View source for Engineering:Suzuki Fronte 800

{{Infobox automobile
| name= Suzuki Fronte 800 (C10)
| image= 1965 Suzuki Fronte 800.jpg
| layout=FF, transversely mounted
| engine= 785&nbsp;cc [[Engineering:List of Suzuki engines#Straight-3|''C10'']] [[Engineering:Two-stroke engine|2-stroke]] [[Engineering:Straight-three engine|I3]]
| transmission=4-speed manual
| wheelbase= {{Convert|2200|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| length= {{Convert|3870|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| width= {{Convert|1480|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| height= {{Convert|1360|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| weight= {{Convert|770|kg|lb|0|abbr=on}}
| body_style=5-seater, 2dr [[Engineering:Sedan (automobile)|sedan]]
| production=December 1965–April 1969
}}

The '''Suzuki Fronte 800''' is a subcompact car with a [[Engineering:Two-stroke engine|two-stroke engine]] built by the Suzuki Motor Corporation in the latter half of the 1960s.

== History ==
Introduced in August 1965 (and on sale by December), the Fronte 800 was an attempt at competing in a higher market segment than the Suzulight [[Engineering:Kei car|Kei jidosha]] class offerings. The name from its smaller engined brother, the [[Engineering:Suzuki Fronte#Suzulight Fronte|Fronte]], was retained to aid the publicity effort. A four-door 700&nbsp;cc prototype was shown at the 1962 Tokyo Motor Show, clothed in a body designed by Pietro Frua, reminiscent of his [[Engineering:Maserati Quattroporte#Quattroporte I (1963–1969)|Maserati Quattroporte I]] and [[Engineering:Glas 1700|Glas 1700]] saloons.<ref name=CGweb>{{Cite web | first = Akira | last = Tanuma | title=Hand Made People's Car #16: Suzuki Fronte 800 | date= 2003-05-03 | url=http://www.webcg.net/WEBCG/essays/korekiri/e0000018015.html | publisher=Car Graphic web }}</ref> This line of development was not followed, with work on the '''Y4''' prototype instead begun in 1962, another prototype appearing at the 1963 Tokyo Motor Show. Imminent production was announced, but at the '64 Motor Show another pre-production model was shown, with sales promised for the spring of the following year. Actual production, never but in a small scale and largely hand built, began in December 1965.<ref name=CGweb/>

=== Engine ===
The three-cylinder, two-stroke 785&nbsp;cc engine was very similar to that of the 796&nbsp;cc [[Engineering:DKW Junior|DKW Junior]]/F11, with a {{Convert|0.5|mm|in|2|abbr=on}} smaller bore and exactly the same stroke.<ref name=SuzukiStory>Ozeki, Kazuo. ''Suzuki Story: Small Cars, Big Ambitions''. Miki Press: 2007, p. 137-141. {{ISBN|978-4-89522-503-8}}</ref> Top speed was 115&nbsp;km/h,<ref>''Tutte le Auto del Mondo 1967'' claims a top speed of 120&nbsp;km/h.</ref> and the car was only available with a fully synchronized 4-speed column mounted manual transmission.<ref name=CarGraphic>''Car Graphic: Car Archives Vol. 1, '60s Japanese/American Cars''. Nigensha: 2000, p. 40. {{ISBN|978-4-544-09171-7}}</ref> The engine produces {{cvt|41|PS|kW|0}} at 4,000&nbsp;rpm and has {{cvt|8.1|kgm|Nm lbft|0}} of torque at 3,500&nbsp;rpm. Introductory price was ¥465,000, with a ¥545,000 DeLuxe version also available.

[[File:Suzuki-Fronte800rear.JPG|thumb|left|Rear view of Fronte 800]]
The body was a modern unibody design, only available as a two-door sedan. While rumoured to have been executed by Michelotti, design was credited to Suzuki chief designer Sasaki Toru (佐々木亨), who crafted a modern "soapbox" design with large glass surfaces. Suspension was an independent torsion bar design on all four wheels, with wishbones in front and trailing arms in rear.<ref name=CarGraphic/> Drum brakes were used all around.<ref name=Ruiz>{{cite book | ref = ruizM | last = Ruiz | first = Marco | title = 'The Complete History of the Japanese Car: 1907 to the Present | publisher = ERVIN srl | location = Rome | date = 1986 | page = 166 | isbn = 0-517-61777-3 }}</ref> Sales were slow, as the car competed directly with more popular cars like the [[Engineering:Toyota Publica|Toyota Publica]] which were not handicapped by the Suzuki's by now outmoded two-stroke engine. While kei car buyers did not mind putting up with such a construction, car buyers in this segment were by now demanding more.<ref name="Meyer5">{{cite journal | journal = AutoPhyle | issue = Spring, #2 | year = 1996 | volume = 5 | last = Meyer | first = Allan G. Y. | pages = 5–6 | title = Suzuki Fronte, Queen For a Day | location = Watsonville, CA }}</ref>

===History===
The 800 did not see many updates during its production life: In April 1966 it gained separate front seats; as of June reclining such were available.<ref name=SuzukiStory/> A version with separate front seats received a floor-mounted shifter.<ref name="TAM67">{{Cite book | title = Quattroruote Speciale: Tutte le Auto del Mondo 1967 | publisher = Editoriale Domus S.p.A | date = February 1967 | language = Italian | page = 282 | location = Milano }}</ref> By August 1966 the Standard version was cancelled, leaving only the DeLuxe. Production was cancelled in April 1969 after less than 3,000 were built in four years;<ref>{{cite book | editor = ＧＰ企画センター [GP Planning Center] |trans-title=History Timeline of the Japanese automobile | title = 日本自動車史年表 | publisher = GP Publications | location = Tokyo, Japan | year = 2006 | page = 101 | isbn = 978-4-87687-286-2}}</ref> slow sales, need for capacity to produce the hit [[Engineering:Suzuki Fronte#Fronte 360|Fronte 360]], and a perceived inability to compete with the large domestic manufacturers in what had become the most closely contested Japanese market segment spelled the end of the 800. By the time of the 1969 Tokyo Motor Show, the Fronte 800 had disappeared from Suzuki's pricelists, with 2717 built and 2612 sold.<ref name=SuzukiStory/> Suzuki was to focus exclusively on [[Engineering:Kei car|kei car]]s (and bigger engined iterations thereof) until the 1983 introduction of the [[Engineering:Suzuki Cultus|Cultus]].

The 1980s [[Engineering:Suzuki Fronte#SS40|Suzuki Fronte hatchback]] was also marketed as the "Fronte 800" in some smaller markets such as Chile. Most countries outside Japan received this particular car as the "Alto".

==Fronte 1100==
A 1.1 litre version, the '''C20''', was developed for a planned "Fronte 1100" model. The engine's design paralleled that of the {{cvt|68|PS|kW|0}} 1,175&nbsp;cc [[Engineering:DKW F102|DKW F102]], but the triple [[Engineering:Solex Carburetor|Solex]]-carburetted {{cvt|80|PS|kW|0}} C20 was considerably more powerful. The front disc-brake equipped Fronte 1100's top speed was {{Convert|160|km/h|mi/h|0|abbr=on}}, but tiny Suzuki opted not to continue competing head on with the offerings of bigger manufacturers such as Toyota and Nissan.<ref name=SuzukiStory/> Additionally, with the market failure of the F102 the writing was on the wall for the two-stroke engine in cars any larger than the very smallest.

==References==
{{Reflist|33em}}

[[Category:Front-wheel-drive vehicles]]
[[Category:Subcompact cars]]
[[Category:Sedans]]

{{Sourceattribution|Suzuki Fronte 800}}