I think it's significant that Suzuki Corporation is NOT selling their top of the line Equator in the US - the RMZ Sport Crew Cab V6 4WD. The best an American consumer can get is the non-Sport RMZ Crew Cab. Suzuki's website implies that you can get the Sport version here, as does the glossy Equator brochure. But as my dealer and I BOTH learned last month - after much confusion, I might add - the RMZ Sport Crew Cab is not currently sold in the States.
What does that mean? Well, at a bare minimum it means that Suzuki Corporation has played loosey-goosey with its advertising. I'm not prepared to use the phrase "bait and switch", BUT...my dealer had to go 500 miles away to find an Equator that both he and I thought was the RMZ Sport. I compromised on the color because it was the ONLY one within a reasonable distance to my town, and then when it got here, it turned out to be the non-Sport RMZ.
What's the difference between the RMZ and the RMZ Sport? According to the marketing materials, four things: 1) a sun roof; 2) the Rockford Fosgate stereo; 3) a Bluetooth system; and 4) stereo controls on the steering wheel. Is that enough to kill a deal? Well, it almost killed the deal for me. This was my first experience with Suzuki. I didn't appreciate waiting for a car that, when it arrived, wasn't exactly what I'd asked for. I was also rather put out with the time and effort I had to invest in deciphering Suzuki's advertising after-the-fact. Fortunately for Suzuki Corporation, the local dealer is a friend of mine and he was able to talk me back around. (He acquired his Suzuki dealership AFTER I had already built a relationship buying other good quality cars from him.)
Do I have a problem with the fact that the Equator is essentially a Nissan product? Obviously not, since I'm buying one. But, a person could argue that by selling a re-badged Frontier, Suzuki isn't 100% committed to succeeding in the mid-size truck market. If it sells, great. If it doesn't, what has Suzuki really lost? They won't have wasted millions engineering a failed vehicle. They won't have learned the hard way that they should stick to what they know: sedans, small SUVs and, of course, motorcycles. And they won't have jeopardized sales of their other lines, ie., Grand Vitaras, SX4s, etc.
If I saw some consistency in Suzuki's advertising and a willingness to put more Equators on dealer lots, I'd feel a lot better about Suzuki's future prospects in the truck market. Until that happens, I think all any of us can do is wait, see, and hope the sharp looks of the Equator catch the eyes of other potential buyers.
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