Suzuki Celebrates 70 Years Since Suzulight

As Suzuki prepares to roll out its first-ever electric vehicle, the e-Vitara, this autumn, the brand is taking a look back at where it all began: a three-metre-long car delivered by Michio Suzuki himself 70 years ago – the Suzulight.

In the autumn of 1955, Suzuki personally handed over the very first Suzulight to a local doctor in Hamamatsu, Japan. Until then, the doctor had relied on a bicycle for house calls. The delivery marked the start of Suzuki Motor Corporation’s journey in the automotive world.

Before building cars, Michio Suzuki had been in business since 1920, manufacturing textile looms. As global demand for cotton fell in the early 1950s, Suzuki switched to motorised transport. By 1953, the company had built its first motorcycle. Two years later came the Suzulight, the car that would redefine Japan’s compact car market.

Although development on the Suzulight originally began in 1937, World War II put plans on hold. Work resumed in 1954 with the formation of Suzuki Motor Co. Ltd. Guided by the “Yaramaika” spirit – roughly translating to “Let’s do it”. Suzuki studied overseas designs and created a car that was very much ahead of its time.

The Suzulight was powered by a 360cc two-stroke engine producing 15PS, and was Japan’s first car to feature a front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout. It also came with independent coil spring suspension and rack-and-pinion steering. These were rare features in mid-1950s Japan.

Early testing saw the prototype cover a 300km drive through the mountainous Hakone region en route to Tokyo. There, the team presented the car to the president of Yanase Auto, then Japan’s leading automotive authority. Despite arriving late into the night, the president personally tested the car and, impressed by what he saw, gave Suzuki the green light for production.

By October 1955, the Suzulight was officially in production, initially at a modest rate of just three or four cars per month. By early 1956 though, output had increased to 30 units a month.

Fast forward seven decades, and Suzuki still follows the key values that were introduced by the Suzulight – lightweight design, compact dimensions, and innovative engineering. Today, the brand produces over three million cars annually, with plans to make four million by 2030.

Its modern lightweight platforms, like the ‘Heartect’ used in models such as the Swift and Vitara, and the EV-specific ‘Heartect-e’ for the e-Vitara, continue to carry on the legacy that Michio Suzuki started all those years ago.