Suzuki Solio: the wider Wagon R that became a mini MPV

The Suzuki Solio is a small MPV that Suzuki has marketed since 1997. The first version was the Wagon R-Wide, a slightly larger Wagon R for export markets, and the car has since grown through several generations and a long list of badges.

Suzuki Solio at a glance

History of the Suzuki Solio

The Wagon R-Wide

The Solio’s story began in February 1997 with the Wagon R-Wide, a slightly larger Wagon R that exceeded kei car limits and used 1.0 and 1.2-litre engines. In Europe it was the Wagon R+, launched the same year with naturally aspirated 1.0 K10A and 1.2 K12A engines; the only other tall wagon on sale there at the time was the Daihatsu Move. The car was made in Japan, was not galvanised and tended to rust around the sills in northern Europe. Engines were the 996 cc K10A with 65 PS or, in Japan, New Zealand and Australia, a 100 PS turbo, and the 1,171 cc K12A with 70 PS. The 1.2 was the only engine offered with four-wheel drive in Europe. GM Colmotores built it in Colombia as the Chevrolet Wagon R+ from 1999 to 2001, Indonesia sold the facelifted Japanese car as the Suzuki Karimun from 1999 to 2006, and in China it formed the basis of the Changhe Beidouxing.

Wagon R+ and Solio

The Wagon R+ launched in Japan in May 1999 and replaced the Wide, reaching Europe in summer 2000. In December 2000 the Japanese model became the Wagon R Solio in X and sporty 1.3 trims, a 1.0 E version followed in June 2002, and a facelift in August 2003. In April 2004 the Wagon R name was dropped and the car became simply Solio, with another facelift in August 2005. The Hungarian-built Wagon R+ continued for Europe, where by 2006 only the 1.3 GL remained: 3,540 mm long, with 597 litres of cargo space, ABS with EBD and air conditioning as options. Because the car could not meet Euro NCAP expectations, the Wagon R+ was replaced by the Splash in late 2008. From 2000 to 2007 Opel and Vauxhall sold it as the Agila, built in Gliwice, Poland with Opel engines, and Suzuki supplied a rebadged Chevrolet MW from 2000 to 2003 and again from 2006 to 2010.

Second and third generations

The second-generation Solio appeared on 7 January 2011, based on the Palette rather than the Wagon R, though the Palette itself uses the Wagon R’s platform. A Solio Bandit with a redesigned nose, LED headlights, a spoiler and chrome tail-light reflectors joined in June 2012, with front- or four-wheel drive; Mitsubishi sold the same car as the Delica D:2 from March 2011. A facelift came in November 2013. The third generation was released in Japan on 26 August 2015 with a chrome grille, LED headlights and a mild-hybrid option.

Design and features

• Mini MPV packaging: a tall body wider than a kei car, with generous cargo space.
• Many badges: Wagon R+ in Europe, Opel Agila, Chevrolet MW and Mitsubishi Delica D:2.
• Long run: four generations from 1997 to the present.
• Bandit version: a sportier-looking trim from 2012.

Suzuki Solio versions

• Wagon R-Wide (1997): the wider Wagon R with 1.0 and 1.2 engines.
• Wagon R+ / Wagon R Solio (1999–2004): first-generation Solio.
• Solio (2004–2010): the name without the Wagon R prefix.
• Solio (2011): second generation based on the Palette, with the Bandit variant.
• Solio (2015): third generation with mild hybrid.
• Mitsubishi Delica D:2: a rebadged second-generation Solio.

The Solio is a wider relative of the Wagon R and shares its platform thinking with the Palette. More Suzukis are in the Suzuki collection.

Video: 2014 New SUZUKI SOLIO BLACK & WHITE Ⅱ DJE – Exterior & Interior

Video by Driver’s High Channel on YouTube.

Sources

• Suzuki Solio, English Wikipedia: generations, engines, badges, markets