All About New Maruti Suzuki Swift

NEW MARUTI SUZUKI SWIFT

The new Swift comes in both petrol and diesel versions. The petrol version has a 4 cylinder, 1197 cc engine delivering a peak power output of 87PS@6000 rpm, and torque output of 114NM@4000rpm. The diesel version has a 4 cylinder, 1248cc engine delivering a peak power output of 70PS@4000 rpm and torque of 190NM@2000 rpm. Both Swift engines come with 5 speed manual transmission.

The Maruti Suzuki Swift is probably the best selling premium hatchback in the country. Its ‘bubble’ styling was an instant rage and now after all these years, the Swift is going in for its first major makeover. To be offered with both new age petrol and diesel engines, the Maruti Suzuki Swift promises to be a fuel efficient hot hatch that takes its styling to a new level.

 More than six years after Maruti launched the Swift in the Indian market , the company has launched its first proper upgrade – the all-new Swift. The current or the outgoing version was the leader in its segment and the new one betters the old one in all parameters. Priced from Rs 4.22 lakh to Rs 6.38 lakh and available in both petrol and diesel versions , is the all-new Swift worth the wait and the hype? Bunny Punia has the answer! 

Comparison with old Maruti Swift

The old Maruti Swift Diesel had a 4 cylinder, 1248cc engine with power of 75PS and torque of 190NM. The petrol version had a 4 cylinder, 1298cc engine delivering power output of 88PS and torque of 113NM. It can be noted that in the new version, the diesel engine has been retained with similar metric whereas in petrol, a lower capacity engine with almost the same power has been used to ensure best of power and better mileage.

The mileage of both variants has improved a bit versus the old variants. This is mostly attributed to lower weight in the cars.

New Maruti Swift not only poses great and stunning looks but the car is fully equipped with a world class technology and advanced features that makes the car a great performer and very economical to run on roads. This is one reason of huge and growing demand of New Maruti Swift even after 6 years of its presence in India. Recently, new Maruti Swift has clicked 50,000 bookings till August 2011. New Maruti Swift comes in both petrol and diesel versions. The petrol version of the car is packed with 1.2 L, 1197 cc K series engine. The K series engine mated to a 5 Speed Manual Transmission gearbox and it complies with BS IV emission standards and offers great performance in terms of power, torque and acceleration. The diesel version is packed with 1.3L, 1248 cc DDiS engine which offers better combustion and fuel efficiency.

Look:

Suzuki it seems wanted to keep the same legacy and heritage of the original Swift and hence the design hasn’t been radically changed. First look and you will almost mistake it for the old one. However , spend a few seconds and you notice the changes. For starters , the new Swift is longer by 90mm , wider by 5mm and has a 40mm longer wheelbase too. The head lamps are bigger and stretch further back into the body. The top end versions get gorgeous 15-inch alloy wheels , the bumpers are new and the tail lamps too get a better treatment. On the whole , the new Swift certainly looks younger and modern and should be well accepted by new customers.

Interiors: The increase in wheelbase and width of the car means that one of Swift’s worst shortcomings of interior space has been addressed to an extent. There is more kneeroom for rear passengers and finally , the Swift can take in five passengers with ease. The design of the console and fascia is something that strikes you immediately – the steering design too is changed. Infact , there are far more changes on the inside than the outside! The Panasonic sourced audio system for instance looks smashing and so does the speedometer console. However , the overly black theme remains which might not be to everyone’s liking. This is one area where Maruti should have worked – lighter colors always impart an airy feel to the interiors. Other changes include the newly designed front seat , driver information display etc. To summarize , the interiors gain space and new age design though are overly black! 

Engine , performance , economy: The new Maruti Swift comes with the same engines are before though with slight changes. The petrol engine is the same KB12 series unit that displaces 1197cc with 87PS of power and 114Nm of torque. The unit is refined and now gets variable valve timing. It also sports better fuel economy too with an ARAI rated figure of 18.6kmpl  - same as the Chevrolet Beat petrol. The diesel unit is again the same Fiat derived unit though with slight changes. It develops 75PS of power and 190Nm of torque with ARAI rated economy of 22.9kmpl – something that is still not close to the likes of the Nissan Micra! Maruti surely have disappointed the enthusiasts by not offering the bigger 1.6-litre engine – something that both Skoda and Volkswagen offer in the Fabia and the Polo respectively! The Swift continues to come with a 5-speed manual transmission

Verdict – The all-new Swift goes on sale at a starting pricing of Rs 4.22 lakh (LXi variant) , going all the way upto Rs 6.38 lakh (top end ZDi). The break-up of the variants is 

LXi – Rs 4.22 lakh
VXi – Rs 4.76 lakh
ZXi – Rs 5.53 lakh
LDi – Rs 5.17 lakh
VDi – Rs 5.61 lakh
ZDI – Rs 6.38 lakh

We feel the pricing is on the higher side here. The rivals are either cheaper or at the same level - for example the new Honda Jazz is priced at Rs 5.5 lakh for the base model that is as loaded as the Swift ZXI but has more space , is more practical and ofcourse has better quality as well.
On the diesel front , one needs to wait for three months (minimum) for the Swift diesel variants and suddenly the whole equation , doesn’t really look very tempting! However , fingers crossed , let’s see if the new Swift will indeed be a Swifter seller or not! 

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