Suzuki’s South African Success
Suzuki’s success in the South African new car market is highlighted by a number of accolades, including a 19,7% year-to-date increase in sales.
In May of 2017, Suzuki welcomed a further 2, 275 new owners to the fold since the start of the year. Its growing popularity amongst both private and fleet buyers was recognised when it won the WesBank/Cars.co.za ‘Brand of the Year’ Award, beating five other popular brands to the top spot as South Africa’s favourite brand.
In the same programme, the panel of judges (which included WOW’s editor, Juliet McGuire) chose the Suzuki Vitara and Suzuki Celerio as their top picks in the Compact Family Car and Budget Car categories respectively.
Also read: Winners of Cars.co.za Consumer Awards announced
At Car Magazine’s annual Top 12 Best Buys Awards in February, the Celerio beat two other finalists for the hotly contested title of South Africa’s Best Budget Car. Both industry awards singled out the Celerio as the best all-round offering for buyers on a tight budget.
In July this year Suzuki’s winning streak continued when it received a Gold Award and a special mention as one of the most improved automotive brands in the 2017 National NADA survey. This followed a comprehensive poll of Suzuki dealers over the previous few months, which measured an automotive brand’s relationship with and support of its dealer network, as well as its performance against other vehicle brands.
Suzuki extends its comprehensive warranty to 5 years/200 000 km
New Suzuki buyers will be glad to know that the brand has extended its warranty to five years/200 000 km. Suzuki’s new warranty has been launched across the entire passenger vehicle range sold from July until December 2017. This will replace the current three year or 100 000 km warranty, and is included in the vehicle’s price.
This means that if you bought a new Suzuki today, you’ll see both the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo and the 2022 Soccer World Cup in Qatar come and go before you have to consider extending its mechanical warranty.
Suzuki’s 2008 reintroduction to SA car market
More recently, Suzuki hit another milestone after the company recorded its highest sales month since being established in South Africa in 2008. The brand recorded its total sales of 744 units and represents a jump of 27% over its sales in June and an equally impressive jump of 68 units over its previous record.
New Suzuki Ignis hits SA shores
The Suzuki Ignis hit South Africa’s roads in June this year, and those who first laid eyes on it were both surprised and delighted by this little crossover. Defying conventional categorisation, the Suzuki Ignis is a compact crossover with a big heart that brings a breath of fresh air and innovation to the local small car market.
WOW editor Juliet McGuire test-drove the Suzuki Ignis and reported that she developed ‘instant feelings’ for it. ‘It came as no surprise that a mini love affair began almost straight away with the new Suzuki Ignis. The butterflies started the moment I saw it and grew the more time I spent in it,’ says Juliet. Click here to watch her review.