Thread Starter
#1
This is my first review so please don't mind the mistakes.
My Swift turned 1 this month. After 1yr of use i can really say. Its the best car i have ever driven. Highly recommeded to anyone. Kudos to Suzuki designers in Japan. Also after 1yr of use it has been scratched/dented also by my senior citizen father alot which has really disappointed me. But its ok :)
1987
I wasn't even born that time. My father's first car in India was a Red Maruti 800 which he bought in January 1987 for Rs 76,000 from Rolta Motors (now defunct). The car has run lakhs and lakhs of Kms across Orissa,Maharashtra,Gujarat and then back to Orissa in 2004. Its still there and still working even after 27yrs.
2004
.The Maruti 800 now 17yrs old was begining to look vintage infront of modern day cars of the early 2000s and my father decided to change it. Since my father was a extremely pro Maruti Suzuki loyalist we decided to book a White Alto LXi. That was the first time i saw the process of buying a new car, that excitement of going to the showroom to take delivery and that "NEW CAR SMELL" :)
2010
We decided to change the Alto LXi in 2010 after 6yrs of use. Checked out the Hyundai i10 after convincing my father that Hyundai was also a good and reliable alternative to Maruti Suzuki. Went to Shreenath Hyundai, Andheri. They gave a quote of 140,000 for the Alto including exchange bonus etc etc. I really liked the Red i10, we were almost going to book it but due to some reason we decided to drop the purchase and stick with the Alto for few more years.
2013
My father had almost decided that no matter what he had to buy a new car. The Alto suspension had detoriated after 9yrs of use and the Sai Service 3S Dealership suggested my father that its better if he bought a new car rather than repair the Alto.
Surprisingly my father who is a hardcore staunch Maruti loyalist actually decided to check Non-Maruti cars.
Cars Considered
.Suzuki Swift VXi/ZXi
Positives
.Really good looking
.Best dashboard design, i just love the huge waterfall dash
.Features in the middle variant
.Really fun to drive, amazing handling
.The K12M engine. The engine sound is so awesome. I love the engine sound so much that i roll the windows down while driving just to hear the revving.
Negatives
.Rear space
.Rear Windows are so tiny.
.Back seat. I actually found the Alto's backseat to be more comfortable than Swift
.Really, Really, Really weak Bumpers. Slightest bang and it just looses symmetry. Alto's bumpers were way more stronger than Swift.
.Honda Amaze E/S
Positives
.Honda Badge
.Beige Interiors
.Nice airy feeling
.Buttersmooth i-VTEC Engine
.Honda reliability
Negatives
.Waiting Period
.The base model is just Stripped to the bone with no features
.Build quality. (I actually felt the Swift's doors close with a sligtly heavy thud than Amaze)
.Volkwagen Polo Trendline
Positives
.Volkswagen Badge
.German Engineering (Although its slowly proving to be a myth in India)
.Best looking hatchback
Negatives
.3 cylinder Petrol engine sounds like a Diesel according to many people
.Control stalks in the wrong direction
.Volkswagen After sales yet to be known
.High Maintainence compared to many competitors
Cars not considered
.Suzuki Ritz - 99.9% of the times why carbuyers reject Ritz is because of the Rear.
.Honda Brio - Nice car but looked Tiny.
.Hyundai i20 - i20 has a great Petrol Engine but somehow the steering issues made me stay away. Also i have read in almost every automotive forum, youtube that HYUNDAIs are not so fun to drive. Personally i feel the Koreans have mastered the art of designing great looking cars but have a long way to go as far as Vehicle dynamics is considered. Over all i feel HYUNDAI/KIA have to go atleast a decade more to match VEHICLE DYNAMICS of the Japanese Cars.
.Toyota Etios Liva - Etios isn't a bad looker. The beige interiors do look good but the biggest and the most important turnoff was the central instrument cluster. I believe driver info should be visible to driver only and not to everyone in the car
.Tata Indica Vista - Taxi image of Tata, hope they never ever sell the Bolt/Zest to taxi operators.
.Nissan Micra - I liked the Micra a lot. It was a Nissan. But i read horrible aftersales service reports and hence chucked it out.
.Skoda Fabia - Again sub par after sales service
.Fiat Grande Punto - Weak Petrol Engine and a really old car. Grande Punto was launched way back in 2005.
Checked the Honda Amaze and the saleswoman said there is a waiting period of 3months and the old car will be evaluated only after that. I was kind of disappointed. My father wanted to buy the Honda Amaze even i was adamant on it. I did not want another Maruti Suzuki. I didn't even wanted to see the Swift but my father took me and but i was really disinterested in the showroom when the salesman was showing me the car but after i sat in the Swift, i was like I WANT THIS ONLY. It felt better than Amaze in every aspect. Nice Thud to the door, better build quality and awesome sporty black color. No offence to Amaze owners but personally i felt Swift to be far superior than Honda Amaze. One thing that really turned me off about the Sai Service salesman was his bad mouthing about Honda, Hyundai, Chevrolet etc. He told my father, Honda Amaze is a good car but Honda have really compormised on Qualiy and there is a huge difference between a Amaze and City. Then he told me about how a i20 owner came and was really unhappy with the i20 and traded it for a Swift ZXi. It was a bit turn off but i was like whatever.
That day the Petrol TD Car was damaged so the salesman told me to TD the diesel car just to get the feeling of the car. After a couple of days he came to my house with the Petrol car and test drove it. Seriously 4 cylinder engines have a different feeling altogether. I started the engine and it was like total Music to my ears :)
I finally after checking out many cars, going through many car forums, test driving, i selected the Swift. Booked a WHITE Swift VXi on 29th May,2013. After booking the VXi i suggested my father that since it was his last car why not go for the top end ZXi. Even he agreed. But to my surprise the salesman at Sai Service actually said to my father not to go for the ZXi because if the Airbags inflate its expensive to put them back.![[shock]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Shock.gif "Shock [shock]")
I was like ARE YOU KIDDING ME? 6 Airbags are mandatory in Europe/America and you are actually saying this nonsense. In anycase he said ZXi not in stock and will take a month to arrive.
Accesories given by dealer
."SWIFT" Black Side Strips
.Steering wheel cover
The salesman was offering door visors but i said no because i prefer the car to look exactly like the way it came from the factory.
Accessories bought
.JVC 4 speaker stereo (I had a tough time convincing my father to put a stereo as he hates the present day music and prefers Western Classical, Old Hindi black/white songs)
.Reverse parking sensors (After the rear bumper damage done by my father while reversing)
The car was delivered on 7th June,2013. Here are some pictures of the old Alto LXi and the New Swift. Sorry for the quality, but the HTC Explorer is bad.
Hopefully this car will last 9yrs or more just like the Maruti 800 or Alto had.![[:)]](https://www.theautomotiveindia.com/forums/images/smilies/Smile.gif "Smile [:)]")
My Swift turned 1 this month. After 1yr of use i can really say. Its the best car i have ever driven. Highly recommeded to anyone. Kudos to Suzuki designers in Japan. Also after 1yr of use it has been scratched/dented also by my senior citizen father alot which has really disappointed me. But its ok :)
1987
I wasn't even born that time. My father's first car in India was a Red Maruti 800 which he bought in January 1987 for Rs 76,000 from Rolta Motors (now defunct). The car has run lakhs and lakhs of Kms across Orissa,Maharashtra,Gujarat and then back to Orissa in 2004. Its still there and still working even after 27yrs.
2004
.The Maruti 800 now 17yrs old was begining to look vintage infront of modern day cars of the early 2000s and my father decided to change it. Since my father was a extremely pro Maruti Suzuki loyalist we decided to book a White Alto LXi. That was the first time i saw the process of buying a new car, that excitement of going to the showroom to take delivery and that "NEW CAR SMELL" :)
2010
We decided to change the Alto LXi in 2010 after 6yrs of use. Checked out the Hyundai i10 after convincing my father that Hyundai was also a good and reliable alternative to Maruti Suzuki. Went to Shreenath Hyundai, Andheri. They gave a quote of 140,000 for the Alto including exchange bonus etc etc. I really liked the Red i10, we were almost going to book it but due to some reason we decided to drop the purchase and stick with the Alto for few more years.
2013
My father had almost decided that no matter what he had to buy a new car. The Alto suspension had detoriated after 9yrs of use and the Sai Service 3S Dealership suggested my father that its better if he bought a new car rather than repair the Alto.
Surprisingly my father who is a hardcore staunch Maruti loyalist actually decided to check Non-Maruti cars.
Cars Considered
.Suzuki Swift VXi/ZXi
Positives
.Really good looking
.Best dashboard design, i just love the huge waterfall dash
.Features in the middle variant
.Really fun to drive, amazing handling
.The K12M engine. The engine sound is so awesome. I love the engine sound so much that i roll the windows down while driving just to hear the revving.
Negatives
.Rear space
.Rear Windows are so tiny.
.Back seat. I actually found the Alto's backseat to be more comfortable than Swift
.Really, Really, Really weak Bumpers. Slightest bang and it just looses symmetry. Alto's bumpers were way more stronger than Swift.
.Honda Amaze E/S
Positives
.Honda Badge
.Beige Interiors
.Nice airy feeling
.Buttersmooth i-VTEC Engine
.Honda reliability
Negatives
.Waiting Period
.The base model is just Stripped to the bone with no features
.Build quality. (I actually felt the Swift's doors close with a sligtly heavy thud than Amaze)
.Volkwagen Polo Trendline
Positives
.Volkswagen Badge
.German Engineering (Although its slowly proving to be a myth in India)
.Best looking hatchback
Negatives
.3 cylinder Petrol engine sounds like a Diesel according to many people
.Control stalks in the wrong direction
.Volkswagen After sales yet to be known
.High Maintainence compared to many competitors
Cars not considered
.Suzuki Ritz - 99.9% of the times why carbuyers reject Ritz is because of the Rear.
.Honda Brio - Nice car but looked Tiny.
.Hyundai i20 - i20 has a great Petrol Engine but somehow the steering issues made me stay away. Also i have read in almost every automotive forum, youtube that HYUNDAIs are not so fun to drive. Personally i feel the Koreans have mastered the art of designing great looking cars but have a long way to go as far as Vehicle dynamics is considered. Over all i feel HYUNDAI/KIA have to go atleast a decade more to match VEHICLE DYNAMICS of the Japanese Cars.
.Toyota Etios Liva - Etios isn't a bad looker. The beige interiors do look good but the biggest and the most important turnoff was the central instrument cluster. I believe driver info should be visible to driver only and not to everyone in the car
.Tata Indica Vista - Taxi image of Tata, hope they never ever sell the Bolt/Zest to taxi operators.
.Nissan Micra - I liked the Micra a lot. It was a Nissan. But i read horrible aftersales service reports and hence chucked it out.
.Skoda Fabia - Again sub par after sales service
.Fiat Grande Punto - Weak Petrol Engine and a really old car. Grande Punto was launched way back in 2005.
Checked the Honda Amaze and the saleswoman said there is a waiting period of 3months and the old car will be evaluated only after that. I was kind of disappointed. My father wanted to buy the Honda Amaze even i was adamant on it. I did not want another Maruti Suzuki. I didn't even wanted to see the Swift but my father took me and but i was really disinterested in the showroom when the salesman was showing me the car but after i sat in the Swift, i was like I WANT THIS ONLY. It felt better than Amaze in every aspect. Nice Thud to the door, better build quality and awesome sporty black color. No offence to Amaze owners but personally i felt Swift to be far superior than Honda Amaze. One thing that really turned me off about the Sai Service salesman was his bad mouthing about Honda, Hyundai, Chevrolet etc. He told my father, Honda Amaze is a good car but Honda have really compormised on Qualiy and there is a huge difference between a Amaze and City. Then he told me about how a i20 owner came and was really unhappy with the i20 and traded it for a Swift ZXi. It was a bit turn off but i was like whatever.
That day the Petrol TD Car was damaged so the salesman told me to TD the diesel car just to get the feeling of the car. After a couple of days he came to my house with the Petrol car and test drove it. Seriously 4 cylinder engines have a different feeling altogether. I started the engine and it was like total Music to my ears :)
I finally after checking out many cars, going through many car forums, test driving, i selected the Swift. Booked a WHITE Swift VXi on 29th May,2013. After booking the VXi i suggested my father that since it was his last car why not go for the top end ZXi. Even he agreed. But to my surprise the salesman at Sai Service actually said to my father not to go for the ZXi because if the Airbags inflate its expensive to put them back.
I was like ARE YOU KIDDING ME? 6 Airbags are mandatory in Europe/America and you are actually saying this nonsense. In anycase he said ZXi not in stock and will take a month to arrive.
Accesories given by dealer
."SWIFT" Black Side Strips
.Steering wheel cover
The salesman was offering door visors but i said no because i prefer the car to look exactly like the way it came from the factory.
Accessories bought
.JVC 4 speaker stereo (I had a tough time convincing my father to put a stereo as he hates the present day music and prefers Western Classical, Old Hindi black/white songs)
.Reverse parking sensors (After the rear bumper damage done by my father while reversing)
The car was delivered on 7th June,2013. Here are some pictures of the old Alto LXi and the New Swift. Sorry for the quality, but the HTC Explorer is bad.
Hopefully this car will last 9yrs or more just like the Maruti 800 or Alto had.
