Suzuki Swift 2021 review: GLX Turbo

The Swift’s bandwidth is impressive.

In the cheap seats is the brilliant base GL Navigator 1.2 litre from $18,990 (before on-road costs), the Sport 1.4L turbo from $26,990 is a pint-sized pocket rocket, while the GLX Turbo from $25,290 sits somewhere in between.

Powered by a 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo and mated solely to a six-speed torque-converter auto, it represents up-spec sophistication in a small yet salubriously specified package. That’s the pitch, anyway.

Direct rivals include the all-new Toyota Yaris Ascent Sport (from $23,630), recently made-over Kia Rio GT-Line ($23,990), Mazda 2 G15 GT (from $24,990), Volkswagen Polo 85TSI Style (from $25,690), Skoda Fabia 81TSI Monte Carlo (from $25,990) and – at a stretch – the Citroen C3 Shine (from $28,990). In this light, the GLX Turbo’s pricing is tight.

So, what’s changed for MY21? You may spot the refreshed grille, front bumper, alloys and colour palette, as well as the inclusion of auto-up/down windows, heated side mirrors, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and rear parking sensors, but we’re most excited over the newly-added digital speedometer. Finally!

That’s about $2K’s worth of extra kit, though the GLX Turbo’s price has jumped $2300. Any which way you look at it, it now costs more.  

Still, the safety/convenience roll call is long, with autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warning with steering assist, forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, four-wheel disc brakes, six airbags, anti-lock brakes with electronic brake-force distribution and brake-assist, and stability/traction controls all present.

Keeping with luxury themes, the GLX Turbo also ushers in telescopic/tilt steering adjustment, paddle shifters, sat-nav, reverse camera, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto support, Bluetooth audio and telephony connectivity, electric-folding/heated door mirrors, keyless entry/start, climate control air-con with pollen filter, six-speaker audio and 16-inch alloy wheels, making it a decently-equipped supermini for the money.

The GLX Turbo comes with 16-inch alloy wheels.

About the only obvious omissions for the 2020s go-getting urbanite is wireless phone charging and USB-C ports, though a single USB-As outlet (as well as a 12V and AUX-IN access for your old iPod) is fitted. Phew!

Today’s Swift may still look as diminutive as its successful predecessors since 2004, but it is now deceptively spacious inside, with none of the old back-seat claustrophobia that blighted previous incarnations.

Here’s the thing. If you’re picturing getting in and out of the front seat to be a bit of a stooping-down squeeze as per most superminis like the Mazda2, then you’ll be in for a pleasant shock, because the Swift’s stylishly upright squareness and wide-opening doors pay entry/egress dividends, big time. Most people can simply climb in and out, as per most compact SUVs. Easy.

Today’s Swift is deceptively spacious inside, with none of the old back-seat claustrophobia that blighted previous incarnations.

Once sat ahead of a beautifully sparse dashboard, you’ll also appreciate the excellent forward vision that the near-upright pillars offer, as well as the generous headroom and vast degree of adjustability offered by the driver’s seat and tilt/telescopic steering column. Even 200cm-tall folk will find a comfortable position up front. The cushions and backrests themselves are broad but supportive.

What’s directly ahead of the driver is also worth praising, thanks to lovely analogue dials with silver markings on a textured grey background highlighted by a sporty red ring of lighting. That’s as per usual for this generation Swift, but the MY21 update’s digital auxiliary speedo is an answer to more than a decade of pleas to Suzuki’s product engineers. Thank you!

The subtlety flat-bottomed three-spoke wheel is a delight to grip – being thin where it needs to be – while the placement of the standard paddle-shifters, along with the multimedia and (adaptive) cruise control switchgear on the spokes are further plus points.

The centre console is dominated by Suzuki’s ever-present touchscreen featuring a colourful and logical quadrant of audio, telephony, sat-nav and vehicle-settings functions. There’s reasonably effective voice-control, and while we’re no fans of finger-slide volume adjustment, this one seems to be more effective than others inflicted upon us. This said, nothing beats a good old-fashioned volume knob.

The centre console is dominated by Suzuki’s ever-present touchscreen.

Beneath that, the single-zone climate control system brings effective cooling, heating and de-misting as required, though the fan adjustment isn’t intuitively sited where you may expect it to be.

The Swift may be style-savvy, but Suzuki’s thought of everything when it comes to packaging, with heaps of storage up front, including a small but useful glovebox size, decent bottle slots in the doors and room for bits and pieces in the lower-console area.

The same more or less applies out back too, though the faddish pillar-mounted door handles might be beyond the reach of smaller arms. Again, wide doors and a tall ceiling allow for easy entry, and once there, the amount of space is actually startling if you’re coming in from other superminis. Even long-legged riders can sit without their knees touching the front seats, with the added bonus of there being room for big feet under them. That’s something you could never say about older Swifts.

Additionally, the rear bench is flat but sufficiently comfy, and while there’s only a single cupholder at the rear of the front centre console and none elsewhere back there due to the absence of a centre armrest (or USB ports for that matter), the doors provide a couple of small slots for little items. Everybody bar the driver has an overhead grab handle, the windows wind all the way down and the middle position isn’t too much of a purgatory as long as you don’t mind rubbing shoulders with other passengers.

Some people may find the propensity of black plastic to be a bit cheap-looking, but the fact is that everything is extremely well screwed together, with no squeaks or rattles.

Further back, the luggage area is deep but not very long, offering up an adequate 242L, though of course the split/fold rear backrests do fold forward to extend that up to 556L. However, the resulting floor area is also stepped. A space-saver spare wheel resides beneath the floor.

A space-saver spare wheel resides beneath the floor of the boot.

Suzuki is an expert at exceptional turbo installations, as the GLX’s 998cc 1.0-litre twin-cam 12-valve Boosterjet three-cylinder turbo and intercooled petrol engine with variable-valve timing attests.

Tipping the scales at a featherweight 945kg and delivering a sparkling 82kW of power at 5500rpm and 160Nm of torque from 1500-4000rpm, this K10C unit is rated at a very healthy 89kW/tonne.

Sadly, the six-speed manual gearbox available elsewhere is denied for the Australian market GLX Turbo, which is a shame considering how rorty and rapid a powertrain this installation is.

The GLX has a 998cc 1.0-litre twin-cam 12-valve Boosterjet three-cylinder turbo and intercooled petrol engine with variable-valve timing.

But the default six-speed torque-converter automatic is a smooth and slick operator, and also comes complete with a set of paddle shifters located behind the steering wheel, for some manual manipulation of the transmission if required. Knowing that this is not a dual-clutch transmission will be a relief for many consumers who may be wary of the expensive long-term upkeep of such technologies.

Likewise, unlike the base 1.2L Swift models, there’s no sluggish CVT continuously variable transmission to blunt power delivery.  

Note that a manually operated handbrake is also fitted. Hallelujah.

Not much.

Averaging an official 5.1L/100km for a carbon dioxide emissions rating of 119 grams per kilometre, the GLX Turbo is certainly one of the most frugal superminis on the market today. Given its 37L fuel tank, that should average just over 725km between refills. The urban and extra-urban figures come in at a miserly 4.3L/100km and 6.6L/100km respectively.

We managed a remarkable 6.4L/100km at the pump, and that included our fast and furious performance and dynamic road testing – and in a test car that arrived with barely more than 250km on the odometer to boot; despite this, the tacho visited the redline at regular intervals due to the fact that this engine begs to be caned.  

So, while the 1.0-litre turbo triple Boosterjet engine demands 95 RON premium unleaded petrol minimum, the real-world economy payback is well worth the few extra dollars at the bowser.

Suzuki has switched to an industry-average five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and roadside assistance.

Service intervals are every 12 months or 10,000km, while published basic capped-price servicing is available. Prices start at $239 (years one, three and five) and reach as high as $429 (year four). Total cost is $1475, averaging out to $295 annually at the time of publishing.

Suzuki has switched to an industry-average five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and roadside assistance.

Vehicles under five-years old but with higher mileages can expect to be charged up to $529, according to Suzuki’s website.