The Suzuki

Suzuki

is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Hamamatsu, Japan that specializes in manufacturing compact automobiles and 4x4 vehicles, a full range of motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles , outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a variety of other small internal combustion engines...

 Equator is a mid-size pickup truck

Pickup truck

A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...

 based on the Nissan Frontier

Nissan Frontier

Nissan Navara is the name for the D22 and D40 generations of Nissan pickup trucks sold in Asia while in the North, Central and South America and the Philippines it is sold as Nissan Frontier. The line was started in 1998, and its immediate predecessor is the D21 Nissan Hardbody truck...

 and assembled by Nissan. The Suzuki Equator is first sold in the US for the 2009 model year with MSRP prices starting at $17,220, and was first shown at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show

Chicago Auto Show

The Chicago Auto Show is held annually in February at Chicago's McCormick Placeconvention complex. It is among the largest auto shows in North America....

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The Equator is offered in Extended Cab and Crew Cab styles, the former offering space for four and the latter for five passengers. In the Canadian market, the Equator is only offered in the Crew Cab configuration, in a single trim level.

Power on base Extended Cab models comes from a 4-cylinder

Straight-4

The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....

 engine. A V6 is optional on Extended Cab models and standard with the Crew Cab. Both engines are supplied by Nissan.

The base 2.5 L Inline-4 produces 152 hp at 5,200 rpm and 171 lbft at 4,400 rpm, and is a rear-wheel-drive. It comes with a either a five-speed manual transmission

Manual transmission

A manual transmission, also known as a manual gearbox or standard transmission is a type of transmission used in motor vehicle applications...

 or a five-speed automatic

Automatic transmission

An automatic transmission is one type of motor vehicle transmission that can automatically change gear ratios as the vehicle moves, freeing the driver from having to shift gears manually...

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The 4.0 L V6 engine develops 261 hp at 5,600 rpm and 281 lbft at 4,000 rpm. It comes standard with a five-speed automatic and is available with four-wheel-drive.

The Equator triumphed over the new Dodge Ram 15002009 Ford F150, Hummer H3

Hummer H3

The Hummer H3 was a crossover SUV/Sport Utility Truck from General Motors' Hummer division introduced in 2005 based on the GMT355 underpinning the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon compact pickup trucks. Produced at GM's Shreveport, Louisiana factory and the Port Elizabeth plant in South Africa the...

 Alpha and H3T Adventure, Kia Borrego EX V8, and Toyota Sequoia

Toyota Sequoia

The Toyota Sequoia is a full-size SUV produced by Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana in Princeton, Indiana. It is derived from the Toyota Tundra pickup truck but differs in its use of an independent rear suspension. It is priced between the mid-size 4Runner and Toyota's flagship Land Cruiser...

Platinum in Peterson's 4Wheel & Off-Road's 2009 4x4 of the Year.