Suzuki launched the new Suzuki Swift range in South Africa recently, and we had the chance to spend some time behind the wheel of the fourth-generation version of one of the world’s most popular and best-loved B-segment hatchbacks, here are our thoughts.
Exterior changes that makes the 4th generation Swift look even better include restyled headlight clusters with L-shaped signature lamps, an oval radiator grille with a piano black finish, plus the muscular new bumper that sports a more pronounced lower intake.
Ensuring the back is as eye-catching as the front is the sculpted tailgate with an integrated hatch spoiler and high-level brake lamp, 3D LED tail light clusters and a new rear bumper with horizontal reflector panels either side of the licence plate aperture.
Moving SWIFTly to the inside, the cabin of the fourth-generation Swift features a new wrap-around dashboard design with horizontal air vents and centre controls angled towards the driver for improved ergonomics. Ahead of the multifunction steering wheel is a sporty and stylish metre instrument cluster combining refreshed analogue dials with either a colour or segment LCD display that lets you access a wide range of information at a glance, including average and instantaneous fuel consumption, driving range and – on flagship GLX models – power and torque.
There is also some impressive bootspace on offer for such a compact hatch with 265l of boot space on offer that is further expandable to 580l when folding the rear seats down for when you need to haul larger items like a Black Friday special UHD smart TV.
On the driving front, the Swift is powered by Suzuki’s new Z12E 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine making 60kW at 5,700rpm and 112Nm or torque at 4,300rpm. It is lighter and more compact than the outgoing four-cylinder motor, and it offers good performance coupled with Suzuki’s mythical levels of exceptional fuel efficiency, in this instance returning a claimed combined fuel consumption figure as low as 4.4l/100km or 22.72km/l – which marks an 11% improvement over its predecessor. On our route during testing, we put petal to the metal but even with our lead foot got around 6 litres per 100 km on the route from Stellenbosch, in town, on the highway and through mountain passes, snaking our way to scenic Franschhoek. This fuel efficient powerplant is paired to a smooth as butter five-speed manual (with an Engine Auto Stop/Start system) in our test car but buyers can also opt for a continuously variable transmission (CVT), which we did not have a chance to drive unfortunately.
All in all, the 4th gen Swift raises the bar even further and continues to present as the golden standard for buyers looking for a stylish, affordable, fun-to-drive, fuel efficient and reliable hatchback or compact passenger vehicle. It comes in at a starting price of R219,900 for the Suzuki Swift 1.2 GL manual going all the way up to R284,900 for the Suzuki Swift 1.2 GLX CVT, with pricing including a two-year/30,000km service plan and five-year/200,000km promotional warranty.
We very much look forward to spending more time in this sporty little hatchback, hopefully for the week-long review soon, and also getting to test out that CVT 🙂
