Suzuki Swace Review 2024

The Suzuki Swace is a Toyota Corolla Touring Sports with a different badge on the bonnet. But as Toyota makes some of the most reliable cars on sale - and the Toyota Corolla is one of our favourite cars in its class - the Suzuki Swace builds on some pretty strong foundations.

Platform sharing is nothing new in the car industry - and it's something we're likely to see more of over the next few years, with car manufacturers sharing technology in order to speed up the process of launching new electric (and hybrid) vehicles. But the Suzuki Swace isn't simply based on the Toyota Corolla - cover up the badge and you probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference. As we explain in our Suzuki Swace review.

The Suzuki Swace is built alongside the Toyota Corolla at Toyota's factory in Derbyshire and forms part of a collaboration between the two Japanese car brands, along with the Toyota RAV4-based Suzuki Across.

Suzuki prides itself on its no-nonsense approach to car sales, though, as well as being a trustworthy brand for buyers who like to be a bit alternative. That means the Suzuki Swace will sell in smaller numbers than the Corolla, while also undercutting the big seller on price.

In the spirit of keeping things simple, the Suzuki Swace is only available as an estate car, with a choice of two trim levels and little in the way of options. The majority of buyers will go for the most affordable model, the Suzuki Swace Motion, which is pretty well kitted out as standard. For your £29,000(ish), you get heated seats, a heated steering wheel, a reversing camera and 16-inch alloy wheels. The only thing it's really missing is built-in navigation - but, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, that needn't be a dealbreaker.

There's only one engine available in the Suzuki Swace: a 1.8-litre petrol-electric hybrid. This received a very welcome power boost in 2023, increasing the maximum power output from 122PS to 140PS. While it's still not a quick car, we don't think Suzuki's missed a trick by not offering the Swace with the Toyota Corolla's 2.0-litre engine (which sells in relatively small numbers anyway).

The Suzuki Swace's forte is more about being dependable and cheap to run. With Toyota's expertise in hybrid technology, you can be sure the Suzuki Swace won't let you down, while Suzuki's new service-activated warranty means it can be covered for up to seven years (with regular main dealer visits).

As a 'regular' hybrid, the Suzuki Swace will be pretty frugal under day-to-day driving, without the need to plug it in (like you would a plug-in hybrid or a pure-electric alternative like the MG 5 EV). Suzuki claims the Swace will return up to 62.7mpg - and our Real MPG data for the Toyota Corolla suggests that should be a fairly attainable figure.

The Suzuki Swace isn't an exciting car. We reckon the Ford Focus Estate is more rewarding to drive, the Volkswagen Golf Estate looks classier and even the latest Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer will turn more heads. But the Suzuki Swace is a very versatile estate car that'll be cheap to run, while its simple range line-up and value for money make it a strong proposition - even alongside the very similar Toyota Corolla Touring Sports.

As part of the Suzuki Swace's more 'value focussed' approach compared to the Toyota Corolla, it only comes with 16-inch alloy wheels (even on the top-spec Suzuki Swace Ultra). While that's not great for aesthetics, it does mean you get big, chunky tyre sidewalls - and that's good news for ride quality.

It feels quite soft, in a good way, without being overly floaty. Comfort is definitely the order of the day in the Suzuki Swace - you'd be much better with a Ford Focus Estate if you're planning on attacking a roundabout with vigour. But that's not what you buy a family estate car for, right?

It's an easy car to drive, with light steering and a useful array of technology to help reduce the chances of a bump. A reversing camera is standard across the range, while the Suzuki Swace Ultra comes with front and rear parking sensors.

Unlike the Toyota Corolla (which is available with a bigger 2.0-litre hybrid engine), the Suzuki Swace is only available with a 1.8-litre setup.

And that's fine. Buy a new Suzuki Swace from 2023 onwards and it'll have a total power output of 140PS, thanks to a more powerful electric motor (compared to the pre-facelift Swace). That means it'll accelerate to 62mph in a sprightly enough 9.4 seconds.

If you're looking to buy a car that'll mooch around town under electric power, you'd be better looking at a plug-in hybrid like the Peugeot 308 Hybrid (or, even better, a pure-electric vehicle like the MG 5 EV). But the Suzuki Swace can set off (and creep to a halt) with the engine off, which means it feels quite responsive (and relaxing) in traffic.

On the move, it's got enough power for quickfire overtakes or building up speed on a motorway sliproad. There's a bit of a drone from the engine with the accelerator pedal on the floor but this isn't a car you drive flat out everywhere anyway.

Earlier models (pre-2023) were powered by the same 1.8-litre engine but combined with a less punchy electric motor, producing 122PS. This feels significantly slower, taking 11.1 seconds to amble up to 62mph - but that won't be an issue for all drivers.

The Suzuki Swace hasn't been crash tested by Euro NCAP, but there's no reason why it'd perform any worse than its Toyota Corolla relation. That was awarded a full five stars for safety in 2019, including an impressive 95 per cent score for adult occupants.

The updated 2023 Suzuki Swace saw some additional safety technology introduced to the range. This includes an Emergency Driving Stop System (EDSS) which monitors the driver and brings the car to a stop if it determines they're inattentive. The Safe Exit Assist feature, meanwhile, triggers a warning if a door is about to opened into the path of an oncoming vehicle or cyclist.

The Pre-Collision System was also updated for 2023, now available at detecting other vehicles (including motorcycles) from a wider range. If it detects a potential colision, it can apply the brakes automatically.

Don't expect to tow anything significant with the Suzuki Swace - it has a braked towing limit of just 750kg. It can tow an unbraked trailer weighing up to 450kg, which'll be fine for a small camping trailer.

The Suzuki Swace is only available as an estate car - and a pretty cavernous one at that. Its boot can carry up to 596 litres of luggage, which is about the same as a Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer or Volkswagen Golf Estate. The Skoda Octavia Estate has a slightly bigger boot, but the Swace's load area will be big enough for most buyers.

It's easy to access, too, thanks to a lower load lip than SUV alternatives like the Suzuki Across. There's a false floor (which can be lowered), while underneath it there's a huge amount of space for stowing away valuables (as well as the tyre repair kit - no spare wheel here).

The rear seats split 60/40 and can be dropped using handy levers in the boot. With the seats dropped, there's a considerable amount of luggage space on hand (up to 1232 litres). A flat floor means it's a very useful space, too - it'd be great for carrying bikes, while we reckon a camping mattress could turn the Swace into a discreet little microcamper.

With the rear seats in use, there's enough space for three adults side by side at a push - although you might be better looking at an SUV like the Skoda Karoq or Citroen C5 Aircross if you plan to transport a lot of passengers.

The Suzuki Swace offers plenty of space in the front. The seats move quite a long way back, while there's plenty of adjustment in the steering wheel - so finding a comfortable seating position is easy. There's a generous amount of space between the driver and front-seat passenger, too, so there shouldn't be any awkward arm bashing.

A few years ago, Suzuki (and Toyota) interiors were a sea of hard plastics and drab finishes. But the Suzuki Swace's cabin feels almost as posh as a Volkswagen Golf Estate's (which, admittedly, perhaps says more about the Volkswagen than the Suzuki).

It's certainly not a premium product (you can't get the Suzuki Swace with leather seats, while soft-touch fabrics are used sparingly), but the top-spec Ultra model does come with some small luxuries which add up to give it a slightly more upmarket vibe than the entry-level Motion. These include a leather centre console and PVC rear armrest, as well as some useful extra lights in the cup holder, front/rear doors and front centre console tray.

The infotainment is one area in which the Suzuki Swace's budget price tag comes to light alongside the Toyota Corolla Touring Sports. For a start, you don't get built-in navigation in the Swace - it's not even available as an option.

You can, however, connect your phone (wirelessly if it's an iPhone) and use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. We reckon this is better than most infotainment systems developed by car manufacturers so you'll soon get over the lack of nav - just use third-party apps like Google Maps for directions instead.

The screen is smaller than in the Toyota Corolla, too, measuring a fairly modest eight inches in diameter. Before the 2023 update, the Suzuki Swace got a smaller seven-inch display, along with some pretty naff looking shortcut buttons alongside it.

The infotainment system is at least fairly easy to navigate, while the graphics are clear enough (if not exactly class-leading in their resolution). You get a physical button to control the volume, which is nice, while there are separate controls below for adjusting the climate control.

Suzuki's big on value for money - that's why the Suzuki Swace undercuts the (virtually identical) Toyota Corolla Touring Sports on price.

As of 2023, a new Suzuki Swace Motion starts from £28,999, while the top-spec Suzuki Swace Ultra is £30,799. That sounds like a bargain when the cheapest Toyota Corolla Touring Sports is more than £31,500 - but it's not quite so black and white.

While standard equipment levels are pretty generous on the Swace, you don't get quite as much for your money as you do with the Toyota Corolla. The eight-inch media system is smaller and not as slick as the 10.5-inch display used in a Toyota Corolla Touring Sports Icon, while the Swace isn't available with built-in navigation (Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, though). You don't get front/rear parking sensors in the cheapest Suzuki Swace, either.

If you can live with these anomalies, the Suzuki Swace offers pretty good value for money. We suspect the slight prestige of the Toyota badge will help residual values, though, so actually you might find the Toyota Corolla works out cheaper in the long run.

As the Suzuki Swace uses the same hybrid technology as the Toyota Corolla, you can be pretty confident it will be reliable and cheap to run.

Officially, the Suzuki Swace returns up to 62.7mpg. That's the same as an entry-level Toyota Corolla but better than higher-spec Corolla models - that's due to the larger alloy wheels fitted to the Toyota, although the difference in the real world will be negligible.

This isn't a pie-in-the-sky figure, either - our readers report that they see more than 60.0mpg from the 1.8-litre Toyota Corolla under day-to-day driving. Impressive. Unlike plug-in hybrid alternatives, you don't have to faff around charging to get the best from the Swace, either, it should be very efficient with little hassle.

A recent change to Suzuki's warranty means that all Suzuki Swaces sold since April 2023 now have a 'service activated warranty' which lasts up to seven years or 100,000 miles. Essentially, if you have your car serviced at a Suzuki main dealer when it's more than three years old, the warranty will be extended for a year free of charge. This can be transferred to subsequent owners, too, while a gap in its dealer service history won't render the warranty invalid (provided the car goes through an official Suzuki health check first).

Standard equipment on the Suzuki Swace Motion includes 16-inch alloy wheels, silver roof rails and rear privacy glass. Inside, the Swace Motion comes with heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, an electric parking brake and dual-zone automatic air conditioning.

An eight-inch touchscreen media system is standard with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, as well as Bluetooth connectivity and DAB radio. Further standard kit includes automatic headlights and windscreen wipers, keyless entry and start, a reversing camera, lane centering function and an emergency tyre repair kit (in place of a spare wheel).

The Suzuki Swace Ultra adds front/rear parking sensors, smart door lock system and bi-LED headlights. Inside, the top-spec Swace features a wireless phone charger, extra interior lights, a leather centre console box and a PVC centre rear armrest. There's some extra driver assistance tech, too, in the form of a blind spot monitor, rear cross traffic alert and safe exit assist.