Suzuki 2015 Annual Report Download - page 17

SUZUKI MOTOR CORPORATION 15
Topics
Launch of New Let’s 50cm3 Scooter Series
Suzuki comprehensively updated the Let’s 50cm3 scooter series and ad-
opted a newly designed engine that oers outstanding fuel economy of
54.8km/L*. The Company oers two versions: the basic Let’s (launched in
March 2015) and the higher-grade Let’s G (launched in December 2014).
Each version is aordably priced and meets daily mobility needs for men
and women across a wide
age range.
*Measured by Suzuki in the World-
wide Motorcycle Test Cycle.
Launch of the All-New Alto Minicar
The all-new Alto adopted a newly-developed platform and achieved a
weight reduction of 60kg*1 by thoroughly reducing its weight. Along with
the enhanced eciency of the powertrain, it realized fuel consumption
of 37.0km/L*2, the lowest among any gasoline-engine vehicle in Japan*3.
It evolved in fuel eciency, driving performance, design, and safety per-
formance, while brushing up basic performances including the ease of
maneuverability and handling as a utility minicar by returning to the ori-
gin of minicar.
Plus, in March 2015, Alto Turbo RS was added to the lineup. The mod-
el’s body rigidity is increased, and installed with the enhanced turbo
engine that realizes strong acceleration, coupled with Auto Gear Shift
equipped with paddle shift.
Winning of RJC Car of the Year and Japan Automotive Hall
of Fame Car of the Year awards for the Hustler minicar
Hustler minicar won the 2015 RJC (Automotive Researchers’ and Journalists’
Conference of Japan) Car of the Year and the 2014-2015 Japan Automo-
tive Hall of Fame Car of the Year awards, highly valued for pioneer of a new
genre, adoption of fuel-ecient technologies, sportiness that exceeds its
class, excellent user-friendliness, design, etc. It became a hit with the accu-
mulated sales for its rst year exceeding 10,000 units.
Also, as an RJC Special Achievement Award, Nippon (Japanese) Minicar (re-
cipient: Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Inc. Mini-Vehicle Com-
mittee) was chosen, valued for the brilliant evolution that the minicar has
achieved up to this date, and the role it plays in the Japanese motorization.
Announcement to Fund 35 Scientic Researches for Fis-
cal 2014 by the Suzuki Foundation
Suzuki Foundation, which was established in March 1980 to mark the 60th
anniversary of Suzuki, selected 33 scientic research projects and two pro-
posed scientic research projects for
scal 2014. Thus far, the Foundation
has made 1,379 supports including
research projects by universities and
research institutes in Japan and subsi-
dizing programs in Japan for research-
ers from overseas.
Announcement to Consolidate the Motorcycle Busi-
ness into the Hamamatsu Plant
Due to the countermeasure to the earthquake and the tsunami, and the
decrease in the domestic motorcycle production volume, Suzuki decided
to consolidate the motorcycle business, which is currently dispersed, into
the Hamamatsu Plant (located in Miyakoda district of Hamamatsu), and
relocate the motorcycle assembly of the Toyokawa Plant (located in Aichi
prefecture) as a part of the consolidation.
Currently, Suzuki’s motorcycle business is dispersed in three dierent loca-
tions: the motorcycle technical center (located in in Iwata, Shizuoka); the
Takatsuka Plant (located in Hamamatsu); and the Toyokawa Plant (located
in Toyokawa). Suzuki decided to consolidate these three locations into the
Hamamatsu Plant, to consistently operate from engineering, development,
and testing, to production of the engines and the powertrain, and the as-
sembly. By doing so, Suzuki will put eorts into the eciency of product
development and production of the ever-diversifying motorcycles.
Holding of the Foundation Stone Ceremony of a New
Plant in Gujarat, India
Foundation stone ceremony of new vehicle manufacturing facilities in
Gujarat was held. The purpose of the new plant is to secure production
capacity for future development of the Indian automobile market and
expansion of exports from India. The new plant is aimed to start produc-
tion from mid-2017, with the annual
production capacity planned to be
250,000 units. Vehicles and parts
produced at new plant in Gujarat will
be supplied only to Maruti Suzuki
India (MSIL), and distributed through
MSIL’s sales network.
January 2015
*1 Comparison between the all-new Alto
equipped with continuously variable
transmission and conventional Alto Eco.
*2 2WD equipped with continuously variable
transmission.
*3 Suzuki measured the fuel economy of the
new Alto in the JC08 test cycle. Suzuki’s
claim to the best fuel economy of any
gasoline-engine vehicle in Japan is based
on the Company’s research in December
2014 and excludes hybrids.
Let’s (left) and Let’s G (right)
November 2014
February 2015December 2014