[MutantX]

Booked a Vxi for myself on Sep-2nd. Hoping for a delivery by Nov-2nd. I simply loved the petrol engine since it is extremely revv friendly and found the Vxi VFM. But as GTO and others pointed out the shortfalls of the Vxi are:

1. Skinny tires. A tyre upgrade will be much recommended. I might upgrade to 15 inches + good looking lensos
2. Lack of ICE which of-course is a boon for people like me who would love to install ICE of our choice. Will poke my X994 plus a basic front stage
3. Small boot, lesser than the outgoing model.

Could anyone let me know the real-world mileage of the petrol model?

[yogiii]

Can anybody confirm if the ldi variant has tweeter pods like in zxi near the side view mirror??

[Technocrat]

Awesome Review to GTO & thanks to the Team-Bhpian who lend us a brand new car

Originally Posted by GTO

The new Swift is bigger, yet lighter thanks to several weight saving measures such as a plastic fuel tank (instead of metal),

You would be surprised to know that the Original Swift had Plastic Fuel tank but they made metal Tank for Indian Swift, guess they realized that its never too late to correct a mistake

[moralfibre]

Originally Posted by oxyzen

[list][*]It is priced a bit higher than the current versions. Sure the ZDi is attractive but for such a price tag it does not provide value. Figo is a way better deal.

Agreed but for a 2011 buyer, the Figo looks 2005 or earlier. The Figo is pure VFM.

[*]None of the engine s are as good as the previous ones. Why Maruti why? Does that also mean resale value of prevoius gen will shoot up?

The Diesel I feel is better than the previous one in terms of city drive-ability. Remember, the punch of the turbo was not as easy to make use of in city traffic whereas the linear acceleration the new motor offers doesn't have a sudden surge. And, a difference of 0.5 / 1.0 second doesn't really stand out too often. BTW, the BS4 Gen 2 Swift and the new Swift share the same engine is what I am told. So the change in power delivery is also due to emission norms.

[*]V should atleast have a ICE for god's sake.

I feel they should have at least provided better brakes. ICE can be fitted aftermarket, ABS cannot.

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

You might want to take a second look at this. Noticed it in your pic. I feel its been designed for 60:40 split, but some marketing head at Maruti would be saving it for the next refresh model.
Can anyone with the new swift check the same?
Attachment 674402

That cut is for the seat belt lock.

In the forum, i see more bookings for ZDi than for VDi.

I agree, but most of the bookings were for the VDI when I checked with my sales rep.

As an enthusiast yourself, which other diesel car would you buy at of Swift ZDi? From my car hunt - it finally came down to only two cars- Punto and Swift.

Not taking resale and after sales service in consideration, at 7 lakhs I'd buy the Punto 90 HP. I test drove the car at a showroom and was terribly disappointed. Someone offered me a well run in (10k kms ++) Punto 90 HP a couple of months ago and to say that I was blown away would be an understatement. The car outdid my expectations.

Originally Posted by oxyzen

But the problem is we have a VentoD. Can the Swift satisfy someone, who is already pampered by the Vento's power & handling?
Or will the Figo with a powerbox make more sense for city runs.

Tell you what, my friend and team-bhpian Amey recently bought a Vento TDI but still maintains that his Swift VDi with a Pete's box was more chuck-able and fun to drive.

Originally Posted by Jaggu

Am sure about the tank look underneath you will see a white fiber gas tank in Vdi, atleast my car has it/

Wouldn't doubt a 50k ++ user of the VDI. Thanks!

[AvonA7]

Excellent review @GTO, @Stratos and Thanks to Team-BHPian for sharing the car.
i20, Jazz are not included in the comparison chart. How is the New Swift Compared to both these cars, especially hows the Diesel Swift V Diesel i20 (performance wise) ?

I understand that you guys didn't visit or met any MS official for the test drive, still checking -

Are there any color combination available or to be launched for the New Swift ? I remember seeing, during its first launch 2005-6, swift with black top/(some)green color body and few more combination color. They looked really well and sporty and during that time these combination colors were rare.

[souravc]

Loved the detailed review but having checked out the car in flesh and being a 1st Gen Swift owner I must say that I was disappointed because of the following :-
1. The new Swift does not address the rear seat leg room when they really had a golden chance to do the same . I really could not find any extra space in the rear as compared to the old Swift with the driver's seat pushed back to my normal driving position . I felt that the new Swift has added quite a few cms to the engine bay
2. The boot space and the raised entry to the boot are a disaster
3. Plastics are much better , why not give better quality switches !
4. Hated the notchy butt - adds to the overall length of the car - wish the engineers had used some ingenuity like the ones in Honda to add space inside .

[misquitas]

Originally Posted by GTO

Where the new Swift falls flat on its face is in the luggage compartment area. While the old Swift had a boot capacity of 230 liters, the new car actually loses 26 liters of cargo space, bringing capacity down to 204 liters.

Forgot to add this point in my earlier post. What's up with Maruti? Most of their new hatches (A-Star, Ritz) or latest versions of older hatches (Wagon-R, Swift), have poor boot space in proportion to the cabin section. I know of quite a few families who value a generous boot space and for them, many of the new Maruti hatches are a deal-breaker.

The Hyundai seems to be addressing the need for decent boot space in hatches. For example, the much-smaller and to-be-launched Hyundai Eon has (reportedly) almost the same boot space as the new Swift.

The best cabin-boot ratio for a hatch is undoubtedly the Jazz. Despite being almost the same size as the new Swift, the Jazz has a whopping 380-odd litre boot.

[vnabhi]

This is just the review I was waiting for with bated breath! Thanks GTO for your frank views.

Though I was thilled by the dash layout in the display car, I too felt the boot was rather small and the rear seat a wee bit less roomy than the Figo. But I wanted to hear from someone who's also well-acqainted with the older Swift Diesel. I was willing to shell out a lakh more for the Zdi if it was worthy of it.

But after reading this review, I feel Figo Titanium is a better buy, despite its dated looks, wafer-thin bumpers and comparativlely lower FE and noisy engine.

[oxyzen]

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Agreed but for a 2011 buyer, the Figo looks 2005 or earlier. The Figo is pure VFM.

Probably the biggest downer for Figo. The Design is bland. The Headlights IMO is ugly and it is probably one of the dullest looking car on sale today.

Originally Posted by moralfibre

The Diesel I feel is better than the previous one in terms of city drive-ability. Remember, the punch of the turbo was not as easy to make use of in city traffic whereas the linear acceleration the new motor offers doesn't have a sudden surge. And, a difference of 0.5 / 1.0 second doesn't really stand out too often.

It is a matter of few days to get accustomed to the nonlinear power delivery. IMO it should not be an issue. Although the Figo is a much sweeter engine than the previous Swift below 2000RPM. Figo is surely is a better choice for the B2B city traffic.

Originally Posted by moralfibre

I feel they should have at least provided better brakes. ICE can be fitted aftermarket, ABS cannot.

Previous L & V dis not have any such issues with braking. may be the TD car was a 1 off case. In case it is not, mass mails to Maruti might help.

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Someone offered me a well run in (10k kms ++) Punto 90 HP a couple of months ago and to say that I was blown away would be an understatement. The car outdid my expectations.

IMHO the Punto 90Bhp was no better than the normal one with regards to engine performance. And I personally think the Handling of Punto is exaggerated a little everywhere. I am an owner of Palio but I still feel Figo, Zen handles better. May be I am a bit biased towards low CG & high agility than steering feel & stability.

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Tell you what, my friend and team-bhpian Amey recently bought a Vento TDI but still maintains that his Swift VDi with a Pete's box was more chuck-able and fun to drive.

Chuckable- Yes the Swift always is.
Fun to drive- I hope dont. I want to hold on to my Palio for few more years.

[Torque123]

Great review GTO. Rated 5 stars.

One question that i have for you, is there a drop in performance (petrol and diesel) of the car when the a/c is switched on? Does the car become sluggish when the a/c is on? This was a problem with the previous generation swift and one of the main reasons for me to sell it also.

I used to call the a/c of the swift as a nitro booster and switch it off when it was time for some spirited driving.

[90BHP]

Hi @GTO, I have thoroughly enjoyed your review & loved your attention to every detail. Now that an official review is on the charts, I have a question. If price & mileage was not point of concern & you needed a complete family car, which of these would you choose ? And why ? (Only comparing top end diesel hatches)

Maruti Suzuki Swift ZDi

Volkswagen Polo TDi Highline

Hyundai i20 Asta CRDi

[SuperSelect]

Great review GTO ! Thanks a ton..

I'm a Swiftoholic to the core, to the extent that I get withdrawal symptoms if I don't get my Swift-fix every day. Gratifying to read that most (most..)of the old Swift still lives, in the new Swift.

My 2007 white Vxi feels like a well worn yet supremely comfortable pair of jeans, but now I'm in the market for a mid-sizer. Your review however, makes me want to reignite the flame - have another romantic spell with the Swift for five years.

[ra'ul M]

Originally Posted by GTO

His needs:

- Light & easy to drive in the city (he hates "heavy" steerings)
- Diesel (fairly high running)
- A car that's youthful
- Fun on the open road
- Zero maintenance + solid after sales service
- Standard equipment
- Brand new. He isn't a fan of pre-worshipped cars (much to my )
- Doesn't need space, as he's still only 24, and there are other cars in the house for the long trips
- 7 lakh budget

Really similar to my requirements, possibly due to the age! And I have booked the ZDi too. I would have loved a a Punto like steering though and the ability to choose from the available colors. It seems I have no option other than white :(

Originally Posted by GTO

Why ZDi? In order of priority:

- BRAKES. Better brakes, 'nuff said.
- ABS
- Airbags
- Equipment (he's keen on the OEM audio, driver seat height adjustment & climate control in particular)

True. Also, when I saw the car in flesh the price seemed well justified over the VDi (I find it overpriced) and also it's really well integrated. Unlike the last model, this car was designed to look best in the top spec. The waterfall effect is missing in the VDi IMHO.

[manjot1912]

Tons of thanks GTO!!
Awesome review and truly unbiased as promised.

What's your say on the rattling department? How high are the chances of the doors getting prone to rattles? I understand that you tested pretty new cars, but still what's yor view?

Thanks again!!

[bigvishnu]

GTO, Great neutral summary of the car, keeping aside all the hype it seems to be generating in the market!

I was surprised to see that you do not have the new Vista as one of the competitors, or when you compared the specs, any reason?