By Ian Strachan.
I’ve always liked the Suzuki Swift as an impressive, roomy and well-specified supermini. In its latest guise it’s got better with a ground-up redesign that gives it a more rounded look without losing its slightly cheeky nod to Minis of old. You also get better performance, thanks to the help of an electric generator.
All new Swifts are mild hybrids, so you get electric assistance on acceleration, adding performance while improving emissions.
As buyers look for cars that take up less room and use less fuel while still giving enough oomph for the job, this is a good time for smart little movers like the Suzuki Swift..
The Swift has been around for more than 15 years, but it has never set the super-mini sector on fire despite selling more than five million worldwide and easily being its best selling car in Europe. That’s a shame because the Swift is a Japanese car with distinctly European looks and driving characteristics, as well as being economical, low-emitting and comfortable.
The latest Swift is quicker and lighter, with more luggage space and a redesigned, more up-to-date interior to match its improved exterior.
I test drove the Swift in SZ5 trim level, powered by a sparkling 83 bhp 1.2 litre dualjet petrol engine. This set-up returns a more than respectable 57.2 mpg in mixed driving. So the Swift is not expensive to run as well as being pretty competitive to buy. The car I tested comes in at £17,999 on the road and you get a lot of car for your money.
The Swift is undoubtedly small, but a clever use of available space and large areas of glass make it feel larger. Big windows give the car an open, airy feel, belying its true size when you sit inside. The Swift is wider than it looks with a fairly long wheelbase for a small car, so you get 265 litres of luggage space which can be increased to 579 litres by folding the rear seats.
It also has a good standard specification compared to many of its rivals, including cruise control, lane departure warning, blind spot monitor, raffic sign recognition, DAB digital radio with Bluetooth, USB ports and smartphone link, satellite navigation, rear view camera, front fog lights and 16 inch alloys, all at no extra cost.
The cabin is a very pleasant place to be, thanks to a good use of trim materials and simple, well-placed instruments and dials. There’s lots of oddment space, and all controls fall easily to hand. Space for driver and front seat passenger is generous, inevitably compromising rear passenger legroom, but even that is still adequate if you don’t have long-legged passengers, and rear headroom is good.
Performance from the 1.2 hybrid dualjet unit is more than adequate, with no flat spots across the range. The engine never felt under strain, attached to a pleasant five-speed manual gearbox. Handling is confident and controlled.
This is a well-priced offering in the super-mini sector with a few more extras than you’d expect, and low running costs. Well done Suzuki.
