5 Things We Love And Hate About The Suzuki Swift Sport

As you may have seen recently, we have a new addition to our long-term test fleet: this butch Suzuki Swift Sport. After one month and 1000 miles, we’ve got a pretty good idea of what it’s like as a daily driver. Here are the ups and downs:

Love: The N/A engine is revvy and responsive

While most of its rivals are turbocharged, the Swift Sport has a comparatively old-school naturally-aspirated 136bhp 1.6-litre four-pot. You have to rev it to get the most out of it, but winding it all the way up to the 7000rpm red-line is hardly a chore. The car also feels a decent amount quicker than its 8.7-second 0-62mph time would suggest. A few owners have already told us that their Sport is indeed faster than the official figures, so we’ll give the 0-62mph a proper test in due course.

Hate: The trip computer buttons are awkward

If you want to cycle through the different screens of the trip computer to look at MPG, average speed etc, rather than use a stalk-mounted button like many cars, you have to reach through the steering wheel and prod these little things. It’s awkward and irritating.

Love: It's great fun to drive

As well as a fruity little engine, the Swift has a great chassis. Suzuki hasn’t gone overboard with it in terms of stiffness, and it still likes to roll a bit, but that’s half the fun. The steering offers decent feedback, and the brakes are nice and strong, too. We’ve tried it on track (see above), and it makes for an unintimidating yet entertaining way of lapping a circuit.

Hate: The unlock button doesn't illuminate

Picture the scene: you’ve pressed your Swift’s key fob once rather than twice, meaning only the driver’s door is unlocked. You go to pick up a friend or your other half after the sun’s gone down, but they can’t get in any of the passenger doors. The next step would be to hit the unlock button on the driver’s door, but it’s not backlit, making it a proper faff to find. I’m really nitpicking here, and you’d probably get to know the position of the button eventually, but the decision to not backlight it seems a tad baffling.

Love: It's a bit of a looker

The Swift has its unflattering angles, but we like its cheeky, moderately sporty looks. It’s a refreshing change from many of the bloated, generic superminis out there, and as a bonus, the ‘Boost Blue’ paint ours wears finishes things off nicely.

Hate: The sat-nav won't let you input a destination on the move

The Garmin navigation unit our Swift has is - on the whole - pretty good, but this aspect grates. On the grounds of safety, you can’t argue too much, but if you have a passenger and ask them to stick in a new destination, it’s a pain to have them prevented from doing so.

Love: The price

Even though the interior feels a little cheap and dated, there’s no denying that at £14,449, the Swift Sport is a flipping bargain. You’re not exactly wanting for equipment for that price, either, as sat nav, DAB radio, cruise control and electric heated mirrors all come as standard. Our similarly sized, similarly specced Seat Ibiza long-termer, in contrast, will set you back £16,660.

Hate: Motorway journeys aren't its forte

We’ve done a few long motorway slogs in the Swift, but it’s not the best car for that sort of driving. The suspension isn’t the smoothest, the engine noise is pretty intrusive at 70mph, and the plasticy cabin isn’t the kind of place you want to spend extended periods of time. The steering’s rather light, too, and as it doesn’t weight up at speed, you find yourself making a lot of tiny steering corrections. On the plus side, it pushes 50mpg on a 70mph cruise.

Love: The seats are great

While most of the interior is a little underwhelming, the seats get a big thumbs-up from us. The seating position may be a tad perched, but the chairs themselves are comfortable and supportive, with just the right amount of bolstering.

Hate: The boot is tiny

In a Ford Fiesta you get a reasonable 300 litres of boot space. In the Swift? A paltry 211 litres. To really test out this meagre load space, a few of you have asked if we can fit CT editor Alex in there, something he’s agreed to help us with for a fee of two protein shakes and a full-size Snickers bar. Watch this space.

Despite the niggles, we’re enjoying our Swift, and have lots more planned for it. Stay tuned for a group test with some of the car’s arch rivals, plus a report from our back-to-back circuit drive with our Swift and a hardcore, track-spec version of the same car.