Suzuki Swift
Mention a sporty compact car and I think of the Suzuki Swift as we’ve always recognized the legendary Suzuki Swift as a great compact car. And even-more-so now with it’s 1.5 box style design added with its sporty demeanor. This definitely helps it earn worldwide appeal and respect. Currently the MK4 model is taking shape around a very unique mindset, which is ultimately, to build a promising Japanese car with Suzuki’s unique DNA in not only compact vehicles but also into motorcycles and have it developed in Europe, drawing inspiration from its people and landscape for today’s global market. And much to their delight, the result’s were well accepted and now we find more cars being lapped up with glee across the globe.
It comes as no surprise that the completely-knocked-down (CKD) or you could say, locally assembled variant, is now here as the Suzuki Swift 1.5L is truly a world car. The project undertaken by the Automotive Manufacturers Malaysia (AMM) with their plant in Pekan, Pahang, allows Suzuki Malaysia Automobile Sdn Bhd to assemble the Suzuki Swift at their 9,000 sq meter site with the acknowledgement of a licensing agreement from Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan.
Apparently they have spent a whopping RM20 million into a robotic welding line at the plant as part of the company’s overall commitment to make Suzuki a household brand in Malaysia. With an enormous budget as such it is their expectation that it will help deliver better reliability, accuracy, consistency, quality and productivity into their vehicle productions. They have put a modest monthly production target of 300 units initially but its totally capable of a production capacity of up to 500 units per month.
I know most of us would be wondering what is the difference between the previous CBU model in question? From the looks of it not much has changed actually as almost 90% of its parts still hail from the land of the rising sun, Japan. But surprisingly some of the components have even gone through some enhancement and these are included into our CKD package. The Japanese are somewhat adamant when it comes to Swift ’s standardization policies as they have decided to retain their tyres which still comes from Japan. And as the information is circulating there are speculations that the rims will be sourced by Enkei Malaysia and hopefully this will carry on as a localized process in the near future.
If you were to have a test drive chances are that you might find that it was a tad different though. The current engine packs a little more power as you hit on the accelerator pedal on a straight stretch and this could be a direct result of some small tweaks done to the M15A, 16-valve DOHC VVT engine, although the specifications show similar figures on paper. You might also find that the transmission is quite sensitive at times to throttle change in high revs so that’s good news as there’s no need to shift down too much when you’re overtaking. The Suzuki Swift handled well in bends, thanks to the wonderfully balanced chassis. But occasionally there is a tendency to feel a stiffer ride maybe due to both it’s suspension settings have been up rated.
Overall the ride comfort still remained the same and that is fine considering that the Swift is meant to be an economical and stylish city car. Having a look into the Swift interior you would notice that it still retains the same simple yet functional layout, while safety features include dual airbags and ABS with EBD and Brake Assist. Additionally there is also a head impact protection structure and side impact beams to fully reinforce the light frame of the Suzuki Swift.
The styling on the Suzuki Swift - CKD, should appeal to both the opposite sexes which is bound to offer a vibrant and active overall feel. There is apparently four colours to choose from in the CKD version, which are : Bayside Blue, Silver Gray, Supreme Red and Tranquility Black. The Malaysian excise duties have dropped, but with issues like repackaging costs, transportation and insurance have thus gone up. So if we take all this into consideration, the selling price of RM71,943.50 for the Swift 1.5L (Auto) and RM78,099.50 for the Swift 1.5 (Auto) Premier (inclusive of V-Kool, Body Kit and Leather Seats) is still quite affordable. Prices are on the road with insurance.
The fully imported Suzuki Swift Sport on the other hand is fitted with a M16A, 1.6L twin-cam engine boasting an extra 24bhp and 15Nm of torque and the other good thing about it is that it’s available in both auto as well as manual transmissions. If you were to examine from a closer distance there are some notable differences in styling, with the addition of a different side skirt and rear spoiler kits. The front view shows a larger intake on it’s bumper with a reasonable use of honeycomb grille. Come around to the back and immediately you would notice the two chromed exhaust tips in between a pair of built-in reverse lights.
The Suzuki Swift Sport interior has also been given a face-lift in fabric colour, where it now features a two tone fabric and semi bucket sports seats. The legroom has also a slight edge as the Swift Sport version is longer by 70mm and good on consumption as it being 10kg lighter. A touch of chrome rings have been added to adorn the odometers on the dashboard. Sadly, you won’t find the multi function steering wheel incorporated onto the Swift Sports.
Added features include, key-less entry and a start system packaged with it’s immobilizer. Giving it the sporty intent for this model designers have included an addition of rear disc brakes coupled with all round 16inch multi-spoke sports rims.
If this catches your eye, walk into the nearest Suzuki showroom and be prepared to fork out around RM99,000 for the CBU - Swift Sports manual and RM104,000 for CBU - Swift Sports auto.
