Suzuki Auto South Africa (Suzuki SA) has launched the Eeco small panel van to add to the Super Carry bakkie in its business portfolio.

Suzuki SA says the Eeco is a market leader in countries such as India, where it has sold close to a million units since its launch. 

“Like the Super Carry, [the Eeco] offers fuel-efficient point-to-point transport of goods at the lowest possible price,” says Suzuki SA brand marketing manager Brendon Carpenter.

“Unlike its pick-up sibling, however, the Eeco has all the benefits of a panel van and all the safety of its entry-level passenger vehicle sibs.”

Only one version of the Eeco is available at launch, offered with a mechanical warranty of three years/100 000 km.

The Eeco has a roof-to-bumper rear door that opens upwards and two side sliding doors that can be operated independently. 

The cargo bay offers a loading length of 1 620 mm from the rear door to the start of the steel grid partition that is fitted between the loading bay and cockpit.

A load bay width of 1 300 mm means the Eeco can house a full-sized South African pallet. Load bay height is 1 070 mm.

Suzuki SA says the Eeco has a certified load-carrying capacity of 615 kg, with two passengers on board and a full tank of fuel.

The vehicle’s turning circle is 4.5 m and it has a ground clearance of 160 mm.

Under the hood, the Eeco is fitted with a workhorse version of Suzuki’s 1.2-litre petrol engine, delivering 59 kW at 6 000 r/min and 104 Nm at 3 000 r/min. 

Power is delivered to the rear wheels through a manual five-speed transmission.

Every Eeco is sold with two airbags – one for each occupant – and anti-lock brakes, electronic brake-force distribution and electronic stability control as standard.

The vehicle is also fitted with rear parking sensors, a high-mounted stop lamp and an anti-theft immobiliser as standard, as well as air-conditioning and a 12 V power socket.

The vehicle, priced at R173 000 excluding VAT, is only available in white.