The 2025 Suzuki Swift Sport marks the end of an era. It’s the last bastion of the outgoing vehicles from the Japanese car maker to have fallen victim to stricter safety standards. That means production halted in March this year, but you can still own one.
Dubbed a pocket rocket, and hugely popular with those who like to take warmed up little hatches and make them sizzle, its exterior design is everything you’d expect with the Swift – it’s small, curvy and cute, with some added sporty goodness.
Nice touches like carbon-fibre look trim and a dual exhaust setup feature across a seven colour range, including Pure White Pearl, Champion Yellow, Super Black Pearl, Mineral Grey, Speedy Blue, Burning Red and Flame Orange (complete with a black roof).
Stepping inside and you’ll find body-hugging bucket seats, and some additional sporty highlights, like red trim, but it’s all a little cheap. There’s no proper centre cubby, and those pews aren’t all that comfy.
A D-shaped steering wheel with red stitching and paddle shifts makes for a great look though, and it’s loaded with all the buttons you would ever need. The instrument cluster features a range of data, including G-forces, torque and power output, speed and range.
Some handy details if you plan to do up your Swift Sport and make it go quicker for sure, but less useful when driving too and from the shops (it’s fun to look at though). The infotainment setup is basic but works really well.
A 7.0-inch multimedia touchscreen comes with satellite navigation, and wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. For a small car, the interior doesn’t feel overly tight, and you could comfortably fit two car seats in the back. There are three tether points.
Boot space is compact at 265-litres, which expands to 579-litres when you lower the second row. Under the bonnet is a 1.4-litre “boosterjet” turbocharged petrol engine that can be paired to either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic with paddle shifters.
The combination produces 103kW of power and 230Nm of torque in a package that drives incredibly well. It’s chirpy and responsive (even in the auto we tested with). Handling is precise and go-kart like, and you’ll feel like you’re genuinely glued to the road.
Despite it’s basic-ness (if that’s a word), it is a real driver’s car. The Swift Sport offers up 6.1-litres/100km in terms of fuel economy, if you’re sensible, and if you so choose to go crazy, it’s not much worse than that either.
The safety features it does get (there’s no autonomous emergency braking, hence it’s on its way out) include a reverse camera, which may be the worst we have seen in a while, adaptive cruise control, traction and stability control, and brake assist.
You’ll also find lane departure warning, weaving alert, high beam assist, blind spot monitoring, rear cross traffic alert and reverse parking sensors. Importantly, none of them are annoying or overzealous either.
The irony that it has a 5-Star ANCAP safety rating is not lost on us either, but it is under the old testing regime. The 2025 Suzuki Swift Sport is priced at $32,990 drive away with a 5-year unlimited kilometre warranty and the same period of roadside assist.
It also scores a 5-year or 100,000km capped price servicing program. It’s basic, but a tonne of fun to drive. While it’s not truly spectacular in terms of performance, there’s nothing drastically wrong with it either, and for the price, it’s a bit of a steal.
You can find out more about stock availability on the Suzuki Australia website, or by talking to your local dealership. To get a low rate finance quote, talk to Australia’s best reviewed car finance broker; Credit One.
To see a great range of vehicles for sale, check out OnlyCars.com.au.
Our test vehicle was provided by Suzuki Australia for independent review purposes.
