[sandeepmohan]

Instead of this face lift, get the Swift Sport. I don't know why they can't launch this car when a good percentage of it is being manufactured and exported from the India plant.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

Instead of this face lift, get the Swift Sport. I don't know why they can't launch this car when a good percentage of it is being manufactured and exported from the India plant.

Yes, the Swift Sport should be a great addition especially considering the fact that Indian market is warming up to performance hatchbacks.

But I don't think the Sport is manufactured and exported from India.

[D4D]

Welcome to the best-seller who went to the plastic surgeon. Hope we get some got new additions and hope the suspension is tuned better now.

Originally Posted by murillo

I am looking for a petrol car that is driver friendly with safety features and good boot space. I am thinking I can compromise on boot space for the Swift's driver-friendy nature, but it seems I have to reevaluate my options.

Don't make a decision in haste. The new swift is merely a facelift. Can you wait till the Jazz? It's built on a all-new platform(shared with city), gives you space and should have good dynamics. It should be out in early 2015.

Originally Posted by nishantbhatia84

Is that a face-lift?........Maruti should focus on re-launching the Swift with added / improved safety features instead! How about bettering the safety standards to a 5-star Euro-NCAP rating!?

Maruti being Maruti have grown because of owners boasting about "kitna deti hai" figures. They'll keep cars as light as possible as long as they meet the local norms required by Indian government. It's the government who needs to tighten up norms and make safe cars.

I like VW's initiative of selling Polo with D+P airbag, irrespective of variant.

Originally Posted by Arch-Angel

These days 'facelift' means a small change in the design and nothing more.
It's about time car manufacturers realize that a face-lift version of any car HAS to HAVE improved safety features and not just irrelevant cosmetic additions!

Facelift is a small change and nothing more. Slightly changing designs and adding a few electronic. They just don't want to interfere with the base chassis. Ask the Innova how it has managed with facelifts.
Our government should force these things. They have to put a policy indicating a time frame in which some safety features have to be standard in cars. Say: All cars made in 2017 must have ABS and D+P airbag as standard. And must clear Euro-NCAP test with atleast three stars.

[ecosport rules]

Originally Posted by D4D

Maruti being Maruti have grown because of owners boasting about "kitna deti hai" figures. They'll keep cars as light as possible as long as they meet the local norms required by Indian government. It's the government who needs to tighten up norms and make safe cars.

No harm in doing so, isn't Honda, Hyundai following the same - Aren't they to running behind fuel efficiency? Fully agree that Indian government should intervene and straighten out the rules for all manufacturers.

Originally Posted by D4D

Facelift is a small change and nothing more. Slightly changing designs and adding a few electronic. They just don't want to interfere with the base chassis.

Facelifts are launched to keep the sales stable if not increasing, no harm here again. A clear example as you gave the Innova - enjoying a brilliant success with the same basic formula with no match and competition till date. Yes there is Ertiga but not that great when compared with the Innova IMO.

Originally Posted by D4D

They just don't want to interfere with the base chassis.

Do you think there is any problem with the chassis and suspension setup of the Swift? Absolutely No!

It's been so many years since launch and till date there is NO competition to the ride + handling + drivers feel what Swift gives as compared to the rest. Undisputed winner and widely preferred car when comes to handling prowess.

Originally Posted by D4D

Our government should force these things. They have to put a policy indicating a time frame in which some safety features have to be standard in cars.

Fully agree. High time the government put its foot down to enforce certain basic safety features in ALL variants across ALL models of ALL manufacturers.

[arnabchak]

Originally Posted by murillo

The Overdrive report says prices for the facelifted Swift will be increased. I am not sure by how much it will increase. The current top-end ZXI is almost 6 lacs ex-showroom. If there is a increase of about 50k, then the onroad price will be aprox. 7.5 lacs.

I am looking to replace my ageing car and looking at ZXI because it comes with airbags and ABS. However, now I am wondering if Swift at approx. 7.5 lacs is really worth it. I am looking for a petrol car that is driver friendly with safety features and good boot space. I am thinking I can compromise on boot space for the Swift's driver-friendy nature, but it seems I have to reevaluate my options.

At 7.5 lacs, Ford Fiesta would look pretty enticing.

More so because of the recent price cut.
You get a fabulous driver's car and at the price of a hatch, you will be a proud owner of a sedan!!

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by vb-san

But I don't think the Sport is manufactured and exported from India.

A small percentage of the Swift Sport is being manufactured here and exported. It is built on a separate assembly line that runs parallel to the India specification Swift. I have this information from one of the better known Suzuki authorized service garages.

[ecosport rules]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

A small percentage of the Swift Sport is being manufactured here and exported. It is built on a separate assembly line that runs parallel to the India specification Swift. I have this information from one of the better known Suzuki authorized service garages.

Thanks for this information Sandeep.

Didn't know the Sport variant was manufactured plus exported from India but never launched in India for we Indians. Ridiculous attitude shown to us. Hope they launch the Sport variant this time at least.

[dass]

So a new facelift is in the offering in the near future. This will be of immense benefit to the new customers buying the car. What about the existing ones? I would have liked to buy a car with ABS and AIRBAGS, but with this option being made available only in the top variant which is way over my budget, i chose the mid variant one. Now, did I chose it because I wanted to save money? Absolutely not. Every car buyer has a budget and that budget is the comfort level which is also the affordability factor. Will any of the car manufacturers offer these safety features post sales? I dont think so.

Though I am 'happy' that a new upgrade is being launched, as an existing customer who may not change the car for the next several years I am not sure how to react to this.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by dass

Absolutely not. Every car buyer has a budget and that budget is the comfort level which is also the affordability factor. Will any of the car manufacturers offer these safety features post sales? I dont think so.

Though I am 'happy' that a new upgrade is being launched, as an existing customer who may not change the car for the next several years I am not sure how to react to this.

Relax buddy,

The manufacturer and the government should understand what is important a feature in the car and what should be kept optional.

I suggest that ALL safety kit be standard in all variants with features like parking sensors/camera's, alloy wheels, music system etc need to be made optional. Silly features like body coloured door handles + mud flaps, vanity mirror etc need to be thrown in trash when deciding on features for a variant.

Anurag.

[dass]

Originally Posted by a4anurag

Relax buddy,

The manufacturer and the government should understand what is important a feature in the car and what should be kept optional.

I suggest that ALL safety kit be standard in all variants with features like parking sensors/camera's, alloy wheels, music system etc need to be made optional. Silly features like body coloured door handles + mud flaps, vanity mirror etc need to be thrown in trash when deciding on features for a variant.

Anurag.

+1 and exactly my thoughts. The ones that are not required are included and that makes the product more costly than it already is and the ones that are actually required are excluded.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by ecosport rules

Ridiculous attitude shown to us.

Yes. Suzuki India has never had a true performance edition/variant of any car, save for the sticker job variants. There are Swift RS cars running as cabs in Bangalore. The Swift and even the SX4 are cars that have potential from the portfolio. I don't think Suzuki India cares. To me it feels their agenda is only volume sales and not niche products that bring little.

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

Yes. Suzuki India has never had a true performance edition/variant of any car, save for the sticker job variants.
To me it feels their agenda is only volume sales and not niche products that bring little.

I possibly could not agree more with you Sandeep. I, for one, have never liked Suzuki for their attitude towards Indians, such as:

1. Indians will even buy Bullock carts with Suzuki symbol.
2. We were the best in India and nobody will ever change that.


Unlike its German or Italian counterparts, Suzuki outsells almost all its competitors in every class. So ideally, they cannot have an excuse that they can’t cater to petro heads by launching some truly performance oriented machines like the Swift Sport.


The least that Suzuki can do is offer the Swift Sport as a ‘Made to Order’ model. I am not the biggest fan of Suzuki but I will be the first one to get in the queue here.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

Indians will even buy Bullock carts with Suzuki symbol.

This statement couldn't be farther from the truth. You're wrong if you think that Indians will buy anything with a 'Maruti' badge, or that Maruti can get away with selling anything in India.

Fact is, Maruti has a long list of failures at every price point. The Estilo, A-Star, SX4, Baleno, Versa (earlier Eeco), Grand Vitara and Kizashi have all tanked in the market. They have been comprehensively outsold by their competitors. Then, the 800 was a sales laggard for the final 5 years of its life and the Stingray has performed well under Maruti's conservative targets.

Coming to the best sellers, they are so due to incredibly solid reasons. Even as an informed car enthusiast, the Swift remains one of my top picks in the segment, the Alto K10 would be on my shortlist for 3.xx lakhs and the Ertiga is a heck of a car-like 7-seater (not too many monocoque 7-seater UVs). The new Dzire is much improved (over its predecessor) in terms of quality, interior ambience & ride comfort.

And Maruti's not done yet. They're bringing in AMTs in a big way, while the compact SUV isn't too far away.

The company is No. 1 in India because of its hard work & commitment to the customer.

[chaudh2s]

So very true GTO! Maruti has earned every bit of success it is enjoying. How can we Indians fail a company in the name of our beloved Lord Hanuman (Maruti, son of wind god, pawan putra, Hanuman!). Maruti has
given the right products to the market at the right time, all along it's history of more than 30 years. It has changed/aligned itself continously, to cater to market demands. No other company understands our market as much as maruti do.

[sudeepg]

Not to forget that Maruti cars are very reliable too for our road conditions. Besides that they have an incredible service network. This is also reflected in some of their advertisements. They have earned significant good will over the years with their successful product line that even a non enthusiast will remember Maruti at the top of their head when considering purchasing a car.

That said, I wish they offered core safety features like ABS, Airbags, better brakes etc for their best selling vehicle across all variants. One of the reasons why I like Honda & Volvo is because of that. Safety is in their culture.