In a follow-up to Jim Klein’s post on the JDM-only Chevrolet MW, another Suzuki-based car with a bowtie stuck in its grille, I present to you the original Chevrolet Cruze. “Original” as in this was the first use of the nameplate, not as in this is a proper Chevrolet (whatever that actually means). So I hear you ask: When is a Chevrolet Cruze not a Chevrolet Cruze? When it’s a Suzuki Swift re-designed by Holden and built in Japan.
Yes, GM got their Australian arm to monkey around with the JDM Suzuki Swift HT51S/HT81S, and Suzuki built those for the Japanese market. Then Holden started distributing them under their own marque in Australia (though those were also Japanese-made) from 2002. The Cruze was then re-branded as the Suzuki Ignis for the European market. Those were made in Hungary. And to top it all off, the EU-market 4WD version was branded as the Subaru Justy G3X. As far as I know, the Chevrolet version was sold in Japan, but also in New Zealand and in several other markets, I’m sure. Confused yet?
In my naïveté, had always thought that Small Asian Chevy = Daewoo, but I was very wrong. Not sure whether this could count as a GM Deadly Sin, but I bet it didn’t do much for Chevrolet as a brand. Whatever it is, it’s a good candidate for William Stopford’s excellent and ever-expanding “Obscure rebadges” series, the latest episode of which captures an earlier iteration of the Suzuki Swift / Chevrolet / Subaru marque salad, at that time with some Pontiac thrown in there for good measure.
And I thought Chevrolet Royal the used to be assembled down here which was a rebadged Opel record(1971-1975)was weird.
Iran?
Wow, that’s like the Ford Fusion first being a small upright hatchback in the Euro-market. Chevy is also discarding names so fast they have to re-use them for unrelated products.
I wonder if Chevys are sold at a discount to the donor brand (Suzuki in this case) when sold side by side such as the Pontiac Vibe/ Toyota Matrix, Chevy Nova/ Corolla and Geo Prizm /Corolla again.
Brasil? I don’t think so. I did see one of these in Perú (it’s on the Cohort!) but it is a second hand import from Japan. I think these are really cute, and I’m surprised this was the face chosen for Hungarian production, since the regular Suzuki Ignis is not that different anyway.
Ok, did a bit more snooping and you’re absolutely right — not sold in South America. In fact, it seems these Chevrolets were RHD-only.
I amended the text. Thank you, Ramon!
I like how it goes for the round-tail-lights-in-the-bumper look like its distant relative:
Yes we have em in NZ though being an obvious Suzuki I thought they washed up here used ex JDM, lots of ther gems out there Tatra and youre in the right place to unearth them.
You’re in for a bruising if you drive one, and maybe a lot worse besides. I drove one for a day back in ’03, and thought it was leaking until I realized it was me pouring with sweat every time I crested 15 mph. It turns out not to be a great idea to take a fairly poor-handling hatch, jack it up, and attach a live rear axle under the back (and when I say “attach” I am being magnanimous in the extreme, as a rubber band somewhere up the front which left the entire driveshaft and axle to float about like a giant T-square isn’t really worthy of the verb). It sticks vividly in my mind as the scariest-handling car I’ve ever driven, “driven” also being a magnanimity as I had very little input in the places it went.
Ofcourse, being a Suzuki sold as a (then-mighty) Holden, they couldn’t be broken or ordered fast enough respectively, but a large number must surely have ended up parked on their roofs. And that Holden was involved in “engineering” this atrocity – something I didn’t know – is a shameful thing for which those involved should hang their heads.
Upside down, hanging from the seatbelts, in fact.