Suzuki Reaches Settlement Pacts With 97% of Its Dealers The American Suzuki Motor Corporation has reached settlement agreements with 213 of its 219 automotive dealers, Suzuki said Tuesday, nearly a month after the unit filed for bankruptcy. The agreements are intended to compensate dealers and smooth their transition from automobile sales to warranty-and-repair providers for hundreds of thousands of Suzuki owners. The process "makes the dealers whole and puts them at the head of the line in terms of getting paid" during reorganization, said Rachel Rosenblatt of FTI Consulting, a Suzuki representative. Specific terms were not disclosed. The final deadline for agreements that covers dealer in the continental United States, which are subject to bankruptcy court approval, is Dec. 28. The automaker said it is hopeful that it will be able to reach agreements with the remaining six dealerships. "Based on dealer acceptances, we continue to believe our restructuring and realignment will be completed in a timely manner," said M. Freddie Reiss, American Suzuki's chief restructuring officer, in a statement. Agreements include the company's top 50 dealers and represent more than 98 percent of the total volume of American Suzuki sales in the contiguous United States. Suzuki plans to market and sell its remaining inventory of vehicles through its dealer network. Although low sales volumes caused its exit from the North American car market, Suzuki's sales in the United States were up 22 percent in November from a year ago. "We had a strong sales month," Ms. Rosenblatt said, "so we think we can move the current stock pretty quickly." Suzuki's new-car warranty provides coverage for 36 months or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first, and powertrain coverage for seven years or 100,000 miles. Suzuki, which never gained firm traction in the United States, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Nov. 5 in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California, citing $346 million in debt. Purveyor of such vehicles as the Swift and Sidekick, Suzuki blamed several factors for its generally low sales performance: its thin model lineup, unfavorable foreign exchange rates and costs associated with automobile distribution and state and federal regulations. Despite its exit from the United States, the company has made progress in emerging markets over the last few years. It will continue to sell motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles and marine products in the United States, where motorcycle and A.T.V. sales increased 26 percent in November over the same period last year.