MOTORING REVIEW: New Swift is ICOTY Compact car of 2025

THE fourth generation Suzuki Swift supermini went on sale in Ireland in April of this year at a very competitive start price that will tempt many buyers. It’s also very economical to run and fun to drive. 

The first generation Swift, launched globally back in 2005, was awarded the 2006 Semperit Irish Car of the Year title.

While the brand’s Vitara SUV remains their top Irish seller with 640 units sold year-to-date, Swift with 552 sales is making good progress from 337 units sold for 2023. Suzuki are aiming to achieve up to 500 sales here in a full calendar year, and move up to a Top 10 rating position in its B-segment.

Suzuki have stayed loyal to the whole concept of their Swift small car but have made it a more attractive proposition for modern buyers while retaining almost the same compact dimensions as before emphasising its global reputation as small car experts. The updated exterior design looks inviting from every angle especially in the bright red colour of my review car with contrasting black C-Pillars and privacy glass. It may have been an optical illusion but the car seems to be much larger both outside and in due to clever design and packaging. 

Exterior changes include a new treatment of the front lights, grille and bonnet while rear door handles have returned to ‘ordinary’ ones instead of being concealed in the C-Pillar as in the last generation of the model. At the rear is a new and distinctive sculpted tailgate with a wide rear bumper design and an integrated rear hatch spoiler.

The rectangular shaped windscreen allowed me very good visibility and side mirrors had good blind spot monitors. There was also a very good reversing camera, but only rear parking sensors, no front ones.  

The interior is quite spacious with good head and legroom up front. The start/stop button is located on the dash near the driver’s door. The bright dual-tone multi-layered dashboard design is similar to the SX4 S-Cross. Centre controls are angled towards the driver with the 9-inch infotainment display fitted as standard. It includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. Below the central screen are up and down controls for the fan and air conditioning but you don’t actually see the temperature setting on the screen. 

In the previous generation I found the driver’s instrument cluster with its all-grey graphics very difficult to make out while driving in sunshine so this latest layout is a vast improvement.  

Features include a wireless smartphone link and three USBs in the front, none in the rear. 

Front seats in my review car were nice and snug and had manual adjustments. They could also be heated which is the case in most cars we test nowadays. There’s a traditional pull-up handbrake, a rarity in most cars now with an electric parking brake the norm.

There was surprisingly good rear head and legroom but the middle seat back doesn’t come down as an armrest so there are no rear cupholders. There’s also a tunnel which could affect foot space for an adult in the middle seat.

Luggage capacity of 265 can expand to 589 litres with rear seats folded. The boot extends out further on the left side and there’s a well below the floor that could be used for a spare tyre.

The new powertrain comprises a 3-cylinder 1.2 petrol engine with mild hybrid as standard which Suzuki claim offers a more responsive performance and 7pc improved efficiency over the 4-cylinder unit in the third generation of the model. Both manual and CVT automatic transmissions are available.

Suzuki claims a combined fuel economy of 4.4 L/100kms (64.2mpg) which they say is better than competitors. I achieved a very decent 5.0 L/100kms during my time driving the 5-speed manual version. I’d liked to have driven a CVT version also but that option wasn’t available to me at the time. 

Keeping things simple, just two grades are offered, Motion (my review car) and Ultra. 

The entry grade is packed with really useful  features some of which have already been mentioned above - LED headlights, 16-inch painted alloy wheels, Navigation. Ultra adds 16-inch polished alloy wheels, two rear assist grips, automatic air conditioning, rear heated outlet, and power folding door mirrors. Safety features include Adaptive Cruise Control, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and Suzuki Connect connected services. 

I believe most buyers, if they can afford the small extra amount, will opt for a CVT version in either grade as SIMI stats show that this year, sales of automatics were double those of manuals. 

On the road, I really enjoyed driving this little supermini. With just 82hp on tap, I found the engine needed a little revving at times. It proved to be pretty nimble and so easy to park. 

New Swift received a total of three stars out of a possible five in Euro NCAP crash tests. The car is built in Sagara, Japan.

Swift was recently voted Irish Compact Car of the Year in association with sponsors Continental.

Priced from €21,495-€24,695.