The new Swift has a n/a 1.2 with 82bhp and 108NM of torque @ 4000rpm. So there will be noticeably less performance all round.

My thoughts turn to the increasing ability of modern cars, especially EVs, to accelerate rapidly. An annoying aspect of modern suburban driving is the sluggishness of some cars at traffic lights, especially those with only a few seconds on green. This car clearly needs a name change from 'Swift' to 'Slug'.

I've got one on order, due mid September, mines a manual in ultra spec, had a nice long test drive before we placed our order, I'm a bit of suzuki fan but I thought it lovely.

Had a Baleno as a loan car a few years ago, surprised it never sold better tbh.

If she finds the Swift a bit flat, she could consider a Dacia Sandero or Sandero Stepway. The auto (also a CVT) is still 20bhp down on the Baleno (and it is a wee bit heavier) so certainly no rocket ship, but it is a turbo and has a chunk more torque than the Swift at much lower revs (142NM from 1750-4500rpm), so should feel more muscular on the road.

Auto is only available on the top spec, the Stepway is a similar price to the the lower spec Swift but the Sandero is about £2k less. Warranty can be extended up to 7 years/100k miles for about £850 I think.

Edited by badbusdriver on 24/08/2024 at 16:20

So a deal has been done. She isn’t a particularly fast driver, so felt the Swift would more than do what she wanted to do. She found a car she is happy with, and went for the Ultra spec in the end despite the extra cost. Some of that was offset as she got a £500 contribution as she is an existing Suzuki customer, so the overall deal is one she’s happy with.

Hoping this new car will be even more economical than the Baleno!