Pursuing cuteness rather than coolness
The Suzuki “Twin”, which competed with the boldness of being a two-seater, was so innovative that it did not sell at all when it first went on sale, but it had the ironic fate of coming into the spotlight after sales ended. Among the contest entrants at the “TOYO TIRES FAN MEETING 2023 IN FUKUOKA,” this vehicle stood out from the crowd with its toy-like form. The Suzuki “Twin” is a one-of-a-kind vehicle that can be made to look this cute just by choosing the right tires.
Coming back from a friend was the beginning
The Suzuki Twin was launched in 2003. With an overall length of 2735 mm and a seating capacity of only two passengers, it looked like something straight out of a comic book. It was the first minicar to adopt a hybrid engine, but even the cheapest grade, Hybrid A, was expensive at 1,290,000 yen. On the other hand, the gasoline-powered model was priced at an unbelievably low 490,000 yen for the 2WD 5-speed manual version, but sales remained sluggish. As a result, this rare car was only available for two years, until 2005.
Mr. Satoru Hayashi, the owner of this lovely customized twin, acquired his beloved car about three years ago. He gave it to an acquaintance soon after, but bought it back in 2023 because “the use of the car had changed.”
“It was originally in stock condition, but after I bought it back, I decided to play with it. Some parts needed repair, such as oil leaks, so I painted the engine head while replacing the head gasket. Anyway, I thought I would build it just like a toy.”
At that time, “that” toy crossed Mr. Hayashi’s mind. The style was a deformed version of a real car. He wanted to recreate the atmosphere of “Choro-Q” toy that took the miniature car market by storm in the 1980s with a real car.
The extra wheels were also an inspiration
There is another important story behind the realization of this cute style in “Twin. It was the existence of 13-inch Daytona wheels with mud tires that Mr. Hayashi had on hand.
“I used to play around with modifying Toyota’s small BEV car, the Coms. At that time, I installed muddy tires on Daytona wheels, and I had to sell the Coms to a friend. However, he wanted the suspension back to normal, so I had an extra set of those wheels that I removed at that time.”
Mr. Hayashi says he initially intended to proceed with the work using those muddy tire specifications, but decided against it because “the tires were too high and there was no clearance with the fenders.” However, a friend informed him of a TOYO TIRES event. He changed his mind and decided to enter the event with TOYO TIRES tires.
“I was hoping to get the whipped look of a Choro-Q miniature car. I wanted to install over fenders, so I got the parts, but I couldn’t make it this time. In the future, I’d like to have the fenders and the suspension to match the fenders!”
