruze was exceptional at rally car racing, and that the Kizashi with its AWD had a lot of potential or something. This was before I joined here, and I think after the conversation I googled around looking for the truth, and found some info from here. Wouldn’t be surprised if it was Kuro who provided some of it :lol:
Current: Blue 2018 Mazda 3 GT 5-Door
Previous: Blue 2010 Ford Focus SES,
Black 2013 Kizashi Sport GTS-L (CVT; FWD)(RIP)
User avatar
KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

There is a lot of misinformation on the Kizashi regarding GM. I did a lot of research on this car so here's what I know:

The Kizashi is a 100% Suzuki-designed car. It has nothing to do with GM design, even from inception. A lot of people get things wrong about the Kizashi and GM because Suzuki used to use rebadged Daewoo/GM Korea models before the Kizashi debuted. These were the Suzuki Reno, Verano, and Forenza which were all Daewoo/GM Korea-designed vehicles made in South Korea. The Chevy Cruze confusion comes from these because the USDM Cruze itself is a GM Korea design and is a successor to one of these Korean cars formally sold as a Suzuki in the US.

The reality of the Suzuki Kizashi is that it was a product of Suzuki finally wanting to make a larger and more upscale vehicle all on their own. From inception, they wanted a vehicle with more sporty dynamics so they developed it in-house to make sure the vehicle was what they had in mind. Suzuki only sought to outsource the prospective upgraded engines because they literally did not make engines larger than the 2.4 liter J24B at the time. The only connection to GM with the Kizashi was that the V6 in the pre-production models came from GM for reasons I already posted.

Another myth I've read is that the Kizashi was a Nissan-derived model. Suzuki and Nissan have some ties, especially in Japan, but again, the Kizashi was developed independently of Nissan. Some have claimed that the Kizashi was on an Altima platform but to anyone who knows vehicles well, that's just ridiculous. The Altima did not have a chassis that supported AWD at the time and also had different dimensions that wasn't conducive to a skin-over. Duh.

However, the main reason I'm quite confident that the Kizashi was an all-Suzuki design is because I not only reviewed English articles and press materials about the development of the Kizashi, but also Japanese ones (I understand Japanese). I've seen some developmental videos in which the Suzuki chief engineers of the Kizashi were interviewed in Japanese. It's very clear from inception they designed the vehicle in-house to make sure the car turned out the way they intended; a family sedan that was more sporty and engaging to drive than the direct competition. No more re-badged crap. A lot of this appeared "lost in translation" between the Japanese engineers in Hamamatsu, Japan who created the Kizashi and those in other countries writing about it. Another causality of the translation was the name Kizashi itself. It was marketed as meaning, "Something great is coming!" Da fuq kind of translation is that!? No. "Kizashi" literally means harbinger or omen. Such a name isn't even that radical. Honda Prelude anyone? Suzuki deliberately name the sedan Kizashi because that was the purpose it was serving Suzuki. It was their first real homegrown debut to larger and more upscale vehicles to expand their line-up past small vehicles. They wanted to move up from making cheaper and smaller cars primarily for the Asian market and make something larger and more refined, especially for North America. This is the reason why the Kizashi Concept models had three different renditions consisting of a stylish CUV, and wagon, and then a sedan. The production Kizashi sedan was to serve as a harbinger of their intensions to offer larger and more refined vehicles. As we know now, it was ill-fated for a number of reasons and was subsequently a flop. The car still served its namesake purpose but as an omen (another translation of "kizashi") and showed Suzuki that their success in North America was unlikely. This is why with the failure of the Kizashi, Suzuki withdrew from Canada and the US to double-down on their strengths with small cars in Asia.
However, the Kizashi's expensive in-house development wasn't a total loss for Suzuki. They used their experience making the refined sedan with new materials and techniques and applied it to their smaller models like the Swift to elevate their level of refinement compared to before. You can see this when comparing pre-Kizashi models to post-Kizashi models in Suzuki's line-up.
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
User avatar
cityplanner
Posts: 5
Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2011 2:36 pm

The information shared in this thread is precisely why I enjoy automotive forums so immensely. I'm always learning something new thanks to the collective knowledge and experience of fellow appreciators. Thanks all for a more thorough background to complement what I had gathered over the years.

Old Tech, you remind me of a fellow who went by Papajam on the Alfa Romeo forums. He was a sage to the entire community, and in particular, those of us who lacked the requisite skills to work on our old Alfas. To answer your earlier question, nothing in the materials I was given pertained to the drivetrains or the color charts. Just five folders (Interior, Exterior, Reveal, Safety NVH and Structure, Testing) and an assortment of photos within each.

Here are a few more to close out a very long day. KuroNekko, they include an image of Tadao Kaneko, who is listed as the Kizashi's chief designer.
Attachments
2010_kizashi_testing_43W0415.jpg
2010_kizashi_testing_43W0415.jpg (213.69 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_testing_3Z8A6545.jpg
2010_kizashi_testing_3Z8A6545.jpg (236.59 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_safety_WIND_NOISE - resized.jpg
2010_kizashi_safety_WIND_NOISE - resized.jpg (279.8 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_safety_airbags_NA.jpg
2010_kizashi_safety_airbags_NA.jpg (216.62 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
Tadao Kaneko Kizashi Chief Designer - resized.jpg
Tadao Kaneko Kizashi Chief Designer - resized.jpg (248.7 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_interior_SPEC_NA_DLX_BK - resized.jpg
2010_kizashi_interior_SPEC_NA_DLX_BK - resized.jpg (127.11 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_exterior_HID_headlights.jpg
2010_kizashi_exterior_HID_headlights.jpg (133.89 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_location_Image_Photo_M_02 - resized.jpg
2010_kizashi_location_Image_Photo_M_02 - resized.jpg (218.41 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
2010_kizashi_location_Image_Photo_M_06.jpg
2010_kizashi_location_Image_Photo_M_06.jpg (257.24 KiB) Viewed 4012 times
User avatar
KuroNekko
Posts: 5170
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 5:08 pm
Location: California, USA

Another thing to add, more specifically to what Old Tech was asking, was that the prototype V6 Kizashi featured a 6 speed automatic transmission. I believe the transmission was also from GM given the CVT likely wasn't designed for the V6 engine's power. However, details are aloof as this was a preproduction tester model and as we all know, the production Kizashi got a CVT for an automatic.

The reality about Japanese cars is that many of them are designed in Japan so the wealth of information about development is there and in Japanese. Accessing this is very hard for most people who aren't Japanese speakers for obvious reasons. While I haven't accessed too much Japanese press materials about the car in Japan, I did talk to a Suzuki dealer in Japan several years ago about the Kizashi. I was told the car was a special-order vehicle that was not selling well. The dealer joked that, "only important Suzuki corp people drive the Kizashi." Years later, I read materials stating that the Japanese government bought quite a number of Kizashis to be used as fleet vehicles, especially for the police (Japan has a national police agency). I've since found and posted photos and videos of marked Kizashi police cars though most have been silver unmarked vehicles. I've personally seen one of these unmarked Kizashis in Kyoto, Japan driving by on "Code 3" status; lights and sirens.
Here's a link to the thread I created regarding Kizashis in Japanese police duty:
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=2917
2011 Suzuki Kizashi Sport GTS 6MT (Black)
old tech
Posts: 705
Joined: Mon Apr 23, 2018 1:51 pm
Location: n/w pennsysvania

This is very interesting information thanks for the contribution guys. On the v6 issue , Im glad the GM engine never made it into these cars. The longevity just isnt there I dont think. I talked with a Suzuki tech and he thought it was all the warranty work on the GM v6 in the XL7s that crippled the Suzuki auto division here in the states.
Post Reply