Suzuki SwiftSport
Transcription
Suzuki SwiftSport
Britain’s biggest and best car buyer’s guide Reprinted from AWARDS 2012 Suzuki Swift Sport ‘Tight body control and accurate steering make the Swift great fun’ Suzuki Swift Sport vs Renault Clio Gordini ‘No other hot hatch comes close at this price’ Suzuki Swift reprinted from 2 & 15 november 2011 ‘Updated model gets added pace and precision but retains entertaining old-school handling’ AAAAC ld. OUR CARS ’Everything in the car works the way that it shou No tricks, no fuss. Just how a good warm hatch should be’ car of the year TWIN TEST Renault Clio Gordini vs Suzuki Swift Sport Hot hatch TEST CENTRE What are we looking for? ‘Building a good hot hatch isn’t easy; it requires far more than simply putting a big engine into a small hatchback. The best hot hatches have to be as thrilling in the corners as they are in a straight line, and that takes real engineering. ‘However, while driving thrills are undoubtedly at the top of our wish list, our winner can’t merely be a one-trick pony. It also needs enough class, comfort and kit to make life easy when you’re not in the mood to play.’ Ivan Aistrop Content editor [email protected] Best buy less than £15,000 Suzuki Swift Sport Renault’s stranglehold on the hot hatch category (the firm has swept the board for two years running) has finally been broken. It has taken something pretty special to do it, and that something is Suzuki’s new Swift Sport. The face-lifted version of last year’s winner, the Renault Twingo Renaultsport, isn’t on sale yet, but don’t go thinking that the Swift won by default. It’s a brilliant junior hot hatch. The 1.6-litre petrol engine has 134bhp which, according to our test figures, is enough to fling the Swift from 0-60mph in a sparkly 7.9 seconds. The strong grip, tight body control and accurate steering make the Swift great fun, too, and with decent refinement and a surprisingly supple ride, it’s at home on all kinds of roads. The best thing, though, is that you get all of this for just £13,499, along with luxury kit such as climate and cruise controls, Bluetooth, xenon lights and keyless start. Throw in the reasonable insurance premiums and affordable fuel costs, and you have a hot hatch that’s perfect for young drivers. Pricing List price £13,499 Performance 0-60mph 7.9sec Top speed 118mph Running costs Average fuel economy 44.1mpg CO2 emissions 147g/km Tax liability 19% Insurance group 19 ‘Tight body control and accurate steering make the Swift great fun’ a question of sport Suzuki’s bargain Swift Sport has a zingy engine, sharp reflexes and a good helping of old-school charm. Is it enough to beat the Renault Clio Gordini? The contenders NEW Suzuki Swift Sport List price £13,499 Suzuki’s new firecracker brings some muchneeded affordability to the hot hatch market. It’s anything but no-frills, though. Renault Clio Gordini List price £14,000 Renault has built some of the finest hot hatchbacks in history. Can it pull off the same trick for such a low price? Whatever happened to cheap thrills? These days even a hot Vauxhall Corsa will set you back £19k. Suzuki hasn’t forgotten about buyers on a smaller budget, though; the new Swift Sport’s old-school formula of a small, revvy petrol engine and a featherweight chassis keeps it cheap, yet it’s remarkably well equipped. The Renault Clio is one of our favourite hot hatches in range-topping Renaultsport 200 Cup form, but we’ve pitted the Swift against the cheaper 1.6 Gordini 128 version. It’s been tuned by the same team, but trades outright pace for a lower price and cheaper insurance premiums. keep you entertained. It’s a shame the engine sounds so plain when revved; the Suzuki’s plays a much sportier tune. Outright pace is only half of the story, though, because hot hatches need to be fun through the corners. Thankfully, the Swift is a riot, with an agile chassis, plenty of grip and What are they like to drive? These cars prove you don’t need lots of power sharp, accurate steering. The best bit is that it to have fun. The Swift’s 134bhp isn’t much in a gets you involved at legal speeds. The Clio grips just as hard and actually modern hot hatch world dominated by leans slightly less, but it doesn’t engage you in 200bhp+ monsters, while the Clio musters only 128bhp. Neither gives its best until nearly the same way because there’s less feedback through the steering. The fact that the Clio is 7000rpm, either, but wringing the necks of significantly slower also means you need a these cars is half the fun. That’s particularly long run at any corner to even get close to the true in the Swift, because its engine loves to be thrashed. The close-ratio six-speed gearbox limits of grip. Despite their sporty pretentions, both cars makes it easy to keep the engine on song, and the Suzuki’s low weight makes up for its so-so have surprisingly supple suspension set-ups, 134bhp. No wonder, then, that it felt much the which soak up bumps and potholes well. That keeps the tyres in contact with the road when friskier in our tests, hitting 60mph in less you’re pushing hard on less-than-perfect than eight seconds. roads, and makes the cars easier to live with The Renault is 100kg heavier so is a lot when you’re done having fun. slower, although it’s still nippy enough to BEST DASH Clumsy layout Buttons are small and poorly labelled; stereo isn’t user-friendly awards 2012 whatcar.com Bright colours Gordini colours brighten up the Clio’s otherwise dull and grey cabin Simple to use Controls are logical and well labelled, apart from the Bluetooth system Plain design Only red stitching and sports seats distinguish the Sport from lesser Swifts whatcar.com AWARDS 2012 hot hatches QUICK FACTS BEST TO DRIVE Apart from chunky alloys and twin exhausts, the Swift doesn’t exactly scream ‘hot hatch’ from afar, and it’s a similar story when you get inside. There’s some red stitching on the seats and the steering wheel, but little else marks the Sport out from the humdrum models. At least that means everything is solid and the controls are logically laid out. The Clio’s cabin shares plenty with cheaper versions in the range, too, but Clio grips hard and resists roll, The Swift’s agile handling makes Renault has made more of an effort. The but steering is short of feel it a joy on any country road famous Gordini blue is splashed over the BEST REAR CABIN steering wheel, the gearknob and the sides of the seats, while the white instrument dials also add to the sporty ambience. However, some of the buttons on the Clio’s dash are small and poorly labelled, and the stereo isn’t at all user-friendly. Both cars have figure-hugging front seats, but the Clio’s sit lower, giving it the sportier BEST BOOT driving position. The Suzuki presents you with a great view of the road ahead, though, and there’s lots of adjustment to the Clio can seat steering wheel to help you get comfortable. five, and has The Clio is the bigger car. You won’t notice the bigger boot that from the driver’s seat, because the Suzuki with the seats has more front headroom, but you will when up or down you open the boot; the Renault’s loadbay is Test figures Economy Suzuki Swift Sport much longer, with the seats up or down. Weather conditions Dry Average 44.1mpg Both cars will comfortably accommodate List price £13,499 Tank 42 litres Acceleration 30–70mph through the gears a couple of mates in the back, with similar Emissions 147g/km, 19% tax Measurements 7.7sec Range 407 miles rear head- and legroom. The Renault can Figures in bold are best in test Dimensions in cm seat five in emergencies, though, because it 30–50mph in 3rd/4th/5th/6th Buying 3 4.6sec 4 7.1sec 5 10.2sec 6 13.3sec has an extra rear seatbelt. Website www.suzuki.co.uk 96 89 51 201 Car pictured Suzuki Swift 1.6 Sport Will they break the bank? The Suzuki is the cheaper car to start with, but some big discounts are available on the Clio. There will almost certainly be room for negotiation on the price of the Swift, but it wasn’t on sale at the time of writing. Even without a discount, though, the Suzuki will cost you less to own over three years. It’s cheaper to fuel and tax, and will also be worth more when you sell, which more than makes up for its higher insurance premiums. The Suzuki also comes with heaps more standard equipment, including Bluetooth, xenon headlights and even metallic paint. Both cars get alloy wheels, climate and cruise controls, and electric windows and mirrors. These cars will be bought mainly by young drivers, so it’s worrying that Renault charges £315 extra for stability control – a crucial safety system that helps prevent you skidding off the road. Suzuki fits the system as standard, and also trumps the Renault with a driver’s knee airbag. 105 243 64 389 Space 211-512 litres 125 151 80 195 3 4.9sec 4 6.8sec Euro NCAP crash rating y xy xy xy xy x Braking 30–0mph/70–0mph 101 55-85 50–70mph in 3rd/4th/5th/6th Safety 94% 82% 62% 10.0m 71% Engine and performance Size 1586cc, 4cyl Peak power 134bhp@6900rpm Peak torque 118lb ft@4400rpm 5 10.5sec 6 14.4sec 0-60mph Top speed sec mph 7.9 Our verdict 50.4m 118 Only one of these cars will truly put a smile on your face, and it’s the Suzuki. The new Swift Sport is quick, agile and good fun to drive, not to mention remarkably well equipped, so it easily wins this match-up. The Clio, by contrast, is somewhat disappointing. It feels like a nippy supermini rather than a hot hatch, and that’s something its racing stripes and dolled-up interior can’t mask. 1 2 Suzuki Swift 1.6 Sport For Great fun; easily quick enough; loads of kit; low running costs Verdict No other hot hatch comes close at this price Renault Clio 1.6 VVT Gordini 128 For Grips well; more practical than Swift; cheap insurance Verdict A decent car, but fails to excite like a hot hatch should Price £14,500 On sale January 2012 Suzuki Swift Sport 25.10.11, Barcelona Proof that an old-school take on hot hatch fun can still have appeal first verdict Updated model gets added pace and precision but retains entertaining old-school handling AAAAC The new Suzuki Swift Sport is a pleasingly old-fashioned sort of hot hatchback. On sale in the UK next January, the warmed-up Swift has been made quicker, stronger, more powerful and more efficient – improvements necessary just to keep up in such a competitive segment as Europe’s for superminis. But when you get into the detail of exactly how this little bundle of joy has been revised – and what it represents alongside other exciting contemporary superminis you might be considering – you can’t help making slightly dewy-eyed comparisons with a few of the affordable front-drivers that so many of us lusted after 20-something years ago. For instance, when was the last time you read about a performance car updated not with automatic engine start-stop or an E-Diff, but a high-lift camshaft, suspension bracing and synchromesh on both first and second gears? And when did any major car manufacturer dare to release a full-sized, front-driven, top-of-the-range performance supermini with less steering system have helped here, than 140bhp? My money would too. Whereas the last Swift Sport be on Suzuki, circa 2005, with the would pivot beneath its driver at previous Swift Sport. the slightest invitation, darting at The new one seeks to improve corners and dancing through them on the zesty recipe of the last with pointy abandon on a lifted by degrees. A variable length throttle, the new one has a more intake plenum, as well as the rounded dynamic temperament. It aforementioned changes to the inlet turns in with a little less zeal, but has timing and lift, has boosted peak more progressive steering response power on the car’s 1.6-litre normally than the last car, and a very pleasing aspirated engine to 134bhp from sense of accuracy and feel through 121bhp, and torque to 118lb ft – not the steering wheel’s rim. massive hikes by any measure. More There’s balance to the car’s important is the chassis – and, update from five more easily TESTER’S NOTE forward speeds accessed than in The Suzuki falls into group 19 insurance. That’s cheaper most compact to six in the car’s than a Skoda Fabia vRS. manual gearbox. front-drivers, matt saunders Those changes it’s enough to may knock paint a wide only a couple of tenths off the car’s smile on your face on the right road. 0-62mph pace, but they make it feel But there’s measure and maturity that bit quicker through the gears. now, too. The car is quieter on the The kerb weight is 1045kg, which motorway and has more grip and puts power to weight at 128bhp body control when you really ask per tonne. Funnily enough, that’s for it, but not so much of either as to almost exactly what the original rob the Swift of any rolling comfort Peugeot 205 GTI had. or suppleness, or of the accessible The little Suzuki really isn’t so thrills that so many modern frontdissimilar to that wonderful old drivers fail to deliver. Peugeot dynamically. Higher spring One or two might wish for a bit rates and firmer bushing for its more poke. In quieter moments, torsion beam rear suspension have Suzuki’s engineers admit that they traded a little of the playfulness of considered a turbocharger in the the old car’s handling for precision. early stages, but decided that a car A more rigid front subframe and with a surfeit of chassis composure over sheer grunt – of handling capacity over performance, in other words – would be more fun. And on the evidence of the cracking little driver’s car they’ve created, it’s hard to disagree. A Clio Cup it ain’t, but you’d certainly pick one over a Renault Twingo Cup or Abarth 500. matt saunders So Good ■ Responsive chassis ■ Improved performance and refinement ■ Communicative steering Suzuki Swift Sport 1.6 VVT Price £13,499 Top speed 121mph 0-62mph 8.7sec Economy 44.1mpg 147g/km CO2 Kerb weight 1045kg Engine 4 cyls, 1586cc, petrol Installation Front, transverse, FWD Power 134bhp at 7000rpm Torque 118lb ft at 4400rpm Gearbox 6-spd manual Fuel tank 42 litres Boot 211-512 litres Wheels 17in, alloy Tyres 195/45 R17 NEW TECH beam me up The most telling update is to the torsion beam rear suspension. With spring rates firmed up in greater proportion to the front axle, the Swift has been fitted with firmer bushings to better control camber and toe angles at the rear wheels in hard cornering and, says Suzuki, make the car respond 20 per cent more awards 2012 whatcar.com quickly to the steering. Despite the higher rates, the car rides quietly and with plenty of absorption — and variable rate bushings are the reason. At the rear of the twist beam, Rear suspension the bushings are softer, for good ride compliance; at tweaks quicken its front, they’re firmer for better lateral control. steering response 2 NOVEMBER 2011 WWW.AUTOCAR.co.uk Manufacturer’s claimed figures What are they like inside? Second opinion The previous-generation Swift Sport was too patchy for my liking, but first impressions of this new one are that it’s more well rounded and usable — not to mention as chuckable and fun to drive as ever. This promises to be a popular car. Allan Muir Chassis The development budget has been spent on supple yet sporting ride quality. Decent driving position and plenty of kit inside Suzuki Swift Sport Looks It has an understated warm hatch look: nice alloys, subtle body kit and sporty cabin trim. First report Suzuki’s new sporty supermini promises even more affordable fun than its predecessor. We’re set to find out if it delivers M any of today’s performance hatches have become so obsessed with horsepower and back-breaking Nürburgringhoned chassis, and so packed with performance-sapping and weightgaining equipment, that the basics are being overlooked. Truth be told, most of us are just as happy with something that’s perfectly civilised — and without compromise — for 90 per cent of the time, as long as it’s nimble and lightweight enough to offer a decent turn of pace and the ability to attack a corner when we escape Britain’s crowded town centres and motorways. The answer? Step forward the new Suzuki Swift Sport, my drive for the next few months. It looks great, has a lovely, high-revving normally Economy and CO2 emissions are both improved WWW.AUTOCAR.co.uk 15 FEBRUARY 2012 aspirated petrol engine and weighs just 1045kg. It’s also completely gimmick-free and is just as happy around town as it is charging along a B-road or on a long motorway cruise. So we’ll be getting on very well indeed, thanks very much. Ordering a Swift Sport is a simple process. It’s a case of handing over £13,499 and choosing your colour — this being your only option. We went for the handsome Ablaze Red Pearl metallic out of the five hues on offer. The new Sport doesn’t really need an options list anyway, because it comes with an extensive array of kit that wouldn’t look out of place on a BMW 3-series. Included is everything from a meaty (but not overdone) body kit and 17in alloys on the outside to an interior loaded with things starting with ‘electric’ Economy Suzuki claims 44mpg, and we’re already averaging 43.1mpg after the first 1500 miles. or ‘automatic’, such as windows, mirrors, push-button start and air conditioning. It’s not bad value at all, and the extra kit doesn’t have a significant effect on the kerb weight. Look at the latest iteration of the Swift Sport next to its predecessor and it’s a case of playing spot the difference, despite the fact that it has a longer wheelbase and is usefully roomier inside. The car still has plenty of bulging curves, but the most important changes have taken place under the skin. The press pack describes development as focusing on “even better handling” and “driving performance”. There’s also talk of better economy and an “uncompromising focus on quality”, both of which are very welcome too. But not one mention of the Nürburgring. Phew. At the heart of the latest Sport is a revised version of the old model’s 1.6-litre petrol engine. Power has risen by 13bhp to 134bhp, while torque is up by 9lb ft to 118lb ft. Significantly, peak torque kicks in 400rpm lower than before at 4400rpm. These gains add up to small but welcome changes on the performance side; 0-62mph can be cracked in 8.7sec before going on to reach 121mph. The old car recorded figures of 8.9sec and 124bhp respectively in the same tests. So it’s usefully quicker off the line, and I’m not sure too many Sport owners will miss the extra 3mph at the top end. While the looks and the engine may be familiar, there are a few useful additions. The new six-speed manual gearbox turns the car into a much more viable motorway proposition than its five-speed manual predecessor. The extra ratio has also done wonders for the economy and CO2 emissions, which now stand at 44.1mpg and 147g/km respectively. These figures were formerly 39.8mpg and 165g/km. Early thoughts? From the lovely feel of the brakes and responsive steering to the slick gearchange and supple chassis, via the comfortable sports seats, it’s a car that gives the impression of being gloriously overengineered and more than the sum of its parts. One of the criticisms levelled at the new car is its relative lack of power and torque next to its rivals. In my eyes, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The Swift Sport has what you might describe as ample power, giving you just enough poke off the line to not feel like a slouch, and a strong top end through the gears to aid its overtaking ability. Undoubtedly the chassis can handle a lot more shove, but this would detract from the Sport’s appeal. I’d rather the chassis had such a surplus, rather than veering into the Mini Cooper’s torque steer and wheelspin territory. And in a segment now dominated by small-capacity turbocharged petrol engines, a highrevving normally aspirated unit harks back to the old school. ‘Old school’ is also how I’d sum up life so far in the Swift Sport, and that’s meant entirely as a compliment. Everything in the car works the way it should. No tricks, no fuss. Just how a good warm hatch should be. [email protected] ’Everything in the car works the way that it should. No tricks, no fuss. Just how a good warm hatch should be’ Tiny boot No one will be taking the Swift on a weekend camping trip. The narrow boot limits practicality. Rear seats Suzuki Swift Sport Price £13,499 As tested £13,499 Options None Economy 43.1mpg Faults None Expenses None Latest Sport gearbox gets an extra cog Shiny 17in alloys might take some looking after There’s really only room for one adult in the back, and even then legroom is in short supply. 15 FEBRUARY 2012 WWW.AUTOCAR.co.uk For more information on the Suzuki Swift visit www.suzuki4.co.uk