Maruti Suzuki Swift has been a household name in the Indian car market for the past 18-19 years. Having sold close to 30 lakh units, the Swift is India’s favourite hatchback offering sporty looks and fun to drive experience. With four generations under its belt, how has the Swift evolved? Is it still the same peppy mini hatch that we had all come to love? Let’s find out.
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Maruti Swift Gen1: 2005 – 2011
The story starts in 2005 when the market was filled with boxy cars. To tackle these boring cars, Maruti launched the spacious yet sporty hatch, Swift in India. The new Maruti Swift was an instant success in the Indian market. Its Mini Cooper-inspired design and spacious cabin attracted people from all age groups.
Under the hood, the engine was carried over from Esteem but it was retuned to match the Swift’s characteristics. The 83 bhp petrol unit was capable of completing the 0-100 kmph sprint in just 13 seconds which was good enough for its segment.
Suzuki’s entry with the Diesel Engine in India
Although the sales of the Swift had started skyrocketing, the market was slowly shifting towards fuel-efficient diesel engines. Despite setbacks early on with the Zen diesel, Maruti decided to introduce a diesel engine with the Swift in India. Thus born was the 1.3-litre DDiS unit which was sourced from Fiat. This engine then went on to do duty on many other Maruti cars including the Baleno, Ciaz, S-Cross and the Brezza among others although with a different tune.
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Maruti Swift Gen2: 2011 – 2017
Looking at the success of the first-gen Swift, Maruti decided to launch a new model that was dimensionally bigger and bulkier. Despite its larger size, the new model was around 100 kg lighter than the outgoing model. Additionally, the new K-Series petrol engine introduced to beat the BS4 emission offered spirited power delivery while still maintaining fuel efficiency.
Maruti Swift Gen3: 2017 – 2024
But now the Swift had become a cult in the Indian market. But a serious threat from Hyundai forced Maruti to update its beloved hatchback. This model carried forward the K-series petrol engine from the previous generation but was significantly low in weight. This was one of the lightest Swift to ever go on sale. Additionally, with the introduction of BS6 emission norms, the 1.3-litre DDIS diesel engine was finally discontinued on the model. But to fill the void left by the diesel engine, Maruti updated the Swift’s engine to an 89 bhp unit.
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Maruti Swift Gen 4: 2024 – Present
With stricter norms coming into the picture and growing the love for Swift in India Maruti decided to launch the next Gen Swift in India and the weight had increased by 20 kgs making it 825kg. Additionally, the brand has also tried to tackle its safety image by introducing 6-airbags and increasing the rigidity of the chassis. While changes to the model are mostlycosmetic, the biggest update is the new 1.2-litre Z-series petrol engine. This new 3-cylinder unit has been developed at an investment of Rs 1250 crore and is one of the most fuel-efficient at 25.5 kmpl.
So, with the recent updates, the Swift is still the beloved hatchback of India. Despite the new model losing its sporty charm, it is still a popular model. In the future, Maruti has plans to introduce a series hybrid engines on the model to extract up to 35 kmpl. Additionally, we will also be curious to know how the new Maruti Swift will perform at the Bharat NCAP crash test.
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