To many car enthusiasts, a hot hatch is one of the holy grails of car ownership – ever longed for but seemingly always out of reach. But what if there was a segment of the market for more affordable hot hatches? Well, Suzuki aims to occupy this with the Swift Sport.
Now in its second-generation, the Swift Sport is a performance-based version of the Swift supermini, resulting in hot hatch status – or, if you want to be pedantic, warm hatch status. There is no doubt that the Swift supermini is a great foundation for a hot hatch, as it is already one of the most enjoyable cars to drive in its segment.
Ditching its popular 1.2-litre petrol engine for a punchier 1.6-litre 134bhp 16 valve petrol, the Swift Sport is undoubtedly nippier, completing the zero to 62mph sprint in 8.7 seconds. The Swift Sport also has some unique exterior tweaks, including dual exhausts, a roof spoiler, 17-inch alloy wheels and a proudly-worn ‘sport’ badge on its rear. There are, of course, some technical tweaks to its chassis as well.
Starting from just £13,999 for the three-door and £14,999 for the five-door, the Swift Sport is just £900 more than the flagship SX4 trim available on the standard Swift. Let’s put that in perspective. That is around £3,400 less than the Ford Fiesta ST and almost £5,000 less than the Mini Cooper S and Peugeot 208 GTi.
The first thing you will notice when setting off is that the six-speed manual gearbox is snappy and has a short throw, meaning you can change gears faster. The gear ratios are rather short as well, which is great for performance purposes but also means you can end up in sixth gear at only 35 or 40mph.
You will also notice that the ride is slightly firmer than the standard Swift, but this pays off when it comes to performance and is barely noticeable with regards to comfort levels. Throw it around a few bends and the nose stays tight, gripping excellently. There is also virtually no body roll to contend with. The steering feels accurate enough but does lack a little bit of feedback.
If you get a little ‘too enthusiastic’ you will get some understeer, but Suzuki has been quite clever with this, using it as a cautionary sign to let you know where the car’s limits are. This is also very important when you consider that younger drivers are likely to be behind the wheel.
Unlike a lot of its rivals, the Swift Sport has to be worked quite hard to get the most out of it, but this actually makes the car more engaging, urging the driver to learn the ins and outs of the gearbox, rev counter and chassis.
Like the standard Swift, the interior materials are quite scratchy and cheap, but this is something you will have to take on the chin since you are getting it very cheap, remember. It makes up for this downside, however, with some decent kit, including DAB digital radio, sat-nav and Bluetooth. Practicality is the same as the standard model as well, with a fair boot size of 211 litres – expanding to 512 with the seats down.
It is unlikely that the Swift Sport is going to be a mid-life crisis buy. Instead, it will favour those looking to get on to the performance ladder, acting as a gateway car to the vast number of other sporty treats on the market. And for the price, it is a no-brainer if you want affordable fun.