Used Suzuki Swift cars for sale

There's just one version of the Suzuki Swift. It's a five-seat five-door car with a hatchback bootlid. You'll also find the Swift Sport, which is a junior hot hatch with meaner styling and a more powerful engine.

Considering the Swift is a five-seat, five-door car, it's still one of the smallest models you can currently buy in the UK. It measures in a little over 3.8 metres long, making it shorter than all its main rivals including the Dacia Sandero, Skoda Fabia, Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Corsa. Only the likes of the Fiat 500 and Peugeot 108 come up smaller and neither of those cars is as practical as the Swift.

Inside, there's enough space for four adults to sit in reasonable comfort. Adding a fifth to the rear row will make things uncomfortably tight, however, so is best saved for very short journeys only. The boot is small, however, to allow enough passenger space, so you'll probably need to fold the rear seats if you want to carry anything bulky.

There isn't really a weak engine in the Swift lineup because the car's very light to begin with. Entry-level 1.2-litre Dualjet models lack the turbocharged punch of the 1.0-litre Boosterjet, but the snappy five-speed gearbox means it's easy to make the most of what power is available.

Of course, the 1.4-litre Boosterjet in the Swift Sport is much quicker. This makes it more fun in day-to-day driving but also means the car doesn't need to strain as hard to keep up with motorway traffic, making it a little more relaxing on longer drives.

The Swift is a great car if you value having a decent balance of features and drivability in an affordable, city-friendly package. It can't match the premium feel of the Volkswagen Polo, nor the outright affordability of the Dacia Sandero, but strikes a pleasant middle ground that might suit you perfectly if you want a car that scores well across the board.

While owners rarely wax lyrical about the material quality found in Suzuki cars, few complain about reliability either. The brand generally scores highly in reliability surveys, so we expect Swift models to provide years of trouble-free service. What's more, parts and servicing should be towards the more affordable end of the scale thanks to the brand's mass-market positioning.

Yes, several versions of the Swift throughout its lifespan have been offered with optional four-wheel drive. The system is automatic and activates only when it detects a loss of grip on the front axle, helping to save fuel when it's not needed. That means you probably can't tackle any serious rock crawling in your Swift, but dirt roads and grassy fields should pose no problem at all.

Swift models are generally fairly cheap to insure, with most ranking between groups 16 and 25. That's not quite as affordable as the cheapest Ford Fiesta or Vauxhall Corsa models, however, so pick one of those if that's your main concern.

The Swift is a fairly good first car. It's reliable and more recent versions are loaded with safety gear, but could do with being in a slightly lower insurance group to make it an ideal proposition. Nevertheless, running and maintenance costs should be very low, helping to offset your slightly higher annual premium.