Archive for July, 2017
Private Fleet Car Review: 2017 Suzuki Swift GL Navigator
When a car company has a car that becomes an icon, any update or redesign has the company at risk of stuffing that up. Suzuki is such a company; the Swift has etched itself into history and for the model update released in 2017, the exterior redesign has raised a few eyebrows. However, it’s what’s under the skin that counts and Private Fleet finds, after well over 1200 kilometres of driving, including a forty eight hour trip to the heart of astronomy in Australia, that the Suzuki Swift GL Navigator, at least, should be welcomed with open arms.
The range opens with the GL, then the GL Navigator. The next steps are the GL Navigator with Safety Pack and the top of the range GLX Turbo. AWT briefly sampled the GLX Turbo and found its main attraction is the lusty turbocharged three cylinder engine. A downside is the overly hard ride. There was also a lot more road noise than expected.
The GL Navigator comes with a CVT and 1.25 litre DualJet four. Peak power is just 66 kilowatts at 6000 revs, with peak torque of 120 Nm coming in at 4400. The auto has a Sports mode which proved to be an ideal addition on the longer country straight roads.
The 2017 Swift is as compact a small car as you can get; overall length is just 3840 mm, with height topping out at 1495 mm. Breadth is a total of 1735 mm including mirrors and in the back there’s just 242 litres of cargo space with the rear seats up. Wheels are 16 inch alloys, with 185/55 Ecopia rubber.
In between the front and rear is a wheelbase of 2450 mm, meaning overhang is minimal. Crammed inside is a fueltank, some would say a fuel thimble, of 37 litres. Suzuki Australia‘s website only quotes consumption for the six speed manual as found in the GL, however we finished on 5.7L/100 with a best of 5.5L/100 km seen. Bear in mind this was with two adults, two children between seven and eleven, and with a couple of good sized overnight bags.
The Big Drive.
A last minute change of circumstances had me free for the weekend. In need of a destination, Australia’s dark sky capital, Coonabarabran, was selected, with a visit to Siding Spring, Australia’s home of astronomy, scheduled. The route? West to Lithgow, then north to Mudgee, Dunedoo and a more direct route north from there rather than the tourist drive to Gilgandra. What became immediately noticeable about the Swift was how well sorted the CVT is. Compared to the average CVT in the Ignis, this car had almost immediate response, if lacking in outright acceleration.
Sports mode is selected via a toggle switch on the transmission lever and works when the revs are above 3000. On long stretches, this aided immensely in overtaking slower and bigger vehicles such as caravanners or B-Doubles. Because of the relative lack of oomph, careful planning is required. Having the easy to read satnav on board (hence the GL Navigator name) provided plenty of forewarning of the straights needed. The CVT itself is well and truly one of the best of its kind available, with quicker response to the throttle and a distinct lack of lag compared to the CVT in sister car, Ignis.
By no means is it a neck snapper, however. Even with one aboard, acceleration is…leisurely. It takes time to do almost everything from a standing start, however once the three and three zeroes on the tacho are reached the little engine that can becomes a different beast. Even without the electronic kick given by Sports mode, it’s zippy, peppy, and reacts even more to the right foot. Between Lithgow and Dunedoo, on the flatter and straight roads, this shows the ability of the 1.2L.
What was a standout was the ride quality. For such a small car, it told the roads to “suck it up, buttercup”. It was only on the joins between tarmac and the concrete for bridge surfaces where the suspension would crash to the bump stops, otherwise it simply bounced through the travel once and settled back to flat and taut. On undulating roads it was unflustered, coposed, and again would setlle to a flat ride as soon as it could. Even on a rutted and ripped gravel road (yes, a gravel road) it was relatively chop free and surprisingly noise free.
The razor sharp steering rack backs up the chassis perfectly. It reacts to the softest touch and is ratioed so at speed it won’t go beserk, it’ll move gently, but will also tighten up quickly at slow speeds for easy car parking and manouvreability.
It’s the long drive that shows what a well sorted chassis can do but that’d come to naught if the interior of the car also doesn’t play ball. The cloth covered seats were near nigh spot on, with support where needed, and resulted in stepping out of the pocket car with no sense of weariness. Bearing in mind, too, that the Swift was driven in a cold environment and the seats aren’t heated. Speaking of heating, the interior of the Swift GL Navigator features old school style dials and slide for fresh/recirculate. It warms up the interior quickly but did seem to not push air through to the feet efficiently enough when that mode was dialled up. This is vital when you exit a hotel room to see ice, not frost, on a Swift roof.
Around “Coona”, as it’s called locally, the Swift works well as a city car….well, a town car. Coonabarabran has a population of under 4000, and takes just a few minutes to travel through. There’s life in the place yet, however signs of decay, such as a collapsing car wash, are tell tale signs of a town teetering on the edge.
Want scenery? It’s this, and Siding Spring Observatory, overlooking the volcanic remains that form the Warrambungles Range, that bring people to the region. The climb up to the observatory is a four kilometre hike on some fairly steep and narrow roads, with the added attraction of passing some planetary markers. 
By using the observatory as the centre of the solar system, you’re able to gauge just how far apart planets are once you pass the asteroid belt and how close they are inside. The CVT is so well sorted that it never struggles to haul the car and four aboard upwards.
A tour of the venue is a must, as it climaxes with a visit to the uppermost point of the mountain the observatory complex (there’s over fifty separate telescopes) sits upon and gives a breathtaking vista in a full 360 degrees, including the picturesque Warrumbungles themselves. On the way down the transmission exhibits yet another welcome quirk; there’s a selectable Low gear that helps brake the Swift without always aiming for the stop pedal. The brakes themselves, disc up front and drum rear in all but the GLX, are a mixed bag.
There’s too much initial pressure required to get bite but once they do they’re measured, positive, confident in the retardation. You can judge to an nth the amount of pressure required to haul up the Swift time and time again.
The exterior design of the Swift has also changed and, for A Wheel Thing, it’s not a change that sits well. Taking a few moments to look at it at various stops highlight the now blunter front end, the somewhat out of place headlight design, the protuberant tail light cluster aka Baleno, and the now embedded in the C pillar door handle. From Private Fleet’s point of view, it’s no longer the sleek and attractively well rounded machine it was, it’s now looking visually heavier and not as aerodynamically attractive.
Inside is a different story. It’s comfortable, as stated, plus has a real look of being updated and modern. There’s the familiar four quarter touchscreen (with no DAB available at this level) with the typically clean interface Suzuki has endowed its screens with of recent times. Ergonomically, it’s a treat with everything cleanly laid out, easy to use and read with the added virtue of the main air vents being as basic yet efficient as they get.
Where the Swift falls down, and sadly its not alone with this, is the lack of truly useable sunshades. They’re too short, lacking extending inserts, and not deep enough, as when moved to block sunlight throught the windows, simply don’t come down far enough to be of any real use.
What was useful was the overall driveability of the Swift Navigator.
The aforementioned climb up to the Siding Spring Observatory, complete with breathtaking views but few opportunities to stop in true safety, tested the ability of the little hatch for both driving and handling. Tick the box for “Pass with Flying Colours”. Pootle around town? Too easy. Stretch the legs on the highway? Natch.
The voyage home (to pinch a Star Trek title) was via the barely hanging on hamlet of Binnaway (yes, true name), with a stop at the site of the Black Stump, then east to Merriwa, before heading south east for lunch in Denman.
All through here, with varying road surfaces, bends, straights, dips and hollows, hill climbs and descents, the Swift simply blinked and carried on. The final part of the return trip was via the sublime Putty Road, complete with turns and curves that work so well for lovers of the two wheeled transport variety. Even though ostensibly not a sport chassis, the Swift acted as if it had one, with the MacPherson strut front and torsion beam coil sprung rear providing tenacious grip. Again, there’s plenty of point & squirt driveability when the revs were around 3000 rpm. Being one of the more user friendly CVTs revs were between 1700 to 2000 when in cruise mode, easily flicking up to 4500 when needed and so responsive even the lightest pressure on the accelerator would see corresponding movement on the tacho.
One thing that really stood out over the two days or so was the sheer amount of dead kangaroos and foxes roadside. One red devil had a luck escape, dashing out in front with barely inches between he and the front wheels as we passed but the visual carnage suggests that far too many were just that little bit too slow. With the size of some of the grey bodies, it was cause to be thankful for the six airbags on board, as no variants have a driver’s kneebag.
At the End Of The Drive.
I had to admit to reservations about the capability of the Swift to deal with such a drive prior to departure. Now, the Swift can be highly recommended as a long distance tourer for a family of four for a couple of days away. Luggage space curtails anything longer but would be ideal for a couple as the rear seats folded offer up the extra space needed for more luggage.
What one will get for the well spent money ( Pricing is sharp: the GL will kick off at $15990, the Navigators will be $17990 and $18990, and the top of the range GLX is $22990) is a car that’s thoroughly capable of a long drive to the country, a car with the goods needed to provide a wonderful drive experience and the economy required to not break the bank whilst away. Here’s the link for more info: 2017 Suzuki Swift Range information
A huge thanks to Suzuki Cars Australia.
2015 Corolla vs 1998 Corolla
2015 Corolla vs 1998 Corolla
ANCAP crash testing has been around for some time, but every now and then a picture tells more than a thousand words. When a new car crashes into an old car, what will the outcome be? At the crash lab in West Sydney, two Toyota Corollas went head-to-head just to see what would happen. The difference between the two Corollas was that one was a 2015 model and the other a 1998 version. My goodness, what a mess, what a noise and what a telling story!
Usually a crash test involves a standardised honeycomb barrier and a car being catapulted into the stationery barrier in an offset impact. What was carried out recently at the ANCAP testing centre was at one end a 1998 Toyota Corolla was linked to a 2015 Toyota Corolla at the other end. They travelled towards each other at 64 km/h in a simulated off-set head on position, and after the flying mess, noise and smell settled after impact, there was a hush, a complete silence. People were shocked at the way the 1998 Corolla deformed so easily, while the 2015 Corolla absorbed the impact but kept its shape and integrity well – particularly around the A-pillar zone.
Had there been a driver in each vehicle, the one in the older Corolla would have had serious injuries that would be life threatening. The driver of the newer Corolla would likely have walked away with minor injuries.
Safety standards in modern cars has improved so much over recent years with the addition of multiple airbags at the front of the car, curtain airbags down the side of the car, pre-tensioning seat belts, stronger safety cages for occupants, accident avoidance systems and building the cars with newer types of metals and steel that are stronger. The design that goes into the modern cars for redistributing the forces of the impact in a crash around the cabin to protect those inside is an ever evolving entity. These modern additions to new cars hugely improve the chances occupants have in a high impact crash – just like what these two Corolla cars were put through.
There are still numerous older vehicles on our roads; maybe it’s a good time to think about upgrading your car to one that has more safety credentials. Making safety a priority and buying the safest car that you can afford might be a good place to start.
You can see the crash test here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xidhx_f-ouU
Private Fleet Car Review: 2017 Land Rover Discovery Sport
Jaguar, Range Rover, and Land Rover are on a massive charge worldwide with a spate of new models both in the works and being released, including the truly beautiful Range Rover Velar and Jaguar’s forthcoming i-Pace. But in the midst of all of this remains the heart of the three. Land Rover has just released a new Discovery and it’s backed up by the 2017 Discovery Sport. 
There’s three power plants available; a choice of two 2.0L diesels or a high revving petrol 2.0L. Transmission choice is simple in that you can have a nine speed auto, a nine speed auto, or….you get the idea. Peak power from the diesels are 110 kW or 132 kW, with torque being either 380 Nm or 430 Nm. Although there’s 176 kilowatts from the petrol four, torque is just 340 Nm however is tuned to come in at 1750 rpm according to Land Rover Australia’s website.
A Wheel Thing drove the 132 kW/430 Nm version in a mainly urban environment but did go into a gravel and rock road national park environment. First up, the engine and transmission lack for nothing as a combination. There’s instant oomph on tap and a mostly smooth, invisible, transmission. Rarely was there a stutter from the gearbox but when it did it was invariably on a cold morning and in slow traffic. Once warmed up, silken was its name-o. There’s a fifty four litre tank on board and that’s a surprise. Driven in a predominantly urban environment, the Discovery Sport saw just 450 kilometres covered before needing an urgent top up. Average fuel usage hovered around 11.0L/100 km.
Acceleration is rapid enough for most, with hardly any real sense of diesel chatter saying it was really being pushed. On tarmac there was plenty of grip to go with the up and go and when the drive mode was changed to Gravel the same applied. The electronics measure any potential slip faster than a human brain can calculate to adjust, with the result being a powerhouse car adapting superbly to driving conditions and delivering acceleration with alacrity, with the seat of the pants at odds with the official eight second or so time, and plenty of lateral grip as needed.
Ride quality erred on the slightly harder side but not to the point it was ever uncomfortable. There was a slight difference in rebound between front and rear, with the back end just barely noticeably softer. The usual freeway undulations became smoother, unsettled tarmac was flattened, and even corrugations in the gravel were found to be nowhere as intrusive as anticipated. Handling itself is a delight as the steering ratio is calibrated to quicken up left and right the further you go. Sideways movement is rapid with no sense of mass working against the suspension and the brakes grab and haul the Discovery Sport up time and again with no apparent fading.
Inside it’s familiar territory for anyone that’s a fan of Land Rover, Range Rover, or Jaguar. Clean, simple, ergonomically laid out cabin design bar having the window switches mounted up high near the window glass is what you’ll see. The leather seats are heated and they do take somewhat too long to get warmth into them. However, the steering wheel is also heated and this came in very handy during a cold snap in the time A Wheel Thing had the Discovery Sport.
Each door sill has a glowing blue Discovery logo and there’s also adjustable LED lighting inside. Rear seat leg room is ok without being overly generous but there’s plenty of head and shoulder room to balance that. Behind the rear seat passengers, who also get heated seats, there’s also enough cargo space for a family of four…or some “golf bats” as they’ve been whimsically called by a certain TV host. Consider nearly 1700 litres with the seats folded accessed via the powered tail gate. All of this sits under a full glass roof with translucent blind.
The dash is elegant in its simplicity; there’s a pair of dials in the binnacle with a small multifunction LCD screen in between plus a larger 12 inch touchscreen split into four quarters for navigation, sound, phone and extra information. It’s cleanly laid out and user friendly in its….user friendliness. It sits above a simple to use air conditioning control set of controls which show on the touchscreen when in operation and they sit above the drive mode buttons.
It’s here that the Discovery Sport’s off road credentials are shown. There’s settings for Snow, Grass, Mud, Gravel and each have their own subtly discernible differences. The gravel tracks the Disco was driven on were dry, mostly flat, with enough corrugations and irregularities in sections to test the ability and agility and it didn’t disappoint. Long sweepers have the nose tucking in, the traction control gently nudging the rear back into line, and the suspension working in sync with the electronics to provide a truly premium feel off road. Should Sir wish to go swimming, there’s 600 mm of wading depth available, accessible via the 23.4 degree and 31 degree approach and departure angles.
Combined with the new design ethos from the British brand, with elegant curves and a bold stance, a wedge look in profile, a blade style C pillar, and an assertive bluff front balanced by LED circles front and rear, it carries more presence than the 4.6 metre length would suggest. Perhaps it’s the 1724 mm height or the 2000 mm plus width, with the 245/45 Continental tyres on black painted 20 inch diameter wheels lending their look to the overall presence.
Naturally there’s an almost bewildering combination of models and trim levels to choose from, along with a solid range of options, such as the Black Design Pack, the Graphite Design Pack (dark grey wheels, grille, roof colour and a choice of wheel sizes) plus a full suite of airbags and driving aids.
At The End of The Drive.
Land Rover and Range Rover have just released new models, with the former a revamped Discovery and the latter the Velar. Sister brand Jaguar has also unveiled the XF Sportbrake. It’s a busy time for the three brands, and when there’s vehicles of the calibre of the Discovery Sport to choose from, it’s a good sign for the three.
Economy aside for the test car, it was a shining example of what Land Rover provide. It’s comfortable, well equipped, a more than competent driver on and off road, looks great, and has real presence. With a starting price of mid sixty thousand plus on roads, it also represents great value. Here’s where you’ll find all you need to know: 2017 Land Rover Discovery Sport
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