Suzuki’s new Swace estate: It's the same, only different

Published on 30 April, 2022

Overview

It's really up to you. Buy the Toyota Touring Sports (estate to you and me) or the Suzuki Swace (also estate to you and me). Because there isn’t much of a difference between them at all.

I really shouldn’t be saying to buy either because there are other rivals to the pair on the market - such as the Skoda Octavia, Ford Focus etc.

However, the thing about the Suzuki and Toyota models is that they are nearly identical. There isn’t much between them on price either. The Corolla costs from €29,850 to €39,115 ex-works depending on spec, while the Suzuki starts from €30,995.

If I get into checking and comparing specification levels for you there is a good chance you’ll have found something else to do before I get half way through. Suffice to say they are fairly well matched, with choice down to what you prioritise in your car.

I’m sorry for the rather long-winded introduction but it is by way of explaining that the Swace is supplied to Suzuki by Toyota under a special business agreement between the two companies. In plain terms it is a Corolla with Suzuki badging and several touches.

As Suzuki explains: “It is based on the Toyota Corolla hybrid estate platform, with signature design changes, and is manufactured in the UK with exports to Europe.”

Usually car companies tend not to highlight the fact that their car is based on a rival’s platform. So fair dos to Suzuki for making it quite clear they are using another company’s underpinnings on which to make some changes and hope customer loyalty to the brand will influence their decision. Obviously the 1.8-litre hybrid powertrain is Toyota’s as well.

There are a number of hurdles facing the Swace (pronounced ‘swaysee’) in its first foray into the estate market.

The first is that Toyota is a major player and people will most likely look at their car before the Suzuki. It’s just a matter of the number of outlets they have. Suzuki, while much respected and lauded for reliability, commands a much smaller share of the market for all models.

Secondly, the bigger guns are more visible on the road and attract attention so trying to sell an estate against them is bound to be tough going.

And then there is the historical phenomenon that we don’t buy estates in this country to any appreciable degree. Suzuki beg to differ on that and say they have monitored a definite increase. Maybe people are getting fed up of the in-your-face nature of muscular SUVs and crossovers and wish to drive something more sedate looking for their family and lifestyle pursuits. I just feel the numbers are small enough, regardless.

So how did I find the Swace and would I buy it?

It’s big and roomy and reasonably comfortable but I definitely wanted more support from the seats (yes, old grump lumbar was having one of his weeks).

The hybrid system includes a 1.8-litre petrol engine and electric motor and despite fairly energetic driving, but not as much luggage or as many passengers, I reckoned I got consumption that wasn’t not far off the 4.4litres/100km officially claimed.

Look, there is no way of saying this is anything other than a well-dressed hard-working motor with a lot of spec for the price.

I don’t know if you could describe it as a lifestyle estate.

Regardless of what you want to do with it, you get 596 litres of luggage with all the seats up and 1,232 when the rear ones are folded flat. The rear seat split-folds 60:40.

For some reason I thought cupholders were sprouting like mushrooms: two at the front, two in the armrest, two in the front door and two bottle holders in the rear. So you have no excuse for not being hydrated.

In terms of driving, there was no outstanding area of excellence. The suspension was a bit too soft for my liking and there was not much sense of anything dynamic going on. Why should there be? Who wants a nostril-flaring estate in which to ferry their family? Well a little bit of bite and vim wouldn’t have gone astray I suppose.

No, what I got for the days I had it was a thoroughly straightforward machine. Curiously, despite its length it was just brilliant to park. So much so that I even impressed myself in one manoeuvre by squeezing into an impossible space on a busy north-city street in a mad hurry.

I can’t say I was mad about the car. In context it is perfectly workable. Maybe it lacks that bit of sparkle but it carries a serious amount of inner space. And it just might be that because I have driven so many Corolla hybrids that I like their interiors more than the Swace. I really don’t know but there would be no harm in having a look.

Factfile

Suzuki Swace SZT CVT, €31,620, 1.8-litre hybrid estate, €190 tax, 4.4 litres/100km. Entry €30,995: On-the-road, including options, €31,620. Spec includes: Dynamic radar cruise control, automatic high beam, steering assist, vehicle sway warning, 2 ISOFIX child seat anchorages; 3 child seat tether anchorages, driving mode switch, 8ins touchscreen, 7ins colour LCD info display, energy monitor, rear parking camera, electric adjustable, heated front seats, dual-zone air con, front/rear fog lamps,16ins alloys, roof rails.