The Suzuki Swift rocks. No, I mean literally!. Review on Maruti Suzuki Swift

The Suzuki Swift rocks. No, I mean literally! The co-driver seat mount is in such bad shape in 7 months /16,000 Kms. that it has become a rocking chair. The tail gate creaks, the window panes rattle, the floor console is shaky, the seat fabric fibre is coming off. My seats look fuzzy like Einstein’s hairdo (or Lord Meghnad Desai, if you prefer). The dealer Rohan at Greater Noida blames Maruti and says he cannot fix these ‘design defects’. Maruti blames Rohan and says the dealer should fix it. Oh, and the dealer’s chaps steal anything that they can.

Maruti Service promptly responds to e-mail but no action results. Another sad case of a company with Service Engineers paid to reply mails & return calls than actually fix things! There. . . I have got the grouses of my chest. Apart from that it’s a good car!

My Swift VXi was handed over to me on Feb 14. I have clocked 16000 Kms of mostly highway and someinner-city driving since then.The Swift is a decent car for its price.

Likes

• Number 1 has got to be the looks! She is a controversial, absolutely like her or hate her design. Didn’t think the average Indian consumer would have the maturity to digest such avant-garde styling. But the sales data proves me otherwise. Full marks to Suzuki for daring to go ahead despite tense moments of self-doubt, I am sure. The phat Nubian booty is pure Jennifer Lopez. Though a well mannered gentleman of noble upbringing I am tempted to pat her oomphy arse after I park her. She brings out the naughty 9 year-old in me in more ways than one.

  
  




• Next - awesome body rigidity. Never expected such robust body construction on a Japanese rice-rocket. Mask the badges and I could have sworn she is a Volkswagen. The thunk of the doors shutting has a distinctive Teutonic quality.She feels safe, like she will last forever.

  
  




• The large, well-shod wheels they soak up bad road patches with aplomb. The VXis blessed with smaller wheels, shod with high profile tyres. The more expensive ZXi gets larger wheels and low profile tyres. The ZXi looks better but the tyre on the VXi is more practical for Indian roads. Because, there is more rubber between the wheel and the tarmac to absorb the bumps. Despite the large rubbers, tyre noise is well insulated – another place where they could have saved some money but chose not to.

  
  




• The Esteem engine is barely up to lugging the extra heft of that rigid body (yes, she is smaller yet heavier than the Esteem). She is responsive and silent at cruising speeds. At higher revs the sewing machine under the bonnet buzzes like an angry hornet in a tin-can, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Theslight burble audible at idle however belies the engine’s plebian origins. I miss low end torque when the signal turns green. Else full marks on engine& performance.

  
  




• The long wheelbase and the wide track combined with the large rubbers means thecar is firmly planted to tarmac at all times. She is a blast to corner.

  
  




• Little bits bring grins to my face – The way the interior light comes on when you switch off the engine and dims theatre style after you lock her. The‘express down’ feature on the driver’s side power window. The little bin ash-tray (A non-smoker, I keep my coins there). The fog lamps. The slot in the generous 2-DIN stereo dock for the odds ‘n’ ends.

  
  

Dislikes

• Number 1 has got to be visibility! She has blind spots that could hide the Empire State building. Some Swift owners will end up in the morgue because they never saw the speeding truck that hit them sideways. Rear visibility is even more pathetic. While taking a turn in a Swift, be afraid. . . be vairy vairy afraid! The high side sills mean you’ve got to crane to look over the sides – and I am180 cms tall, mind you. If you are of diminutive Napoleonic proportions or a petite lass I recommend you look elsewhere for your dream chariot.

  
  




• The front seats are squashy & lack lower back support on long drives. The jet black interiors are very Euro-chic but feel dark, dingy & depressing (that’s 3 D’s. . . yesssss) after sometime.

  
  




• Space is at premium despite body width that equals Honda City. The thumb rule is you cannot have style AND space. Want space – go buy a WagonR (or yuks. . .an Omni). Want style – with the Swift you ahr in the right place Dahling!

  
  




• Wish they’ add a 2 tone horn (a horn is more important in Indiathan brakes. Even Pulsar gives a 2 tone horn that can awaken the dead), a clutch dead pedal (Santro), a rear wiper & washer. (Can’t do without it in a hatchback in the rains. Santro again), a clock beneath the front windshield, a lid or a coolbox for the bin near the gearshift, some docks on the dash for thephones, more oddment space & a parcel tray with cutouts for the rear speakers in the VXi

  
  

It is all about how a car makes you feel. Some, like the Scorpio, make you feel like a muscled hooligan (which is why it is never a good idea to mess with a Scorpio on the road). You sit in the driver’s seat and immediately feel a foot taller, arrogant and devil-may-care.

By comparison, the Swift turns you into a naughty 9 year old school boy. The lofty roof & the high side-window sills conspire to make you feel that you have suddenly shrunk. You cannot look outside as easily as you could in other cars. You are a child again seated in a grown-up’s seat.

And the Swift - she feels like the pretty, playful, petite, coquettish school-teacher I first fell inlove with. I still remember her distinctly, and boy o boy, did she have a cute booty!