2007 Suzuki Swift reviews

Suzuki Swift 1.6 vvt Sport 2007

Having had bigger cars before like a Lexus IS200 and a 325i BMW I suppose the Suzuki Swift Sport might seem a strange choice but with petrol and insurance prices soaring, my wife and I decided to get one and try it. In pearlescent supreme Red with its sparkling silver 10 spoke 17" alloys, it looked the part. I particularly like the floating roof styling of it along with the bulbous front end and deep bumper. The ride is surprisingly good with the superb sports seats holding you firmly, the 1.6vvti engine is very nippy but needs revving quite high to get you really going and with a top speed of 124mph its real fun. The handling is excellent, hardly any body roll when you sling it into tight corners and grip of the 195/45-17 Goodyear Eagles is second to none. Giving it some beans through a tunnel brought a reassuring rasp from the twin tailpipes that exit from the sporty rear bumper, catch a glimpse of a reflection while passing a glass shopfront and it sits proud on the alloys with a gorgeous rear roof spoiler worthy of a JWRC car. Inside it feels bigger than it is, with cubby holes and drink holders in abundance. The boot is quite small but do-able and if you need more space the rear seat folds down to give you a small van-like space, the only gripe with seating is the tilt on the passenger seat doesn’t go back to the position it was in and the drivers seat has no such lever to allow rear access. The built in CD player is superb and very very stylish, easy to use and its all controllable from the 3 spoke sporty steering wheel. When Jeremy Clarkson took one for a test he moaned about the heater taking a while to warm up, all I can say is mine is warm in seconds and the air con is super cool on sunny days, the feel of the aircon controls is another plus, with positive clicks when dial turning and it feels intuitive to control, everything in the right place. The dashboard is a wrap around style and the rev counter, speedometer, temp and fuel gauges are all trimmed neatly with chrome rings and I love the way the rev counter sits at 6 o’clock when the engine is off, reminiscent of a GSXR sports bike. All in all I think Suzuki are on to a winner here and at under 12k its easily the best choice of supermini by far; Mini’s are everywhere you go, the Renault twingo sport is awful inside and noisy as hell. If I was in control of the next Swift sport I would give it a 1.8 litre engine, a 6 speed box and around 160 bhp mark. I love our Swift Sport, its great, get it on a twisty B-road and I guarantee you a broad cheshire cat-type grin when you get out. Take one for a test drive and see for yourself.