Suzuki turning 100 has been a pretty big deal for us and we’ve been a bit busy celebrating. So maybe this tribute to our rich, vibrant history won’t be that rich or vibrant, but we’ve scoured the internet‘s favourite free online encyclopedia (you know the one) to bring you this overview of Suzuki’s history.
According to Wikipedia, Suzuki was officially founded in 1920 as the Suzuki Loom Manufacturing Co. Meaning at some point, we made looms. We imagine, like all Suzuki products, these were the best looms to ever grace the roads. Or wherever looms go.
Thirty-five super loomy years later, Michio Suzuki, our founder, got pretty sick of looms and decided to make cool stuff; introducing Suzuki’s first car, the Suzulight. And so began a long, proud tradition of making sick vehicles, with super sick names.
Seven years after their first car and motorcycle were introduced, Suzuki won its first Isle of Mann TT motorcycle race—and then we kind of kept winning. Truly, the pivot from looms was starting to pay off. Looms don’t even have races. Probably. But if even if they did, we’d probably win that too.
Not satisfied with the awesome vehicles we’d built and the names we’d bestowed upon them, in 1970 we introduced the world to the most rugged SUV with the oddest name on the planet: the Jimny LJ10. No one knows why it’s called the Jimny. Well, they probably do. But it’s not on Wikipedia. So…
If you’ve never done it before, you may not know this, but making SUVs is surprisingly addictive. That’s why in 1988 we launched the Vitara.
Not literally launched like some showboat-y car/spaceship manufacturers, just the regular, non-literal kind.
As addictive as making SUVs is, making zippy, sexy convertibles also seemed fun. Which is why in 1991 we released the Cappuccino. Not only were our vehicles ahead of their time, but cappuccinos didn’t even really hit it big until the coffee boom of the mid-90s. We’re not saying the Suzuki Cappuccino had anything to do with that…
Actually, yes. I think we are.
Convertibles, SUVs, more SUVs and awesome motorcycles. Something was missing in the Suzuki family: a hatchback. So, in 2004, with the release of the Suzuki Swift, we absolutely nailed it the first time around. Don’t even worry about it…. or the 7.2 million units sold by March 2020. Why are we even bringing that up?
And finally, in the year this year, Suzuki turned 100. A momentous occasion marked with some extremely momentous celebrations. It’s also the year you buy a Suzuki. Can’t avoid it now. It’s in the timeline. And in the wiki post we make up. You buy a Suzuki. It’s internet official. Don’t make the internet a liar.
Head here to fulfil your destiny: https://www.suzuki.com.au/home/
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