| Concept Car Preview | SEMA Show | Suzuki SXForce |

Suzuki already markets the SX4 as a crossover vehicle, but Road Race Motorsports of Santa Fe Springs, California has its own idea of the term 'crossover' and has come up with the SXForce for the SEMA Show. The wild-looking SX4 saloon-based concept is actually a mix of bike and car.

The idea was for the SXForce to appeal to both car and bike nuts. On the outside, the Flash Pearl White and Orange Metallic paint is complemented by lashings of carbon fibre. The only real references to superbike design are the high-mounted door mirrors and the dual exhaust, though the concept plays the part of 'rice tuner' nicely.

It looks like the bikers won the battle for the design of the interior though. It's difficult to miss the preposterous handlebars in place of a steering wheel (from a Hayabusa no less) and the minimalist instrument pack. Just like a bike, the SXForce is just a two-seater, the rear bench giving way to a massive Rockford-Fosgate sound system.

This concept is not just for show either, as the boys from Road Race have seemingly modified every single component. Propulsion is thanks to a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine, feeding 250bhp to the front wheels. The rims themselves are broody 18-inch Enkei items, riding on high-performance Toyo T1-R tyres. Peek through the spokes of the wheels and you'll spot massive 355mm discs and six-piston callipers and it's all controlled with a Tein coilover spring and damper suspension upgrade.

Don't expect anything quite so outrageous to hit Suzuki showrooms in the near future, though the US market will soon receive a Sport version of the SX4 saloon.

Shane O' Donoghue - 2 Nov 2007