Goodbye American Suzuki, Hello Suzuki Motor of America as Chapter 11 Plan Gets Approval

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court has approved American Suzuki‘s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, allowing the company to begin its restructuring. As announced last November, Suzuki is getting out of the automobile business in the U.S. to focus on motorcycle, ATV and marine divisions.

The Honorable Scott C. Clarkson of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California in Santa Ana formally approved the plan with the acceptance of American Suzuki‘s creditors.

The first order of business is the formation of a new company to be known as Suzuki Motor of America, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation. American Suzuki will sell off its motorcycle, ATV, marine and automotive parts divisions to the Suzuki Motors of America. The process is expected to be complete by March 31.

“Today’s confirmation is a significant milestone and is one of the last remaining steps in our realignment and restructuring process,” says M. Freddie Reiss, American Suzuki’s chief restructuring officer. “During the next few weeks, we will take final steps to implement the Plan, which will allow the Company to sell its Motorcycles/ATV, Marine, Automotive parts and service divisions. This will promote the long-term growth of the Motorcycles/ATV and Marine divisions, as well as providing automotive parts and service through the dealer network.”

[Source: Suzuki]

By Dennis Chung