The Suzuki Cappuccino was, or rather is, a diminutive two-door, two-seat, roadster that was built in Japan between 1991 and 1996. Measuring just 3.3 meters long and weighing just 725 kg it is a quintessential ‘Kei car’, built to take advantage of specific tax benefits in its home country.
The Cappuccino’s demise came in 1995 when the re-engineering required to meet Europe’s more stringent emissions controls was deemed financially unviable. Murmurs from Japan, however, have been rippling across the Interwebs with news of a potential 2016 successor. Admittedly it’s all very vague at this point, but suggestions are for a modern-day equivalent Suzuki rear-wheel drive roadster.
Apart from the Jimny and Carry microvan, Suzuki don’t have a rear-wheel drive platform in their tool shed, so a joint venture (JV) along the lines of the Toyota 86 / Subaru BRZ is a possibility. To this end, the name ‘Caterham’ has come up, after the British manufacturer’s adoption of a Suzuki-sourced, 660 cc, 3-cylinder, turbocharged engine for their entry-level Caterham Seven sports car.
This same engine could power a potential 2016 Suzuki Cappuccino and in exchange for rear-wheel drive and other technical know-how, Suzuki could offer a similar Caterham badged model a foot in the door to some of the world’s largest markets. The U.S.A. is excluded from that potential list of course after, Suzuki withdrew from the U.S. in 2012.
Let’s also not forget the recent statement by Caterham CEO Tony Fernandes who said, “Sports cars will do well, but the city car and SUV are what the (Asian) market really wants”, when reffering to plans for a mainstream sub-compact city car and crossover SUV.
It doesn’t stop there, however, because Caterham and Renault have also announced a JV to revive the Renault Alpine sports car, and Fernandes reportedly told Reuters that the additional Caterham models would be based on Renaults and shipped in semi-finished form for final assembly in Asia.
It’s all very interesting, but is nothing but speculation at this point and it remains to be seen what, if anything, comes of the potential Cappuccino successor and related joint ventures. In the meantime, let your mind wander about the possibilities with these renderings from SuzukiFan and Hugo Silva.
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- Suzuki Cappuccino concept by Hugo Silva, deviantART
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- 2016 Suzuki Cappuccino CGI Render
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- 2016 Suzuki Cappuccino CGI Render
