Why did you buy this vehicle?. Review on Maruti Suzuki Swift

Best fuel economy car under 10 lakhs.The Hyundai Getz was the 1st truly premium hatchback in India, but it's the Maruti Swift that gave the A2 premium segment the first successful car. Right from the time of launch in 2005, the Swift has been a game changer. To say that it annihilated the Hyundai Getz, Ford Fusion & Opel Corsa Sail would be an understatement. The Swift is perhaps the only Indian hatchback with a waiting period from introduction to the final day of production. While the petrol variants(1.3L Esteem powerplant initially, replaced later by the contemporary 1.2 K series) fared decently well, the Fiat-sourced 1.3L diesel took market performance to an entirely different level. In its 6 year shelf life, the 1st generation Swift sold a whopping 6 lakh copies! And in the final 6 months of production(Jan – June 2011), the ol’ Swift managed an average tally of 11, 200 units / month. Talk of saying goodbye in style, eh? The wide appeal of this car is mind boggling. You as an enthusiast like it, your conservative father likes it, the fashionable aunt likes it, the college going student likes it, and the well-to-do semi urban / rural customer likes it too. The Swift is a rare mass market car that is also fun to drive, a hatchback that appeals to the gearhead as well as the common Anand. The 1st generation garnered a cult following for itself in India, and I don’t expect the 2nd gen to be any different.

No surprise then, that Maruti Suzuki played it very safe with the new Swift. Their conservative approach to the next generation car is similar to that of the new WagonR(launched last year), which also boasted of the "same formula, only improved" methodology. Smart decision? Here is your answer: 100, 000+ bookings in less than 2 months of launch! That number is higher than the total annual sales of most of its competitors. Additionally, ~80% of these bookings are for the diesel. It may be noted that the diesel: petrol ratio in 2010 was 65:35. On a related note, Maruti’s labour problems couldn’t have come at a worse time, and it’s unfortunate that the Maruti management & workers haven’t been able to see eye to eye yet. Trouble really intensified on 29th August 2011 after Maruti asked its workers to sign a “good conduct” bond. Fortunately, production levels increased in the last week, with Maruti producing 600 odd Swifts daily, from the Manesar & Gurgaon factories.