Suzuki's Swift focuses on Europe

The new Suzuki Swift has arrived in Ireland. Some 20 years after it was first launched in Ireland, the Suzuki Swift is back. Only this time the diminutive Japanese supermini carries a far more appealing look.

Despite its minnow status on the Irish market and in Europe in general, back at home Suzuki is a veritable king of small city cars. Now, global ambitions are driving it to seek expansion elsewhere. The Swift was once the big-seller in the Suzuki family, representing 65 per cent of sales in Ireland. However, it was discontinued three years ago. At the time, few thought it would return with such a European focus.

The new Swift was designed with Europe in mind, and the much sought-after youth market in particular. With strong muscular looks, it's a huge leap from previous more boxy versions. That should appeal to certain tastes, but perhaps of equal importance to young drivers is the price and specification.

The three-door comes at €13,995 ex-works while the five-door version is €14,395. Both of these are at the lower end of the supermini price category, seeing off the likes of the Citroën C2, Ford Fiesta and Toyota Yaris. They are beaten, however, by the entry-level Fiat Punto range. However, they may just overcome the pricing issue by highlighting Japanese build quality.

The Swift is relatively well equipped for its size, coming with front, side and curtain airbags, radio/CD player, remote central locking, electric front windows and steering wheel mounted audio controls as standard.

Suzuki claims the 1.3-litre petrol engine offers 45.6 mpg (6.2 l/100km) and a top speed of 175 km/h (109mph), with a 0-100km/h time of 11 seconds. On the short drive we had, it seemed sprightly, though the suspension is clearly tuned for comfort rather than performance.

The cabin is particularly airy, with a high roof, and thanks to its format of putting the wheels right at the four corners with little or no overhang, every millimetre of wheelbase is being used to good effect in the cabin. Boot space is 213 litres in normal set-up, or 562 litres with the 60:40 split rear seats folded down.

The Swift enters a very competitive market, but Suzuki is confident it can sell 1,300 in a full year's production and take 5 per cent of the supermini segment. There's an air of confidence about the car and its got eyecatching styling that others in its class fail to match, instead opting for the functional. The key to the Swift's success will be to link the Suzuki name to both Japanese quality and European design flair. So far so good. The car is here and it's well-priced.