Plans Progressing

Suzuki Motor Corp. will introduce 5- and 7-passenger versions of the next-generation '07 XL-7 midsize cross/utility vehicle slated to bow in October 2006.

The Japanese auto maker showed the vehicle as Concept X at this year's North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

For Suzuki, the new vehicle utilizes General Motors Corp.'s Theta platform (Saturn Vue, Chevrolet Equinox and Pontiac Torrent) and replaces the aging XL-7 flagship, which started life as a stretched Grand Vitara SUV with body-on-frame construction.

The as-yet-unnamed new vehicle is Suzuki's first true midsize utility vehicle, says Hirotaka Ono, SMC board member-overseas marketing. He says it is designed for families who enjoy outdoor life.

The expectation is 80% of sales in the U.S. will be the 7-passenger version, says Tom Carney, sales and marketing director-American Suzuki Motor Corp., competing with the likes of the Honda Pilot and Chevrolet TrailBlazer.

The current XL-7 is made in Iwata, Japan, near Hamamatsu, but the decision to employ GM's Theta platform made it possible for Suzuki to use its only North American manufacturing facility, CAMI International Inc., a joint venture with GM in Ingersoll, Ont., Canada, that builds the 5-passenger Equinox and Torrent.