Moving swiftly into the cool car stakes

DRIVING IMPRESSION/ The Swift is in the SA Car of the Year competition and Marc Smyth is not surprised

Suzuki has made some cool cars over the years. Just think back to the iconic SJ410 or more recently the great Swift Sport. Even its rarely seen Kizashi has a cult following among its fans and it looks like Suzi will have yet another winner in the form of the latest Jimny.

Then there’s the Swift, traditionally a mainstay for the brand, but it would be fair to say that it has sat on the verge of being cool rather than actually being in the club in spite of its attempt to look a bit like a racing helmet.

It has always been a great package, as Motor News found out when we had a previousgeneration in our long-term fleet, but it wasn’t quite up there with its key rivals.

The new Swift however offers much more for the cool kids and its evergreen popularity is reflected in the fact that it accounts for nearly half of Suzuki SA’s sales each month.

The styling is slightly more trendy with a cheeky facade and blacked out C-pillars. Wheel covers on our range-topping GL were a disappointment but it’s got Bluetooth so don’t complain.

The latest generation sits on a new platform and while it is 10mm shorter, it is 40mm wider and the wheelbase has grown 20mm to 2,450mm. The key point here is more interior space, including in the boot. Suzuki has increased boot space by a whopping 58l to 268l.

There’s more focus on the driver too, with a sporty steering wheel and a centre console with its touchscreen infotainment system angled towards the driver. That driver focus is even more apparent in the drive itself and the engineers have made driving more engaging.

With 61kW and 113Nm, it required a bit of work to engage the Swift properly on occasion but as we have found with rivals like the Polo Vivo, you don’t need a sports car to enjoy the drive. The Swift hustled through Joburg streets admirably, only really straining on the uphill.

It lacks some of the lowdown oomph of rivals with 1.0l turbo motors and it’s a pity that Suzuki SA doesn’t bring the Boosterjet in any of its models.

The Swift has made it into the SA Car of the Year competition and I’m not surprised. Yes, there are better derivatives, but it’s an attractive package at R177,900 and much better value than some of its price competitors.

The latest Suzuki Swift is shorter than the previous generation but wider and with much more interior space. Left: The interior is well designed and equipped and even the hard plastics don’t look terrible. Below left: The Euro version has a stronger body structure and a raft of additional safety features including more airbags, electronic stability control and driver assistance systems.