2009 Suzuki Kizashi 3 Concept

2009 Suzuki Kizashi 3 Concept

There were rumors earlier this year that Suzuki had canned the all-new sporty sedan named Kizashi. This after spy shotswere taken of the car last August as it was being tested in the extreme heat of the Nevada desert giving the impression that production was definite. Then, another announcement came across the wire publicizing that the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi was to be revealed at the 2009 New York Auto Show. However, this was wrong again due to Suzuki pulling the car from the auto show’s line up. Now, according to Automotive News, this new Suzuki will greet the consumer public at the 2009 L.A. Auto Show in November. The irony—this is also about the time the car is supposed to hit dealerships, so it seem to me that someone’s PR schedule has pretty much gotten flushed down the toilet.

2010 Suzuki Kizashi spy shots

2010 Suzuki Kizashi spy shots

All that being said, the new 2010 Suzuki Kizashi looks like it could be a fierce competitor in the mid-size car market (though they could have come up with a more pronunciation friendly name).  Suzuki is planning on having both gasoline and hybrid drivetrains available in the new Kizashi, with the main power coming from the 3.6L Chevrolet Malibu V-6. Given that, I will speculate that the hybrid version will also likely be the Malibu hybrid setup, if not very similar.

2010 Suzuki Kizashi spy shots

2010 Suzuki Kizashi spy shots

So why by the Suzuki? Suzuki reported to Automotive News that the new 2010 Kizashi will have a heavy emphasis on “sportiness and handling.” From this it is easy to deduce that Suzuki is going to try to go after the sport sedan market instead of the drivability market that brands like Honda and Toyota tend to go after. That leaves one important question: Can you picture yourself challenging the curves in a Kizashi?

 

Stay tuned to Allsmallcars.com for more small and mid-size car insight, as well as, new and used car information, photos, reviews and more!

Also, be sure to check out TheCarConnection.com’s coverage of the 2009 New York Auto Show.