Suzuki was one of the biggest carmakers of small vehicles, and the Swift confirmed the carmaker’s intentions to own the segment.
After ending its agreement with Opel for the Agila/Wagon R duo, Suzuki remained with a factory in Hungary where it built the European version of the Swift with three and five doors. Its small-segment vehicle simple design from the previous generation evolved a bit, but it wasn’t that complicated either.

The short front side of the car with a rounded hood and curved triangular headlights were part of a sporty image. To keep the car short, the A-pillars were not too raked to the rear. A straight roof and a sharp drop in the back completed the image. Unlike its 3-door sibling, the five-door version featured shorter front doors and a split window on the rear doors.

Inside, the Swift featured high-mounted seats, and that led to a better leg and knee room for the rear passengers. It didn’t feature some fancy options. It offered a decent climate control system, an infotainment unit on the center console, and a Japanese-style instrument cluster. A small trunk was offered, and it was enough for the weekly shopping. The rear split-folding bench was handy when needed to transport anything bigger than a sandwich since the trunk was tiny, with the rear seats in an upright position.

Under the hood, the 3-door Swift was offered with just two engine choices: a 1.2-liter and a 1.3-liter turbodiesel carried over from Fiat. The gasoline version was available with an automatic transmission.