Diesel Swift a fuel Scrooge
Already New Zealand’s biggest selling supermini, Suzuki is unlikely to lose that position with a superfrugal diesel version of the Swift on its way, writes Dave Moore
While Suzuki’s Swift has been ploughing a diesel furrow in Europe since the model was launched six years ago, the arrival of the model here will mark the first passenger car to use such a power unit in Suzuki’s vehicle line-up in New Zealand. The Vitara 4x4 has enjoyed a diesel option for some years but the use of a compression-ignition power unit in the Swift is going to make it possibly the cheapest car on the market to run in terms of fuel costs.
Known as the 1.3-litre DDIS model in its native Europe (the car is built at Suzuki’s Hungarian plant) the diesel Swift uses a new 55kw/190nm 1.3- litre turbodiesel engine, offering a CO2 emissions rating of 109g/km with combined EUrated fuel consumption of 4.2L/100km (67.3mpg), which gives the car an estimated driving range of more than 800km.
Suzuki New Zealand has been evaluating the DDIS Swift for our market and is to have the car on sale by the middle of this year.
If you think that 55kw isn’t very much, then have a look at the car’s torque output, which at 190Nm from just 1750rpm is not only 46 per cent better than the 1.4-litre petrol Swift, but also 30Nm up on the recently introduced 1.6-litre high performance Swift Sport model.
It will also pack more engine torque, underscoring the car’s brisk performance, especially in the critical mid range. The diesel has 46 per cent more torque than the 1.4-litre petrol Swift.
The engine is a 1.3-litre 16-valve FIA-/GM joint venture Multijet unit built under licence by Suzuki in Hungary and India, and derived from the Fiat Panda unit that took out an International Engine of the Year award in 2005. A remarkable part of the engine is a recent injection development which sees a more efficient eight pulses per piston cycle instead of the more usual five.
A benefit of the system is that because high engine pressures up to 1600 bar can be maintained regardless of engine speed, Multijetderived units don’t display that dismaying drop-off of output at low and high revolutions. The setup also has a positive effect on fuel consumption, emissions, noise, vibration, and harshness.
Pricing and specification will be announced closer to the launch date.