Suzuki Ignis


Suzuki may only account for 1.6% of car sales in the UK but globally they are a huge force, in India they have a 47% share of the car market. Their reputation has been forged on making well designed, expertly engineered affordable small cars and particularly small 4×4 cars.  The Ignis, with its flared wheel arches and high driving position fits the Suzuki DNA perfectly, at 3.7m long and 1.6m wide it may only be 10cm longer than a VW UP but trumps it for space in every department while managing to tip the scales at 100kg less than the little German, The height of the car (taller that a Nissan Qashqai) makes it comfortable for four adults and the 267 litres of boot space is close to that of a Ford Fiesta (290). The funky design of the Ignis has seen it shortlisted for International Car of the Year 2017 (Urban)  loosing out to the BMW i3.

 

Three trim lines complement the Suzuki Ignis, the SZ3, SZ-T and SZ5, all cars have DAB radio with Bluetooth and USB connections, all round electric windows, automatic headlights, manual air conditioning and rear privacy glass. Move up to the SZ-T and you add a 16 inch alloy wheels, roof rails, two individual rear seats that can slide 165mm to provide either greater luggage capacity or more rear passenger leg room, dash mounted touchscreen with sat nav, rear reversing camera and phone mirroring, and wheel arch extensions. The SZ5 has automatic air conditioning, cruise control, keyless entry and start, rear electric windows, LED headlghts with built in running lights, front foglamps and Dual Camera Brake Support (two forward-facing cameras on the back of the in-cab rear-view mirror), which makes possible Brake Assist (which increases the force applied during emergency braking).

 

There’s just the one engine in the 2017 Ignis line-up, the 1.2 Dualjet petrol first used in the Swift in 2014. It’s not big or clever, but when it’s fitted in a car that weighs just 870kg it’s capable of providing some fun, 0-62 time is a sprightly 11.8 seconds and economy an impressive 61.4 miles per gallon.   The car is fitted with 12v SHVS (Smart Hybrid Vehicle by Suzuki), a system that stores surplus energy in an extra battery and uses it in stop-start traffic and under hard acceleration, it adds just 6.2kg to the overall weight and boosts the fuel economy to 65.7 miles per gallon and the 0-62 sprint time to 11.4 seconds.The Automatic car is now a CVT.

Autumn Best Buy – Suzuki Ignis SZ5 1.2 SHVS petrol Manual or Automatic  – Nil Advance Payment  (£64.19 wpms)

Autumn Best Buy – Suzuki Ignis SZ5 1.2 SHVS petrol Manual 4 Wheel drive  – Nil Advance Payment  (£64.19 wpms)