Suzuki has piqued interest ever since the unveiling of the Kizashi concept back in 2007. After all, it’s not often we see a large car concept from the carmaker, known for it’s rally and motorbike heritage and a history of compact (and very competent) small cars.

The new Kizashi follows some of the flowing lines we were shown with the Kizashi 2 concept, while clearly showing a refinement from the concept to an almost production appearance. Gone are the dazzling paint jobs, 4WD ride height, crossover sports wagon styling, and headlights. Instead version 3 of the Kizashi rides on 21 inch, 9 spoke chrome wheels, sports a new, sharper headlight design, wider split grille, a more muscular front end, and 350z style rear haunches becoming almost a 4 door sports car.

Along with the stunning stylistic update come some juicy details. The new Kizashi will carry a 300HP version of the GM’s new DOHC 24-valve 3.6L V6, come with Suzuki’s advanced i-AWD system mated to a paddle-shifted 6 speed automatic transmission and will comfortably seat 5 persons.

It’s one of the most solid close-to-production concepts we’ve seen and Suzuki claims we will see production of the Kizashi in some form in 2010, with construction planned to be at Suzuki’s new Sagara plant in Japan. Here’s to seeing Suzuki build this, and since we’re wishing, we might as well throw in a wish for the X-HEAD too.

Kizashi 3 Concept:

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Today Nissan Australia announced that the new Nissan GT-R will make its Australian debut, with the JDM model on display at this years Melbourne Motor Show. No information on the Australian spec GT-R, or any variants of the GT-R, is available at this time.

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Rumors have been flying about a new performance oriented Toyota sports car hitting the performance scene for a considerable time now, from an AE86 revival to a new Supra, but perhaps no one expected news that these shadowy rumors would coalesce into the forgotten Celica GT-4.

The last model Celica. Will we see styling cues from this?

But perhaps even more surprising is the rumor that the car will be engineered to a large degree by Subaru. In November Toyota confirmed rumours of a new sports car and Celica replacement, with the sports car being a collaboration between Subaru and Toyota, and now it seems the car is the performance model of the Celica line. However, the new car will not come with a Toyota bred turbo four in the tradition of the (somewhat) underpowered motor of the old model - instead it’s going to be carrying a Subaru Boxer turbo, most recently seen in the all grown up Subaru Impreza WRX STi.

The new model is said to come in two distinct performance variants. First, the base ‘GT’, packing a front engined, RWD drivetrain and naturally aspirated 2.0L 4 cylinder Boxer (most likely from the Impreza RX), designed to slide in under the $20,000 bracket. Secondly the full fat GT-4, which carries the new JDM STi’s 224KW (300HP) Boxer turbo and AWD system standard, with Motor Trend claiming the engine will be closer to the cars firewall in order to facilitate the installation of in-wheel electric motors to help with traction.

The GT and GT-4 will be built in in coupe and three-door hatch variants, but no five door variants because of Toyota and Subaru not wanting to compete in the Impreza’s arena, which is rather tongue in cheek considering this new car will inevitably be seen as either a Impreza in Toyota clothing, or as direct competition by tuners. This begs the question then; will the new GT-4 be a real contender in the hotly contested price for performance bracket? Will the Toyota be lighter, faster, and more capable than the new STi? Would Subaru shoot themselves in the foot, and does it matter considering Toyota’s widening stake in Subaru?

Does this mean Subaru will become more and more the performance arm of Toyota? Time will tell, but we certainly hope not.

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According to Prestige Motorsport, the new R35 GT-R can now be imported legally under SEVS!

However, compliance is as far as 12 months away (2009), and prices are expected to exceed AU$100,000 for the new Nissan supercar. Regardless, this is a big fist in the eye of Nissan Australia, as enthusiasts will now be able to grab the new car directly from the JDM without Nissan Australia’s interference!

[Source: Prestige Motorsport]

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The awesome photographers over at CarAdvice have captured the second GT-R to land in Australia, belonging to an unknown (and well-to-do) enthusiast. Rumoured to cost around AU $150,000 (A very hefty premium even on the US $69K price-tag for the GT-R in the USA) the GT-R cannot be road registered in Australia, courtesy of Nissan Australia.

Nissan Australia execs, we are glaring at you right now. Fix this debacle and let us import them, or bring them here!

Popularity: 61% [?]