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Suzuki Swift 1.2 SZ5 SHVS Dualjet 4WD

The Supermini market has been growing at an astonishing rate for the last few years – and rightly so. The reason for this climb is that buyers are now looking for the smaller cars because it’s not only cheaper to run but in many cases cheaper to buy. I myself have a Supermini – as do all of my friends and all of their friends. You may not know this, but the Suzuki brand sells well – and the previous Swift models flew out of the doors because it was seen as one of the hottest things to own – thanks to a lot of raving reviews around the time of course.

So, does the new Swift follow on from it’s predecessor in becoming once again the hot property we all want to own? The answer is I don’t really know – but what I can tell you is it’s looking pretty good so far.

Power and Efficiency:

The Swift I had on test was powered by a four-cylinder Dualjet 90PS engine with 120Nm of torque at 4400rpm. 0 to 62 mph is dealt with in 12.6 seconds – moving onto a top speed of around 105 mph.

The official fuel economy figures from Suzuki are; 62.8 mpg (combined) with a CO2 rating of 101 g/km – although the best I could get was around 56mpg, but then I was not really trying to get near what Suzuki had said was possible as we have to remember the variables here when testing a car in the real world.

On the road:

Like all previous Swift models – they handle like a go-cart and I can feel where Suzuki has made some major changes over the older Swift, because everything feels so much more planted. Saying that, my test model was fitted with the ALLGRIP Auto 4-wheel drive system which is a simple automatic and permanent four-wheel drive layout which transfers additional torque to the rear wheels when required via a viscous coupling – which all helps in giving you a lot of confidence into the corners – as well as giving you a great ride on uneven surfaces.

If you do decide to take the Swift onto a muddy field – then you can be assured it won’t get bogged down like some larger vehicles due to it being a whole lot lighter.

Design & Technology

The interior is made out of decent materials and the fabric used on the seating is of a good quality, and a surprising find for a car in this price bracket.

Space – rear legroom is OK, and the boot is a fair size in comparison to the competition.  What I do like is the driving position which is good, plus all the pedals feel in the right place and all the dials and switches are easily accessible. For those who want to know – the max luggage capacity for the Swift is coming in around 265litres (raised rear seating) and 579litres with the rear seating lowered.

Some of the standard features on the Swift SZ5 include; LED rear combination lamps, LED headlamps with high beam assist, ALLGRIP AUTO 4-wheel drive system, Keyless entry/start, adaptive cruise control, 16” polished alloy wheels, navigation system, Bluetooth connectivity, DAB digital radio with 4 speakers and 2 tweeters, air conditioning, front electric windows, privacy glass, and Dual Sensor Brake Support (DSBS). You also get Advanced Forward Detection System (SZ5 only) this system combines a monocular camera and a laser sensor for advanced safety functions, including autonomous emergency breaking.

To sum up: Suzuki has done a fantastic job of giving the new Swift an upgrade worth talking about. I believe it will once again be flying out the doors of a dealer near you.

Standard car price (on-the-road) £15,499

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