2021 Suzuki Swift Sport launched in Malaysia – 1.4L turbo, 140 hp, 230 Nm, 6AT-only, no manual, RM140k

It’s hard to believe that it has been more than five years since Suzuki formally exited the Malaysian market. Well, fans of the brand can now celebrate its return – Suzuki Motor Corporation has appointed Naza as its sole distributor, and the first car to be launched under the stewardship of its subsidiary company Naza Eastern Motors is the third-generation Suzuki Swift Sport. The price? RM139,900. The factory warranty is three years or 100,000 km.

Only one variant of the SSS is available this time around, and we get the non-electrified version. That can be a good thing, depending on your personal view on electrification. Power comes from a 1.4 litre four-cylinder Boosterjet engine that serves up 140 hp at 5,500 rpm and 230 Nm of torque from 2,500 to 3,500 rpm.

All that is exclusively sent to the front wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission. Unfortunately, the Swift Sport isn’t available with a six-speed manual transmission, but at least it gets shift paddles. No tiptronic function, though, and no, Naza has no plans to introduce the stick shift model in the future as well.

Key performance figures include a zero to 100 km/h sprint time of eight seconds, a top speed of 205 km/h, and 6.1 litres per 100 km average fuel economy. Its fuel tank capacity is rather small, too, at just 37 litres. By the way, this Boosterjet mill is rated for RON 95 fuel, in case you’re wondering.

The sporty B-segment hatch rides on Suzuki’s new Heartect platform, which it says improves overall chassis rigidity and high speed stability (front and rear tracks are also 40 mm wider). There’s also a specially-designed trailing arm that minimises deformation during cornering, so you can carry more speed into the bends than before. The minimum turning radius is 5.1 metres.

Keeping the 970-kg hatch in check is a MacPherson Strut (with coil springs) suspension up front, while the rear is managed by a torsion beam system. It rides on smaller 16-inch dual-tone, twin five-spoke alloys as opposed to the larger 17-inch units, and the factory tyres are 195/50 series Yokohama Advan A13C rubbers.

For equipment, it gets automatic LED projector headlights (with manual beam levelling), LED daytime running lights, halogen fog lamps, as well as faux carbon-fibre trims on the front grille, lower lip, side skirts and rear bumper.

There’s also power folding wing mirrors with integrated turn indicators, keyless entry with push-start button, blacked out A-, B- and C-pillars (the rear door handles are integrated into the C-pillar design), a bee sting-type radio antenna, LED combination tail lights, and dual rounded exhaust tips.

Inside, you’ll find a leather-wrapped, flat-bottomed multi-function steering wheel with red stitching, as well as a nicely designed instrument cluster with a digital multi-info display in the middle. The MID offers a multitude of readouts, including temperature, gear positioning, FC reading, driving range, output meter, G-force meter, turbo gauge meter and oil temperature.

In the middle is a seven-inch touchscreen display with Suzuki’s four-tile menu layout, and it’s hooked up to a standard six-speaker setup. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionalities are available as well, although the latter isn’t officially declared on the spec sheet. There’s also Bluetooth and voice recognition support, plus a reverse camera.

Also on is an automatic single-zone climate control, twin cup holders up front, fabric semi-bucket seats with red stitching and Sport lettering, red/black trims on the dash, centre tunnel and door inserts, Swift Sport carpets, and metal foot pedals. Boot space is 265 litres with the seatbacks up, but fold it down (60:40 split) and you’ll get 579 litres of space.

Unfortunately, the Swift Sport does not come with any advanced driver assist systems. It only gets six airbags, ABS with EBD, ESP, hill hold assist, and dual Isofix child seat anchors for the two outer rear seats. There are four exterior colour options to choose from – Champion Yellow, Speedy Blue Metallic, Pearl Pure White, and Burning Red Metallic. So, what do you think of the new Swift Sport? Yay, or nay?