Parents will be back in showrooms to buy these for their kids. It's an awesome little car.Leaked brochure images of next gen Swift
Lighter, curvier, sportier than old the next Swift will come with turbo engines and mild hybrid power
Suzuki has once again been the victim of a leak after the Japanese brochure for its next Swift hatch appeared online yesterday, ahead of its Geneva motor show reveal.
It’s not the first time we’ve seen an undisguised Swift. Back in March the sleek, small hatch was snapped at a dealer presentation in France.
Later on in August, a heavily disguised Swift was then seen testing in Germany; but the new brochure leak is the most revealing yet.
Confirmed to be genuine, by a Suzuki spokesman, the brochure spills the beans on some of the new technology that will come available on the Swift.
The biggest surprise is, in Japan at least, the small hatch will continue to be offered with front or all-wheel drive.
Suzuki’s best-selling small hatch will also come with Suzuki’s mild-hybrid system combined with a small 1.2-litre petrol engine.
The clearer pictures also seem to suggest the Swift to be longer, lower, and wider than the car it replaces, with sportier, curvy styling.
Based on the lightweight Baleno platform, the new Swift should be lighter than the car it replaces. Combined with the smallest 1.0-litre turbo-petrol engine, the Swift should tip the scales at less than 900kg.
Even without the hybrid drivetrain, the Swift should be near class best for efficiency, despite the fact most models will come, initially, with a five-speed manual transmission.
According to the brochure the new 1.2-litre mild-hybrid will average 3.7L/100km while the 1.0-litre Boosterjet (turbo-petrol) will return 5.0L/100km.
Later on a six-speed automatic and a CVT will be offered, but a small diesel-powered version is unlikely, according to the brochure.
On sale in late 2017, a faster Swift Sport will join the line-up. Powered by a 1.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol, the flagship small hatch should produce around 105kW.
Thanks to more torque, the Swift Sport should reach 100km/h in less than 7.5sec.
The Swift continues to be a big seller for Suzuki in Australia so keen pricing for well-equipped models should carry over to the new car.
Isn't Suzuki joined with any other manufacturer? Perhaps it can be badge engineered and brought over to places Suzuki pulled out from. It would make for a good contender in the compact hatchback market.
Yup, I noticed that too. It's a neat-looking car. Looking forward to the Sport version.Call me crazy, but I get hints of F-Type with that nose.
I'm really digging that front fascia, although it's quite strange that I'm having a Jaguar F Type vibe with it, like the posts above me says; it ain't a bad thing, and I agree. I've driven a 2008 Swift before and I kinda liked it, I'm intrigued with what Suzuki's going to bring to the table with the turbocharged engine and hybrid powertrain.
Getting in under 900kg is what I want to read about. That's amazing for today. Weighing less than a MINI.I'm really digging that front fascia, although it's quite strange that I'm having a Jaguar F Type vibe with it, like the posts above me says; it ain't a bad thing, and I agree. I've driven a 2008 Swift before and I kinda liked it, I'm intrigued with what Suzuki's going to bring to the table with the turbocharged engine and hybrid powertrain.
The next-generation Swift has eschewed its predecessor’s ‘bubbly’ looks with a sharper front end with changes including LED headlights, a sculpted lower chin and red-stripe detailing in the grille.
Second-row door handles have also been repositioned into the C-pillar, giving the profile a clean, almost coupe-like appearance.
Rear bumper tweaks, a moulded rear hatch and new look tail-lights complete the Swift’s exterior transformation.
While physical dimensions remain almost identical – the outgoing Swift is 10mm longer in length and height – Suzuki’s new small car grows 20mm in wheelbase length and features a lower hip point to maximise interior headspace and room in the cabin.
Inside, the new Swift borrows the same layout as its Vitara and Baleno siblings, with a prominent Apple CarPlay and Android Auto-compatible centre touchscreen, a new sports steering wheel with paddle shifters, and sporty red and white themed instrumentation.
Suzuki has also upped the safety technology in its new small car, with features including autonomous emergency braking, automatic headlights, adaptive cruise control, 360-degree surround view cameras, lane departure warning and a reversing camera.
According to Suzuki, the new Swift “features distinctive and sporty styling, and both superb driving performance and low-fuel consumption achieved through an excellent handling inherited and further enhanced from its predecessor”.
Built on Suzuki’s Heartect platform – the same as its Baleno small car – the Swift will be made available in Japan in six variants, including hybrid and all-wheel-drive options.
However, if the local launch of the Baleno (which is also offered overseas with a hybrid engine) is anything to go by, Australian-spec models will likely drop the all-paw and electrified options in favour of the more traditional powertrain combinations.
Speaking to GoAuto before the launch of the Baleno in July, Suzuki Australia general manager Andrew Moore said the Japanese car-maker chose not to bring the hybrid powertrain to market due to lack of interest.
“Obviously you’ve seen hybrid sales in Australia have struggled due to the dollar premium,” he said.
“This hybrid system doesn’t have the same dollar premium as other hybrids do ... But we’re still not sure about Australia’s appetite for hybrid at the moment.”
A more likely starter for the local market will be the 1.0-litre Boosterjet turbocharged three-cylinder engine, the same unit found in its Baleno sibling, which produces 75kW of power at 5500rpm and 150Nm of torque from 1700 to 4500rpm in the Swift.
Although power is down on the Baleno’s 82kW/160Nm, performance is up on the current entry-level Swift’s 70kW/130Nm 1.4-litre atmo engine.
In Japan, the turbocharged donk is mated exclusively to a six-speed automatic transmission.
Under the bonnet of the new Swift, the 1.2-litre naturally aspirated engine will produce 66kW/120Nm – the same output as the Ignis – and will be mated to either a five-speed manual gearbox or continuously variable transmission (CVT).
Meanwhile, the more powerful 1.0-litre turbo triple generates 82kW/160Nm and comes paired exclusively to a six-speed automatic transmission.
There is no word yet on what the model grades will be called, but the turbo engine could also feature in a more performance-focused variant to mirror the current Sport.
Despite the introduction of more modern engines, power output is still down across the board, with the less powerful 1.2-litre engine making 4kW/10Nm less than the 1.4, while the three-cylinder’s output is 18kW down on the old 1.6-litre, with torque figures remaining identical.
However less power is offset by a reduction in weight, with the 1.2-litre variants registering a tare weight of just 855kg for the manual and 905kg for the CVT, while the 1.0-litre tips the scales at 925kg.
For comparison, a current four-speed automatic Swift GL Navigator has a kerb weight of 1035kg, while a CVT-equipped Sport weighs 1075kg.
If the official European combined cycle figures are anything to go by, the new engines will provide superior fuel economy, with Suzuki claiming the 1.2-litre manual variant sips just 3.6 litres per 100km, while the 1.0-litre triple is rated at 3.8L/100km.
This is a dramatic drop from the Australian combined cycle figures of 5.5-6.0L/100km in the existing 1.4-litre Swift, or the 6.1-6.5L/100km for the 1.6-litre Sport.
When equipped with the same 1.2-litre engine and manual gearbox combination, the lighter Ignis uses 4.7L/100km.
In Europe, the new Swift will be offered with a four-wheel-drive option, but with Australia previously rejecting the all-paw version, it is likely the new range will again be a front-wheel-drive-only affair
I worked in Suzuki service for a short bit. No issues to write home about. The most I've seen are worn tyres. Mainly due to owners(mainly young and middle aged women) running aftermarket wheels and lowered suspension set ups, with a bit of negative camber.That looks fairly good, especially the RSt version.
I've never been a big fan of the Swift, but I've not been in the market for one either. They're really popular around here though, so they must be good little cars.
They still look good. Clean lines. Wide stance. Plenty of room inside.I've never been so impressed so soon by a car as I have been with my Sport. It already benefits from being light by today's standards and the way it creates peak power at 6.9k means it's ridiculously rapid when committed. I can understand why it's relatively slow from rest and first isn't the quickest, but by gum second to third goes by quicker than it has any right to.
It's an addictive, old school way of life and the last of its kind. I'm glad I have it and not just yet another modern turbo petrol.
It would certainly hark back to the R1 fwd rally cars, in enthusiasm anyway.It's nuts how light it is over the outgoing model. I don't see a turbo one being quite the buzz of the naturally aspirated unit, but it will certainly shift.
First official image of the new Suzuki Swift Sport to be show at the Frankfurt auto show in September.
I'm hoping it'll be light as well. Rumours peg it at 870kgs! Only 150kgs heavier than my Charade. With the Vitara 1.4, it has 220Nm to the 1.0 160Nm. Can't wait for a comparison between this and the previous gen.
I'll take that. It'll be close to 20hp more than the same motor. in the Vitara.Some rumors even suggest that the power figure will be closer/over 160hp
And even if that's not the case, then it shouldn't pose too many problems to get it to that power figure and even beyond it.