Suzuki Ignis Review 2024

With its distinctive styling, cleverly packaged interior layout and economical 1.2-litre hybrid petrol engine, the Suzuki Ignis is a surprisingly sensible alternative to city cars like the Volkswagen Up. But it also provides an extra bit of crossover character and - surprisingly - the option of all-wheel drive for those who need a small 4x4 with some (but not lots of) off-road capability. 

Despite being very compact in size, the Suzuki Ignis has a spacious cabin. There's enough head and shoulder room in the back row for a couple of adults to sit in reasonable comfort and boot space is respectable for such a little car, at 267 litres. That's enough for trips to the shops, plus the rear seats can be folded to increase capacity to 1100 litres - though they don't fold flat.

The Suzuki Ignis originally came with a 90PS 1.2-litre 'Dualjet' petrol engine that's shared with the Swift, but in 2020 this became mated to a mild-hybrid system. It adds an integrated electric motor that helps with acceleration and delivers a fuel economy of 56.9mpg. The little 83PS unit is a fun, revvy and surprisingly economical engine with a good reliability record. 

It might be a perky performer, but the steering isn't great and there's some body roll through bends. The suspension provides a reasonable level of ride comfort, but over rougher and broken road surfaces it can feel harsh and bouncy. It's not bad, but nor is the Suzuki Ignis as sharp or as fun to drive as the Volkswagen Up and its counterparts from Skoda and SEAT.

Suzuki's dropped the entry-level SZ3 from the range since it launched back in 2017, leaving just the SZ-T and higher-spec'd SZ5. The SZ-T comes with manual air-conditioning, DAB radio, 7-inch touchscreen, USB connectivity and Bluetooth, while the SZ5 builds on this with luxuries like keyless entry, climate control and cruise control, along with active safety technology.

If you want to avoid the typical small car choices, the Suzuki Ignis is a quirky-looking alternative with more character than its rivals. But it's also well-equipped and cheap to run, so as outside choices go it's very sensible. It might not be quite as good to drive as an Up, but there's still plenty to recommend it.

Unusually for such a small car, the Suzuki Ignis is available with all-wheel drive. It costs an additional £1000 and while it won't make the Ignis into an unstoppable off-roader, if you live in a colder part of the country or have rural tracks to traverse, it might be a worthwhile option. However, for most drivers the front-wheel drive model will be fine. 

Around town the Suzuki Ignis is great thanks to its compact size, but the ride quality isn't the best in the class, thumping over poor surfaces and potholes. The steering adapts to the speed, so it's light when parking or performing a u-turn, but weights up when out of town. Unfortunately at more than about 40mph it feels a bit too vague to provide much enjoyment on a country road.

Body roll is quite apparent through twists and turns too. For fun B-road driving the Volkswagen Up and its equivalents from SEAT and Skoda are better. It's not all bad, though - the Ignis is surprisingly stable and quiet at motorway speeds, so it's possible to pass trucks with confidence - and if you go for a top model there's cruise control to make long trips easier. 

An automatic transmission is available, with a CVT transmission replacing a slow and jerky AGS automated manual available with earlier models.

From 2020 the Suzuki Ignis is only available with one engine choice - a 1.2-litre Dualjet (two fuel injectors per cylinder) petrol engine mated to a mild-hybrid system. Used buyers can have it without the mild-hybrid system, however.

This little 83PS unit has an official economy figure of 56.9mpg and low emissions of 112g/km. This delivers a 0-62mph time of 12.7 seconds and while that might not sound fast, there's enough power in reserve to get past slow-moving traffic and to cruise on the motorway. 

Some advanced safety features, including lane keep assistance and automatic emergency braking, are available - but sadly if you want them you'll have to opt for the top SZ5 trim level with the Ignis. That's a shame, because with those options installed the car scores five stars in Euro NCAP testing. Without them it only scores three. 

It's not going to be towing a massive powerboat, but the Suzuki Ignis has a towing capacity of 1000kg and can be specified with a towbar if you wish when ordering.

Despite being very small on the outside, the Suzuki Ignis has a surprisingly spacious cabin thanks to its clever packaging and tall body.  

There is space in the back row for a pair of adults and headroom is pretty good, thanks to the tall, SUV-inspired styling. What's more, the Ignis in either SZ-T or SZ5 trim features rear seats that slide and recline, so occupants can choose between legroom and boot space depending on what you need to carry. 

The boot itself is a decent size for a small car at 267 litres, which is a touch bigger than the Volkswagen Up. It might not be big enough for visits to a certain Swedish furniture shop, but for weekly shopping trips it will do the job - and if you need to carry more then the rear seats fold, freeing up 1100 litres. Sadly, in this configuration the load deck isn't flat, so it's not ideal for bulky objects. If you're set on the 4x4 AllGrip version, boot capacity of the Ignis drops to 204 litres. 

Elsewhere and there's some useful storage solutions in the cabin of the Ignis, with reasonably-sized door pockets and four cupholders placed round the cabin. The glovebox is also a pretty good size. 

The Suzuki Ignis measures just 3.7m long and 1.69m wide, meaning that you'll easily find it fits into pretty much any parking space going. 

Up front the Ignis has the same sturdy build quality as other Suzuki models, though there are a few flimsy parts like the cup holders. It might not be quite as fanciful or plush as some cars, but it's cutely styled and should stand the test of time. It's also livened up by a two-tone colour scheme instead of the usual Suzuki approach of pairing black to black and more black. 

The doors do feel pretty lightweight though. That said, it has allowed Suzuki to keep the overall weight of the car pretty low. 

With the Ignis now only available in two trim levels (SZ-T and SZ5), both support Apple CarPlay and Android Auto via a 7-inch touchscreen interface. If you want to keep things simple and not pair your phone, the SZ5 comes with a sat-nav as standard, while both trim levels come with a DAB radio and Bluetooth connectivity. 

It's a bit of a clunky system to use if we're honest, being slow and sluggish in our experience. We'd definitely recommend syncing your phone to use either Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and just using the apps on there instead.  

As with other models in the range, Suzuki keeps things nice and simple with the choice of two trim levels. There's just the one engine to choose from with either the choice of manual or CVT transmission. You're only other choice is whether you want all-wheel drive (manual only and only available on the SZ5).

Prices for the Suzuki Ignis start at £16,249 for the SZ-T trim, which is almost £2000 over an entry-level 5-door VW Up. It's also £1000 than a basic Dacia Duster and pushing almost £3000 more than the basic Hyundai i10. 

Fancy a CVT automatic gearbox rather than a manual? That'll set you back a further £1000.

Move up to the Ignis SZ5 and you'll pay £17,249, while there's the same cost penalty of £1000 for a CVT gearbox, or those after the 4x4 capability of the AllGrip system will have to pay an additional £1000. 

While small cars typically fall into the lower end of car insurance groups, that's not quite the case with the Suzuki Ignis. Though some earlier iterations can be found in the low teens, the current SZ-T starts in insurance group 17, with the AllGrip starting in group 18.

It should reward you with pretty decent fuel economy though, with an impressive WLTP combined of 56.9mpg which translated pretty accurately to real-world driving and is better than some key rivals. 

CO2 emissions are also low at 112g/km, which will make it nice and cheap to tax.  

This Ignis in entry-level SZ3 trim has been dropped from the range, but if you're buying used you can expect 15-inch steel wheels, body coloured bumpers and wing mirrors, electric door mirrors, chrome door handles, daytime running lights, manual air conditioning, remote fuel lid opener, tyre repair kit, x2 ISOFIX child seat anchorages, centre storage box, DAB audio, Bluetooth, USB connector and 60/40 split folding rear seats.

That just leaves two trims in the Suzuki Ignis range, the SZ-T and SZ5. The SZ-T adds 16-inch alloy wheels, chrome front grille, wheel arch extensions, roof rails, hill hold control, driver’s seat height adjustment, electric rear windows, reclining and sliding rear seats which split 50/50 when folded and Apple CarPlay/Android Auto.

SZ5 trim also includes black and chrome front grille, door mirrors with built-in indicators, LED daytime running lights, LED projector headlights, front fog lights, automatic climate control, front audio speaker tweeters, steering wheel mounted audio controls and a navigation system.