Suzuki Super Carry – a workpony bakkie?

Suzuki Super Carry bakkie

Suzuki Auto SA is adding its first light commercial vehicle to the Suzuki non-motorcycle vehicle line-up – the Suzuki Super Carry.

The Super Carry is not your usual single-cab pick-up, but a small high bakkie with cab-over-engine design and large rear load deck.

Halfloaf

First launched in Japan as the Suzulight in 1961, the small utility vehicle became popular, and known in many countries.

Moving from Suzuki compact cars only by adding a compact bakkie, Suzuki Auto SA brings back the idea of small Suzuki goods vehicle like the Suzuki Carry Van sold in South Africa in the 1980s, affectionately nicknamed “halfloaf”, as it was half the size of a regular minivan or panel van.

Workpony

How much can the Carry carry?  A Suzuki Super Carry may be a small pick-up, but can manage a 750kg payload, targeted at small-business owners seeking a light, user-friendly workhorse (or is that workpony?) at low costs of purchase and running.  The included warranty is 3 years or 100 000 km.

The tiny Suzuki is just 3.8m short and 1.56m wide with a load bay width of 1.49m.  Adding around-town manoeuvrability is a 175mm ground clearance and 8.6-metre turning circle.  It weighs a featherlight 850kg, empty.

Keeping it simple and practical is the 1.2-litre petrol engine, 5-speed manual and rear-wheel drive.

What’s the spec like?  Well, it does have halogen headlamps with leveling adjustment, a driver’s seat slide function, and practical work stuff like a cab sliding window, lockable glove box, 12V accessory socket, 2 x instrument panel upper trays, and .  What about power steering or electric windows… erm… let’s talk about the weather.  No headrests either – are headrests not compulsory safety items?

Bargain?

With the prices of compact 3-quarter-ton single cab pick-ups like Chevrolet Utility and Nissan NP200 now starting at close to R 160 000.  The other cab-over-engine bakkies, namely Hyundai H-100 and Kia K2700/K2500 are bigger, though are now priced at over R250k.

The only other direct rival to the Suzuki Super Ace (now that Daihatsu Gran Max is no longer available) is the Tata Super Ace EX2, which starts at R 159 995 for the 1.4TD DLS model.  Albeit more expensive, it benefits from a stronger turbodiesel engine with torque of 135Nm comparing favourably to the Suzuki’s 101Nm, and it is bigger.  The Tata Super Ace is front-wheel-driven, so the Suzuki Super Carry counters by being rear-wheel drive, as the driven wheels under the load is where you’d want them for best traction.  Then again, the Tata has remote central locking and a service plan

The Suzuki Super Ace 1.2 price is R 129 900, which is surely a bargain if you’re just looking for a simple goods carrier.