Suzuki Swift Sport 1.6 VVT

Well iv just turned 23 n insurance is finally becoming almost reasonable, so i swapped my 1L corsa n got a 2007 swift sport. Hell of car handles great n performance is good to. Not the best on juice Im gettin about 25mpg, but who cares! Seats are comfy. Bit grim i dont have a spare

I thought I had planned well. In 2007 I bought a new 4 wheel-drive Suzuki Swift for my son. It had the best Michelin Alpine winter tyres. This gave me peace of mind, as he sometimes had to drive late in the night into the Austrian countryside for concerts. He is the leader of the string section, and also a med. student.

However, 4 wheel drive, Alpine tyres or not, on his way home late one night last week, in sub-zero temps. and with light snow, the engine warning light came on. The engine started to splutter and misfire. He had to decide whether to immediately switch off the engine as, as the manual states, and freeze to death(!!) or attempt to continue. He staggered home with a misfiring, stalling engine.

Next day I gently struggled the car to local agent.

Their analyzer showed that BOTH crankshaft sensors had failed. That meant that there was no input to the computor so as that it could give out the correct fuel and ignition instructions. Any more driving would have wrecked the engine, they claimed.

I asked, as the car has only done 17,000 miles, 26,000Kms, how could 2 sensors fail. They didnt know, they didnt care. All they were worried about was whether I would pay the 300' cost of two tiny sensors, plus one hour labour. The guarantee had expired by 5 months.

Suzuki Austria was only concerned about the MONEY. Guarantee out, OK, PAY UP. The cause of the catastrophic double failure was of NO interest. I asked if the sensors could be checked by them. No, they said they are yours, take them. Am I meant to send them to a lab, and find out why 2 sensors failed, at maybe the same time? Stupid, to say the least.

Moral to the story. 4 wheel drive and winter tyres do not give you peace of mind if you drive a car with a faulty design or with shoddy components; and with agents and importer that dont care about rare, catastrophic failures, if it was out of guarantee.

This car IS not recommended for any trip more than half a kilometre to the local supermarket, IN SUMMER!

Would I ever buy another car with the Suzuki brand on it. Sick joke!

Okay fine, I've only just driven this car off the showroom floor but I am already impressed beyond any measure. I traded in my Suzuki Swift GLS for this fantastic sporty little hatch and will never look back. Incredibly bucket seats in the front, stif sports suspension and acceleration to rival many of the "Robot Racers" I find in my country. I love this car and I can see myself having the same opinion many years down the line.

I love it!! I have traded in my 2009 Audi TT sport roadster. Think I am mad? May be! But I have wanted a Suzuki Swift Sport for years. I have had several Suzukis in the past and they have always been fantastic. Since I "grew" up and could afford expensive sports cars I spent a lot of money looking for the fun I had experienced as a young girl in my "cheap" cars. BMW's, Lotus,and Audi's all good enough but not that thriling feeling I was craving. But yesterday I got it!!! I drove my Cool White Suzuki Swift Sport out of the garage and I fell in love!! I just can not rate this car any higher. It is good looking it drives fantastically, quick, firm and responsive. But most of all it is fun!! I have no regrets about getting rid of my £36K TT for my little baby and I didn't have to for financial reasons! It is just the best, if you want to smile while you drive, there is no car on the road other than the Suzuki Swift Sport!

Best car I have ever had! really good fun on country roads.....good acceleration

there is cubby holes and cup holders everywhere as well.

the only downside to the car is that my average mpg is 28 :/ which isn't great but I think it is just because I live near country roads. Although if I drive sensibly for a couple of days it will go up to about 32mpg which still isn't great but when you are driving it you just don't care!

Cost £10,699 (haggle!)

123 bhp (0-62 in 8.9secs)

Avg MPG 33-36 (this is what i get driving fairly sensible)

Service every 9k- the first one came to '£140

Tyres are on their way out after nearly 18k, looking around £80- £90 a pop.

All in all is a wicked little car for little money, also its surprising how quick you get used to the keyless start, makes getting the key out of your pocket seem like an effort!

Surprising space inside, plenty of headroom (im 6' 2").

For me the best feature is the way it can always put smile on my face on a quite B-road, while being comfortable for four adults on a long journey.

You will have to service it twice as much as a Citroen C2 vts (9k plays 20k miles) and it loses half a sec 0-62, also its not as well built as a mini, BUT if you want something a little different, at superb value, then the Swift is well worth a look, it definitely lives up to its hype!

Great little car this, I had a Mini cooper (Old shape) about 18months ago and this handles not far off, it's not mega quick by any standards but the way it handles and drive it doesn't need to be. It's a drivers car rather than a boy racers!! For 11k it's very well equipped and beats and C2 VTS or Mini Cooper (New shape) any day. It has the looks as well as the user friendly drive. You can have great fun in this with out the risk of losing your license. I would recommend one any day. I traded in my Swift 1.5 GLX for this one as I loved it, now the sport just tops it!!

A nice looking car that turns a lot of heads, but I think this is because most people do not know what the car is at first glance.

I've already had the ECU replaced due to it being faulty after 5 weeks of owning the car from new. I'm putting this down to bad luck as no other Swift owner seems to have had this problem as far as I know.

Apart from that the car has been fine and is a pleasure to drive. The front bucket type seats are really supportive and do their job well.

I've got the odd rattle from the interior, but it's generally well put together. It's comfortable on the motorway and fairly nippy too, after all it's only a warm hatch at the end of the day, but a decent one none the less. Could have done with a 6th gear, but at 70mph the engine whine isn't too intrusive (when compared to my last car - Citroen C2 VTS).

There's a nice growl from the engine when you put your foot down and the twin exhausts set the car off nicely as well as delivering a slight rasp when pushing it.

It comes generously equipped as standard: keyless entry and start, auto air con etc.

It's surprisingly roomy inside too, despite the size of the car from the outside. It can fit 4 people no problem, even I, at 6'2 can sit in the back and the head and legroom is impressive. The boot is on the small side but does the job.

Just to note that there is no spare wheel, just a foam repair kit with a jack and tyre inflator, but you do get 3 years cover from Suzuki roadside assistance if you buy from new.

A decent car in my opinion and at £11k brand new you get a lot for your money.