Introduction
We love the Swift in the city. Its small size, its agility, its good low and mid-range torque, and consistently high fuel efficiency make it a darling for daily commutes. The comfortable yet driver-focused driving position, clear visibility, and light controls - steering, clutch, gear shifts, etc - further enhance the city driving experience.
But, what of its highway performance? It is, after all, down on power and torque compared to the previous Swift. Plus, will its small and lightweight be a concern at three-digit speeds? To find out, we drove our long-term Swift from Mumbai to Chennai and back. Here's what we found.
What’s good
Fuel efficiency: The Swift consistently returned over 18kmpl on our trip. The car was loaded with two occupants and an overflowing boot. Not to mention, we weren’t babying the car. We kept the engine between 3,000 and 5,000rpm to get the most purchase from it; both while accelerating and decelerating. Plus, we were doing 100kmph for the most part in fifth since the speed limits allowed it.
Comfortable driving position: The seat-steering-pedals triangle on the Swift is spot on in our book. We said that in our city report as well. It strikes a great balance between offering the driver an involved but comfortable driving position. As a result, you are neither bored nor uncomfortable, even after hours of driving. Plus, it helps keep the concentration high.
Sporty engine note: Now, this new Swift isn’t very quick. But, it has a nice raspy engine note, especially in the mid-range, which makes it feel like you are driving something quick. And that was a good motivator on the trip. It also helped us keep the engine in its powerband - between 3,000-5,000rpm - especially when exiting the many diversions we encountered.
Light controls: The light steering, clutch, and throttle played a big part in keeping fatigue at bay. We drove from Hosur to Vashi straight, stopping only for fuel on a couple of occasions. But, we weren’t sapped at the end of the drive. Plus, it wasn’t - stick it into fifth and cruise - kind of drive. With endless road diversions, we had to constantly go up and down the gearbox as we braked to slow down for the diversions and then accelerated back up to our cruising speed once the diversions ended.
Usable boot: We had to ferry a couple of camera bags, suitcases, tripods, cleaning supplies, and some mandatory food items we picked up from Muscat Bakery; simply because it was en route. And the Swift’s boot held almost all of it. It did require some trial and error - like solving a jigsaw puzzle - but in the end, we got almost everything in. Barring the food items.
What’s not good
Inconsistent ride quality: The ride quality of the Swift is nothing to write home about. It is a light car with a basic suspension system. As a result, it felt unrefined and basic when tackling broken roads. This meant enough noise and vibrations crept inside the cabin. The ride never felt brittle, but the lack of plushness and inadequate cabin insulation did add to the fatigue.
Overtaking performance: The new Swift doesn’t get to 100kmph in a flash. But, it is not slow, either. However, once you are at 100kmph, things get more challenging. Quick overtakes don’t happen. You can try flooring the pedal in the fifth gear or drop down to fourth and floor it, but the result is still an unhurried overtake. So, it takes some patience, planning and getting used to, which isn’t ideal for long-distance driving.
Final thoughts
We had expected this journey in the Swift to be slow and draining. We have done this route in significantly more powerful and pricier cars in the past, after all. But, that was not the case. Even at 120kmph, it didn't feel light or vague. It also wasn't a lot of work to keep it at 100kmph for long durations.
Yes, being a manual, and given it feels best between 3,000-5,000rpm, we couldn't afford to be lazy with our shifts. Even so, in the end, we took less than 15 hours to get from Hosur to Vashi in a single day. And then had enough energy to battle the two-and-a-half-hour evening commute from Vashi to Kandivali.
Overall then, don't judge the Swift by its size or engine capacity. It is still a competent and comfortable highway car.
Product Details
Make: Maruti Swift
Model: New-gen Swift Manual
Trim: ZXI+
Fuel: Petrol
Kilometres this month: 3,400km
Fuel efficiency: 18.6kmpl
Price when tested: 10.75 lakh, OTR, Mumbai
Photography by: Jay Shah
