Citroen C3 VS Suzuki Swift

At a fraction under 4.0m long, just over 1.8m wide, and close to 1.5m tall, the C3 is a small hatch that, in terms of practicality, does well in some areas and could do better in others.

On the plus side, there’s plenty of space for the driver and front seat passenger, and rear room is surprisingly generous. Sitting behind the driver’s seat, set for my 183cm position, I had more than adequate head, leg and knee room.

Three full-size adults across the rear is a short-journey proposition only, but a trio of up to mid-teenage kids will be fine.

The space-efficiency carries over to the boot, with 300 litres of volume available (below the parcel shelf) with the 60/40 split-folding rear seat upright. But beyond that number, the space has been carefully sculpted to maximise usability.

We managed to fit our three-piece (36L, 95L, 124L) luggage set in there, with a small cheat of removing the divider, and could swap them out for the bulky CarsGuide pram, with room to spare. Fold the rear backrest down and available space increases to an impressive 922 litres.

The downside is storage and concessions to comfort elsewhere in the car. As in, a lack of them.

For a start, the dual cupholders in the front centre console confirm the French’s affection for Espresso. You’ll struggle to locate an average size take-away coffee cup in one of those dainty receptacles.

The front door bins are long but relatively narrow, and lack a designated spot to hold bottles upright, so I found myself laying drink bottles horizontally along them, which is awkward.

Plus, there’s no lidded storage box between the front seats, so no centre armrest, either. Rather an open tray behind the handbrake lever.

The glove box is modest, there’s a small open cubby below the central multimedia screen that isn’t big enough to hold a phone, there’s just one USB-A port for connectivity/power and a single 12V outlet.

No fold-down centre armrest in the rear, either. There are map pockets on the front seat backs, a single (again, small) cupholder at the end of the front centre console for back-seaters to share, and while rear door pockets are welcome, they’re petite.

Yes, the boot is commodious, but it lacks tie-down anchors to secure loose loads, and the flimsy carpet in there is prone to moving around.

On a more positive note, the spare is a 15-inch space-saver, which is streets ahead of the all-too common inflator/repair kit.

At just over 4.1m long the MG3 is around 250mm longer than the Swift and not surprisingly its wheelbase is 120mm up on the Suzuki.

And there’s more than enough room up front in the MG and storage is good with bins in the doors and space for medium-sized bottles, as well as multiple cup/bottle holders in the centre console with movable dividers to structure the spaces as you see fit.

There’s a box between the front seats with a sliding tray inside it, alongside another partitioned oddments space and there’s a decent glove box.

For power and connectivity you’ve got USB-A and USB-C sockets with a 12-volt socket between them.

Important to note the MG’s steering column only adjusts for height which is a throwback to the 1990s, while the Swift’s adjusts for rake and reach, as you’d expect.

In terms of storage in the front of the Suzuki there are bins in the doors with room for bottles and cup/bottle holders in the centre console with an oddments tray in front of them (this becomes the wireless charging tray in the top-spec GLX).

No centre box/armrest between the front seats, just a low surround for the (manual) handbrake with a single cupholder at the back of it, more for backseaters than those in the front.

Again, there’s a generous glove box and this time around for connectivity there are two USB-A sockets (one for media) and a USB-C with a 12V next to them for power.

The rear of both of these city cars is surprisingly accommodating. Sitting behind the driver’s seat set to my 183cm position I have good foot, leg and headroom in each. Slightly less shoulder room in the Swift, which, after all, is 62mm narrower than the MG3.

Telling that neither car has map pockets on the front seat backs or a fold-down centre armrest with cupholders. But there are door bins in the MG3 with room for bottles while the Suzuki’s back doors have wells in them with just enough size for a mid-size bottle.

Big tick for the MG’s adjustable air vents for those in the back seat, with a small oddments tray and an additional USB-A outlet for power underneath it.

Boot space is surprisingly close with each of these minis able to hold the large and small cases from our three-piece luggage set. The MG3 offers 293 litres of volume with the Swift at 265L.

Worth noting the Suzuki’s rear seat splits and folds 60/40 for extra space and flexibility while the MG’s is a not as flexible single-piece folding backrest.

When it comes to a spare tyre, a repair/inflator kit is your only option for both of these cars, which is less than ideal.