Spy shot Suzuki Swift

The Swift drove Suzuki in a more European direction and put style and driving enjoyment ahead of a boring basic bottom line. Now the Japanese baby that was the Carsguide Car of the Year in 2005 is coming up for a complete model change.

It was snapped last week during private proving ground tests and, despite a giant burka disguising the details, it is clearly a continuation of the same basic look.

The Swift still has a rounded front end, a short rear overhang and a sexy tail.

The Carparazzi team says the next Swift will go public at the Paris Motor Show in 2010, which means it is just over a year from a final production sign-off.

"We won't get it until the end of 2010," says Tony Devers, general manager of Suzuki Australia. He cannot and will not go into detail on the car, but admits Suzuki is close to a ground-up revamp for the Swift.

"The current Swift has been so successful they won't deviate from the basic style. We'll wait and see but it is likely to be a little bit bigger and a bit more roomy inside."

Carparazzi forecasts a number of changes for the new Swift, including an all-wheel drive system - probably from the SX4 - and a diesel engine. There are also rumours of Swift hybrid, although not until 2011 or 2012.

The Swift has been a huge success for Suzuki in Australia but Devers says the company is also planning for a major model expansion.

"In Australia we've sold close to 60,000 Swifts. In the early days it was about 60 per cent of sales and it's still close to half," says Devers. "Our biggest issue is still our limited model range. We're only participating in 45 per cent of the market in Australia.

"The Alto will start to change that and then we get the Kizashi next year. We should see the production version of the Kizashi sometime towards the end of this year."