SUZUKI NEW ZEALAND LIMITED PRESS RELEASE
THRIFTY RUNNING FROM SUZUKI SX4 IN ENERGYWISE RALLY
The versatile five door Suzuki SX4 hatchback proved a thrifty runner in the recent four-day AA Energywise Rally.
And the promising young Christchurch racing driver Cody McMaster proved he is a master at driving economically on the highway—as well as rapidly on the race track.
McMaster teamed up with Mark Black in a 2.0-litre Suzuki SX4 four-wheel-drive to win the Small Lifestyle/Leisure class, beating a strong array of petrol and diesel powered rivals including the Kia Sportage 2.0 diesel, Hyundai Tucson, Honda CRV and Subaru Outback 2.0 diesel.
Twenty-two-year-old Cody won the Suzuki Swift Sport Cup championship racing series last season and is a strong challenger in the same one-make production championship this season.
But in the interests of the environment and as a positive way of reducing motor vehicle running costs, he turned his hand to fuel economy driving in the Energywise Rally which is contested every two years over a testing North Island route.
Despite relatively high average speeds and varying road and weather conditions, the McMaster/Black SX4 averaged 6.2 litres/100 km (41.7 miles per gallon) over the 1,641 kilometre route that started in Auckland and journeyed as far south as Wellington.
Not only did the 107 kW SX4 win its class, but it also improved on the combined cycle factory figure of 8.7 litres/100 km by a solid 22.2 percent.
McMaster was impressed by the way in which the Suzuki SX4 handled and performed in the rally, with the responsive double overhead camshaft engine providing a good balance of power and economy.
A second Suzuki SX4 driven by Rodney and Lynette Brown also improved on its factory figure by 21.5 percent.
This entry-level 1.6-litre two-wheel-drive version completed the rally with an average of 5.336 litres/100 km (52.9 miles per gallon) to finish strongly in the popular Compact class. The factory figure for the 1.6-litre SX4 is 6.8 litres/100 km.
Veteran racing driver Grant Aitken from Queenstown showed he is also an accomplished motorist when it comes to economical driving.
With co-driver Warren Clark, Aitken piloted a 1.9-litre, five-door Suzuki Grand Vitara diesel to a solid result, averaging 6.2 litres/100 km (45.56 miles per gallon).
This was an 11.2 percent improvement on the factory figure of 7 litres/100 km and underlined the fact that four-wheel-drive SUVs can be economical.
Auckland motoring journalist Sandy Myhre and Liz Swanton drove a 2.4-litre, three door Grand Vitara petrol model in the same class. They returned 8 litres/100 km (35.3 miles per gallon), 9 percent better than the official factory fuel figure.
"We were delighted all the Suzuki’s entered did well, and all were under the factory target figures," said Tom Peck, General Manager of Marketing for Suzuki New Zealand Limited in Wanganui.
This year’s Energywise Rally attracted a record number of entries and attracted more than usual interest because of the focus on fuel and vehicle running costs.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
Automotive Marketing Team
http://www.suzuki.co.nz
