Suzuki Grand Vitara 2007 News

New Honda Jazz sets new benchmark for rear view cameras: $14,990.

In extreme situations, owners have been warned their vehicles may catch fire.Mitsubishi was hit with the biggest safety recall for the three month period. It has written to owners of Pajeros built between 2000 and 2003 to warn them of a potential brake problem. As many as 13,400 vehicles may need to be checked.The company also recalled 4400 of its now-defunct 380 sedan, built between 2006 and 2007, which may have a faulty fuel tank retaining strap. In a severe collision the tank may be dislodged and spill fuel.Mitsubishi is also checking more than 8300 Colts built this year which may have a problem with door windows which may drop and unlock or open the door while the car is being driven.Honda has recalled 11,800 of its 2004-05 Jazz to check whether they have a faulty handbrake, while Mazda needs to look at 1770 of its B4000 utes built between 2005-2006 because the bonnet may open unexpectedly.Subaru has recalled 5380 of its Imprezas, built between 2001 and 2003 because of a faulty rear tailgate which may suddenly drop.Subaru Australia spokesman, Dave Rowley, said many of the recalls were to check for "minor or niggling" faults."We have had no incidents of anyone being injured in Australia and we found only six cars which had the faulty (tailgate strut) connection."Many recalls are done as a pre-emptive measure to avoid possible problems further down the track, " he said.Other potential faults include electrical short circuits, which in extreme circumstances, may start a cabin fire in Landrover Freelander diesels built since 2007. Landrover warns the fault may occur when the vehicle is parked and unattended.Other recalls were to check for short circuits in Fiat's Grande Punto; and a chance that the panoramic glass roof in a small number of Citroen's Picasso could be dislodged.Suzuki has warned of potential fire risk in its 3-door Suzuki Grand Vitara (2006-07) because of a possible cracked fuel pipe, while the 2005-08 Vitara diesel has a remote fire risk in a filter because of a problem with the intercooler outlet pipe insulator.Other problems include faulty rear seat belt D-loop attachments in the current Jaguar XF, and the potential for a loss of steering in Chrysler's 300C built last year because of a problem with rear axle hub nuts which could see the half shaft disengage from the wheel hub.Mercedes Benz wants to look at axles, springs and the park brake in its Sprinter or Vito vans.Jayco has recalled some of its motor homes to check and fix awning and exhaust pipe problems.Of the 1500 motorcycles recalled, safety issues to be fixed include a faulty fuel filler on Kawasaki models, a windshield which may come off Buell bikes if ridden at high speed and a rear view mirror which may fall off on certain Yamaha models.An ACCC spokeswoman said this year's figures were actually less than last year but the number has been steadily rising over the past 20 years.The ACCC says there have been 52 individual recalls this year compared to 171 last year.Full details of the recalls can be found at www.recalls.gov.au 

Suzuki Australia is kicking into the donation tin to help fund the fight to save two endangered species, the Tasmanian Devil and the Black Rhinoceros.The Australian arm of the company is promising to donate $30,000 (based on projected sales from every new Grand Vitara and Jimny sold) to breeding and protection programs for both animals.About $10,000 and two vehicles will be donated to the Tasmanian Devil breeding program being run at Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria. The Devils are part of a survival program that hopes to ensure the species can bounce back from an outbreak of Devil Facial Tumour disease.Healesville Sanctuary is one of four mainland zoos now caring for 47 Tasmanian Devils as an “insurance population”.The remaining $20,000 will go to the Black Rhino program based in Tanzania, where conservationist Tony Fitzjohn has established a Black Rhino wildlife reserve.Poaching of Black Rhinos for their horns has cut the breed's population from 65,000 in 1970 to just over 2500.Suzuki Australia general manager Tony Devers says the company is proud to provide support to help the two species.“The Black Rhino and the Tasmanian Devil are renowned as tough creatures, making a link with the legendary tough Grand Vitara SUV an obvious one,” he says.A website has been created by Suzuki Australia  savetherhino.com.au which has more information on the projects as well as links to other sites and ways to donate. 

But the offer does come with conditions: GM Holden spokesman John Lindsay says the money-back guarantee must be taken up within 30 days or when the mileage hits 1500km, whichever comes first.

To the end of March, the Australian new car market was up 8.7 per cent while Queensland was up 10.5 per cent.However, Suzuki sales in Queensland were up 18.24 per cent.It follows record growth over the past five years for Suzuki Auto Co which imports vehicles for Queensland and is a separate company from Suzuki Australia which handles imports for the rest of the nation.Suzuki Auto Co general manager Keith Carroll said Queensland was the strongest performing state, selling 42 per cent of all Suzukis in Australia.“The strength of the product line-up and its relevance to the Queensland market is eagerly being matched by the commitment of the dealer network to the consumer,” he said.Carroll said growth had been across the product range with 16.5 per cent sales increase in the Swift small car, 9.6 per cent growth in Grand Vitara sports utility vehicle, 70 per cent growth in the APV (All-Purpose Van) and 4 per cent for Jimny all-wheel drive.He predicted further growth this year with more model variants becoming available.A base model of the SX4 all-wheel-drive small car will be available in June with about a $1500 discount on the $24,390 vehicle.It will be stripped down to two airbags, no fog lights, steel wheels, and no keyless entry.A 2-litre two-wheel-drive SX4 sedan and hatch will arrive at the end of the year.The sedan will replace the Liana. However, Carroll said that with demand for the Liana still high and supply limited, there would be no discounting of the $18,990 drive-away runout model.Carroll said Suzuki would start importing frugal diesel-powered cars in about 18 months, probably starting with the Grand Vitara and SX4.“We would have liked diesel in the SX4 from day one,” he said.“It would be good to have a passenger car diesel at the same time as a four-wheel drive.”Carroll said it would be a 2 or 2.3-litre diesel engine and the cars would have a higher level of trim.“We have to show that you get a little bit more wow for your dollar,” he said.Supply continued to be the limiting factor on sales growth.However, Carroll said Suzuki was building new plants in Japan, Hungary and India increasing production by 33 per cent.