Suzuki delays U.S. launch of the Swift

Suzuki delays U.S. launch of the Swift

Suzuki has delayed the relaunch of its Swift small car in the United States until next year while it works on a global product strategy with Volkswagen AG and ponders the growing strength of the yen against the dollar.

According to Automotive News, citing American Suzuki’s head of product development and business Steve Younan, the product plans for the Swift were put on hold after Volkswagen bought about 20 percent of Suzuki earlier this year.

He said the Swift’s delay is part of a broader review of how Suzuki and VW plan to align product strategies. By the end of the summer or early autumn, Younan said, “We should get some indication of where they may have found some efficiencies in platform development and powertrain development.”
Swift engineering for the U.S. market is almost complete, but how the car will fit in to the new global strategy remains to be seen. “At the moment, if the exchange rate continues like it is, we couldn’t expect very much profit,” spokesman Takuma Mizuyoshi said. “So that’s a concern right now.”

Suzuki’s first casualty because of the unfavorable exchange rate was its American marketing budget. Suzuki spent $14.9 million on marketing in the first quarter of 2009, a figure that dropped to only $3.9 million during the first quarter of 2010.

Suzuki Swift is one of Suzuki’s  highest selling small car, new Swift will full displays at the Paris Motor Show in September. With over 1.8 million Swift sold since its launch in 2004,

Soruce: Automotive News

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