Articles by Peter Anderson

One of the vehicles that spearheaded the SUV boom, the Honda CR-V, is entering its fourth iteration. With over five million sales over the last eighteen years, Honda seems to have finally become confident and made a car that you not only want to buy, but might want to look at, too.The CR-V range starts with the entry-level two-wheel drive VTi and stretches to the four-wheel drive VTi-L. We had a VTi-L which weighs in at $42,290, with just a set of unattractive floor mats fitted as extras.The 2WD models make do with a 114kW 2.0 litre and 6-speed manual or optional five speed auto, 17-inch alloys and a reversing camera. They go without an extra seventy kilos of four-wheel drive gear, too.The 4WD models are propelled by a 2.4 litre with 140kW and 222Nm of torque, with just the five-speed automatic available. The L has handsome 18-inch alloy wheels, front parking sensors, keyless entry and start, sunroof, sat-nav, bluetooth and impressive HID headlights with cornering lights.The front seats are electric with eight-way adjustment for the driver, four-way for the passenger, and both are heated. Leather covers all the seats, but nothing else. Sadly absent is the 2.2 litre diesel available in Europe on UK-built cars, but a new 1.6 litre turbodiesel expected to join the range sometime in 2013.The CR-V is backed by Honda's 3 year/100,000km warranty and Honda is yet to get on the fixed or capped-price servicing bandwagon. The CR-V has many rivals in a hugely competitive segment.Its fiercest, the Mazda CX-5, has been in Australia for around a year. Replacing the hugely popular and almost ubiquitous CX-7, it too has two ranges of two- and all-wheel drive. There is one petrol engine, the 2.0 litre SkyActiv. This engine uses less fuel but matches the power output of the 2.0 litre i-VTEC in the Honda.The CX-5 trumps the Honda with a diesel option and with an extra gear on the automatic transmission. The range starts at $27,800 for the Maxx petrol manual and tops out at the Grand Touring Diesel's $46,200, a few thousand more than the VTi-L. The closest equivalent to the L is the Grand Touring Petrol at $43,280.Toyota's RAV4, soon to be replaced, kicks off with the humourously named Altitude 2WD 2.4 litre at $24,490 and goes right through to the V6-equipped ZR6 at $49,990. The top of the four-cylinder range is the $41,990 Cruiser L. Like the Honda, the Toyota is well-built and solidly reliable. It's also about to be replaced.The Hyundai Santa Fe can be had in petrol or diesel and in Elite form is $45,990. For that you get a 145kW/420Nm 2.2 litre diesel with a six-speed automatic transmission, leather upholstery, as well as roof-rails.There's a knee airbag and downhill brake control for tricky off-road work, sat-nav and Hyundai's extensive warranty and fixed-price servicing. You have to go to the Highlander spec to get the panoramic sunroof and Xenon lights.The Sportage, the Santa Fe's under-the-skin twin tops out at the $40,990 Platinum diesel. While wanting little on equipment and power, badge-snobbery may be a problem for some buyers as well. Like the Hyundai, it has a good warranty and servicing regime as well as a lower official fuel consumption figure.There are many, many more rivals to the CR-V, both below and beyond its price range. These include the Volkswagen Tiguan and the Volvo XC60, neither of which can match the lengthy standard features of their Asian rivals for the same money.The new CR-V's design is light years ahead of the bitty, plasticky design of the old. Honda has finally put a face on the CR-V that you will recognise and like. If you're not paying attention, you might at first think it's the handsome Kia Sportage from the front or a Volvo from the rear.The profile is also more pleasing, with an evolution of the rear quarter window to a soft arrowhead, echoed by the trademark stacked tail lights. Less pleasing is the unpainted plastic trim fitted to the base of the bumpers, sills and around the arches.It's supposed to look chunky and urban but looks like a penny-pinch, something inherited from the previous model. The chromed door handles also feel less than substantial with a loose action that doesn't exactly scream quality.Inside is an improvement on the old, partly because it's better packaged. The new CR-V is two centimetres shorter, fifteen millimetres lower and compared to the old CR-V Luxury, is 50kg lighter.Despite being shorter on the outside, the space inside has improved, even with the racily-angled rear screen. Much of the improvement comes from the spaces being more sensibly shaped, with little intrusion from rear suspension towers in the load area and a low, flat boot floor.The interior plastics mark very easily, with just a week of normal use in our hands leaving white marks on almost every surface. While it might be simple to wipe these marks away, they appear during normal, everyday use. With a bunch of rowdy kids or mates bowling in and out of the car, it would be like a Jackson Pollock painting within a day.The front seats are comfortable but unsupportive in corners and the driving position needs some effort to get right. This will annoy those who have to share a car with another driver as there's no memory position for the electric driver's seat.The central console has space for three cup holders, a slot for a phone (an iPhone 5 fits perfectly on its side) and one for the key fob. The instrument cluster is dominated by a huge speedo in the middle, and in its centre is a circular information screen that looks like a dilated pupil, housing a trip computer and warning information.A screen sits high in the dash's centre while the infotainment and navigation screen is lower on the face of the dash. Connectivity for music players is via Bluetooth streaming or USB in the central console.The 7-inch touch screen on this Thai-built model is easy to use but the graphical design for the audio controls looks like an amateur effort, from the icon design to the oddly contrasting colours. This cheap-looking unit is different to those found in similar spec CR-Vs overseas and smacks of cost-cutting.The stereo controls appear missing in action but are in reality small, fiddly and hard to see. The steering wheel mounted stereo controls are much more usable and can be operated by feel rather than having to look down.The navigation system is simple and has SUNA traffic updates. The maps are not well-detailed and it takes a very long time for route calculations. The back seat is wide, high and comfortable, if a bit flat and short in the squab. There's stacks of leg, head and shoulder room and an almost completely flat floor.There's also cup holders in the fold-down centre armrest, joining the water-bottle shaped crevices in the doors. A wide tailgate aperture affords access to the expansive load area. The rear seats can be released either from the rear doors by a strap in the seat base or via handles in the boot.They're quite impressive, too - the headrests drop, the squab springs up and the backrests fold flat in one, easy, entertaining movement. The flimsy-feeling boot floor could do with slidey plastic strips, but this is nit-picking. It hides a full-size spare, which is a welcome inclusion.The boot will swallow an impressive 556 litres with the seats in place. Put them down and the space doubles to 1120 litres. It's actually more, because Honda only counts the volume up to the window line.The 2.4 litre VTi engine pumps out 140kW at a very high 7000rpm and 222Nm at 4400rpm. Honda claims 8.7l/100km on the combined cycle but you'll be very lucky to see that figure if ours was anything to go by. On the plus side, the engine runs on 91 octane petrol.The AWD system is full-time and works seamlessly on dry and wet tarmac as well as loose surfaces. We never once saw the traction control light, even under provocation on an awkward uphill dirt road.The 5-star ANCAP rated CR-V comes with six airbags, including curtain airbags. ABS, EBD and all-wheel drive are standard. These are supplemented with traction control and stability control, neither of which you are likely to see in the dry unless you do something amazingly stupid. The dashboard's pupil screen also tells you who has failed to belt up, very handy in a car aimed at young families.The steering wheel adjusts for rake and reach, but both directions are limited in scope, with the wheel a long way from vertical at its shallowest angle. Once you get the driving position right, it feels like a car, although saying that these days feels a little silly.It's been so long since an SUV didn't have a car-like driving position, pointing it out is unnecessary. You sit reasonably high but it doesn't feel excessive - you won't be absent-mindedly humming Ride of the Valkyries on the way to work or soccer training.Yes, you still look down a little on "normal" traffic, but it's not a teetering high-rider like the earlier CR-Vs. Although the power is delivered up at the redline, the car's relaxed character is a nice surprise as there's enough of it from 3000rpm onwards.The 2.4 litre engine puts on an excellent show hauling the 1580kg CR-V about. Despite a sizeable gap between first and second gears, the Honda is very easy to drive around town and on the highway, rarely needing a shove of the accelerator to get it moving.The gearbox and throttle are a willing team, with smooth shifts and an eagerness to shift up or down at sensible times. Loading the car with people and gear will obviously slow it down and force you to work the engine harder - this really shows up the torque deficit.One of the Honda's little tricks is the Econ mode. Ostensibly to encourage you to drive in a more green-minded manner, the little green button on the dash actually does something.The air-con is dialled back a bit, throttle response softened and a pair of lights bordering the speedo light up green when you roll off the gas, shaming you into keeping them lit.We were a bit sceptical, dismissing it as a bit of a gimmick, but we grit our teeth and left it on - we saw the fuel consumption drop from 12.5l/100km to 11.4l/100km. That may not seem like a lot, but when it's sucking fuel like a Commodore V6, every little bit helps. Roll on the diesel.Enthusiastic cornering will bring on plenty of body roll and the soft rear end will feel a little wayward, but a car full of people will ensure you slow down before the car decides you have to.The steering feels okay, if a little on the light side, but makes for easy parking and city twirling. The lack of feedback might mean a relaxing drive most of the time but could use a bit more communication so you're not left guessing which way the front wheels are pointing.The ride is good but unexpectedly fidgety on pockmarked surfaces. It handles bigger bumps very well, no matter how heavily laden.With a cathedral-like interior, reasonable spec and a good engine and gearbox, the new CR-V is very promising.Apart from the space however, the Honda is just another car in the pack. There's nothing wrong with it (absent diesel excepted) but it has to deal with some very stiff competition from brands that even three years ago looked highly unlikely to challenge.It does, though, have the badge and more experience at building these compact SUVs than almost anyone. There hasn't been a genuinely bad Honda for over two decades, so you know the purchase will be a sound one.

The Lexus IS 250C has been with us for a long, long time and the convertible is due for a reboot soon along with the rest of the range, heralded by the new model unveiled at Detroit motor show this week.Meantime, to help keep sales bubbling, and capitalise on the success of the F-Sport trim level – which takes up 30 per cent of IS sales -- there is now an IS250C wearing the F badge on the front quarter panels.With the F-Sport adding some visual and chassis changes it is a genuinely different car – not as distanced as, say, BMW's M Sport packages, but enough for us to have another look.VALUEThe IS250 F-Sport sits in the middle of a three-tiered convertible range. The IS 250C Prestige kicks off at $76,800 while the $94,800 Sports Luxury puts $13k of clear air between itself and the $81,800 F Sport.The headline items on the F Sport include sat-nav, Bluetooth, reversing camera and front and rear park assist, LED daytime running lights, Xenon headlights, new grille and front bumper and graphite 18-inch alloys.All are powered by the same 2.5 litre V6, good for 153kW and 252Nm of torque. Combining variable valve timing and direct injection, the powerplant is properly Lexus - revvy, but so, so smooth.The interior also benefits on the F-Sport - silver stitching on the leather, sports pedals, a new roof lining and unique seat and dash trim. The seats themselves are electrically operated as is the steering wheel, which adjusts for reach and rake. The seats have three memory positions, which also store the steering wheel position. The front seats also score heating and cooling.Our test car also had the active cruise control and pre-collision safety system, which is standard on the Sports Luxury. The same enhancement pack brings the 12 speaker Mark Levinson stereo with bluetooth and USB connectivity, adding $4615 before luxury car tax.The IS250 benefits from Lexus' 48-month/100,000km warranty and as a Lexus owner, you'll never need to darken a dealer's door again - as long as you own the car, the company will fetch it from you when it requires a service. Alternatively, if you so choose, Lexus will supply a loaner while your car is serviced. You won't get that as "standard" from the European marques.Volvo's folding hardtop C70 T5 is as close as you'll get for a genuine competitor. The T5S starts at $61,950 and packs Volvo's characterful (and thirsty) Ford-sourced 169kW turbo five cylinder. It's as slow as the Lexus, uses more fuel and is not a sharp drive.The T5 (yes, the pricier version has a shorter name) adds full leather, different steering wheel and stereo and adds adaptive headlights and Volvo's renowned safety innovations. Both block and parry each other for specification items but the Volvo's newer design is more coherent.The fabric-roofed BMW 3 Series Convertible range starts at $81,318 for the 320d. Developing 135kW and a muscular 380Nm of torque, the diesel will carry you to 100km/h in 8.4 seconds and a combined fuel figure of 5.1l/100km. You will need to tick a few boxes before achieving the same spec level as the Lexus but there's also a lot more stuff to choose from.After-sales service doesn't come close to matching Lexus' generous offering and, like the IS, the E93 is soon to be sent on its way. Audi's A5 Cabriolet is Audi's closest contender, which starts at $77,779 for a 125kW 1.8 TFSI litre petrol engine, and that's before the addition of the F-Sport equivalent, the S-Line. The A5 bests the Lexus' fuel figures, but struggles with rather less power.It also has a fabric roof and substantially less equipment. Like the BMW, many boxes will require ticking to match the Lexus' specification. The range stretches to the $100,108 3.0 TFSI quattro. A slightly left-field alternative is the sober Volkswagen EOS which starts at a tick under $50,000 for the 103 TDI and just over that mark for the 155TSI.DESIGNThe IS 250C was introduced at the 2008 Paris Motor Show and…well, is showing its era. From front bumper to the A-pillar, the 250C is as elegant as its gracefully ageing sedan sibling (introduced in 2005), or would be were it not for the tacked on plastic pieces that form part of the F-Sport package.From top of the windscreen back -- and with the roof up -- it looks slabby and a bit of a mess. The roof's arc doesn't gel with the rest of the design or identify well with the sedan, and the result is ungainly. The wheels look too small and the accommodation for the folded roof called for a rising beltline that magnifies the boot's size and deck height. Lexus designers have tried to disguise the rump by increasing the size of the rear lights.Once the roof is folded away, the proportions do improve, but it's impossible to hide that very high-set backside. Another sign of the IS250C's age is that the car must be stationary before you can fold or unfold the roof, while many rivals allow a gentle pace to be maintained during the roof's operation.Being a Lexus, fit and finish is exceptional. Even on this older design, everything is tight and the paint is beautiful. The roof's folding operation barely makes a sound and what little you do hear are reassuring clicks, clunks and whirrs. Materials in the cabin are like any other Lexus, with soft-feel plastics and supple leather on the seats.It's clear the dash wasn't really intended for a convertible as the central screen is angled the wrong way -- with the roof stowed, sunlight reflects into your eyes and obscures the screen. The main dials, though, are super-bright and set deep into the dash.The 250C could kindly be called a 2+2. There is no centre seat in the rear and passengers would have to be of the short, tolerant variety, with cropped or no hair to suffer the strong buffeting from the wind at speed.TECHNOLOGYThe IS250C shares the 2.5 litre V6 with the sedan. Despite its advancing years, there are few engines that match it for smoothness and refinement. Direct injection and dual variable valve timing help the unit to 153kW at 6400rpm and 252Nm of torque at 4800rpm.The car needs every last kW and Nm, however, as it weighs in at a portly 1700kg. Missing is stop-start for fuel saving, which would be handy given its true thirst of 11.5l/100km. The IS350's 3.5 litre V6 is not available in Australian-delivered convertibles.SAFETYSix airbags, including two kneebags (in lieu of curtain airbags) are fitted to the IS250C. Active safety features include ABS, brake force distribution, traction control and stability control. A rear-facing camera is essential and, thankfully, standard on the IS250C - you can't see a thing behind you and it's almost impossible to judge where the elephantine rear ends.DRIVINGWith the roof up, the IS250C's on road dynamics are not far at all from the 250 sedan's. The overall road manners of the F-Sport are, if anything, an improvement despite firmer springs and dampers and bigger wheels. The F-Sport chassis tweaks reduce roll and introduce a little more discipline.The 250C's rear-wheel drive dynamics are still apparent, but the extra weight of the 250C's bracing blunt the handling. Turn-in is a little woolly and it understeers a lot earlier than you might expect. With the roof folded away, things begin to deteriorate.While it's no Saab 900 convertible (which had all the structural integrity of Rolf Harris' wobbleboard) the steering column shakes in corners and over sharp bumps and ridges in the road. It's not encouraging, but nor does it ever lose composure.The giveaway that the chassis isn't coping is the way the front tyres sound like they're struggling for grip even at low speeds, trying to keep everything on the straight and narrow. Then again, chucking an IS250C through corners is missing the point.It's far more of a boulevardier, a car you buy to carry you between fun things while letting you have fun on the way. It's far more enjoyable if you ease off and let the car dictate your pace. Through it all, however, the ride is impeccable, even with the F-Sport's firmer disposition. It suits the character of the car perfectly without letting things get out of hand.The engine struggles with the extra weight but, like a good butler, never lets you know it's under pressure. The transmission is sometimes a little jerky on the upshift, but only under a more-than-moderate throttle or after an abrupt lift-off. The six-speed transmission can be actuated with steering wheel mounted paddles that are actually nice to use.While the gearbox claims to be intelligent, it takes too long to drop a gear or two on steep descents. This is a problem while using cruise control as you can't depend on the car to stay near the speed you've chosen, requiring your intervention to slow the car.The electric power steering system is well-suited to the car, but keen drivers will notice a lack of feedback. Our test car was fitted with Active Cruise Control, part of the Enhancement Pack. This option is a double-edged sword -- you won't have to monitor the car in front but it lulls you into a state of apathy -- you'll occasionally peer down and realise you're dawdling along much slower than the speed you've set because you're behind a slow-moving vehicle. It's far more useful in urban motorway traffic rather than outright freeway cruising.VERDICTThe IS range is not long for this world but for most buyers, it's hardly an issue. As a relaxed cruiser and almost-practical coupe, the IS250C is hard to beat as long as you aren't expecting class-leading anything. It's probably as middle of the road as it's possible to get but at the same time leads the way on build quality, noise and driving refinement -- the engine and ride are true standouts in a pretty good package.However it uses a lot more fuel than most of its competitors, is down on performance and some people will find the looks challenging. But to many buyers of a car like this, none of that really matters. You can't help but enjoy a car like this with the roof down on a beautiful summer's evening. Added to that, the IS250C stands alone in this class by having the security of a hard top roof and that might just be enough to clinch it.Lexus IS250C F-SportPrice: from $76,800Engine: 2.5-litre 6-cylinder, 153kW/252NmTransmission: 6-speed auto, RWDThirst: 9.3L/100Km, CO2 219g/km

Suzuki's first attempt at a mid-sized car, the Kizashi, couldn't have been much braver. The Japanese company chucked itself into a market that -- in Australia at least -- is becoming more and more competitive.The standard Kizashi is an intriguing prospect, partly because hardly anyone buys them and there doesn't seem to be a good reason for that, apart from badge snobbery. The Kizashi Sport is even more intriguing, given Suzuki's sporting heritage in strange pursuits such as the annual and treacherous Pike's Peak hillclimb in the US.VALUEThe Suzuki Kizashi range starts at $27,990 for the Touring and reaches the $39,990 Sport AWD via the $34,990 Prestige. Suzuki's first ever mid-size car, the Kizashi is a distinctive-looking machine, even with competition from the svelte Mazda6 and technocratic-looking Honda Accord. And it's far better-looking than the Subaru Liberty.It gets a chunky, hunkered down look with lowered suspension and a set of handsome 18-inch alloys. The Sport is also distinguishable by deeper front and rear bumpers, a subtle bootlid spoiler and chrome accents. The Sport is based on the Prestige - both have electric seats, leather interior, sunroof, automatic HID headlights, fog lamps, rain sensing wipers, front and rear parking sensors, bluetooth and USB connectivity and seven speakers for the stereo.As with all Kizashis, the steering wheel adjusts for rake and reach, has cruise control, keyless entry and start, dual zone climate control and trip computer. The interior is particularly well-executed and includes generously upholstered leather inserts on the doors and silver stitching unique to this trim level, with perforated panels on the squab and back.The leather seats are soft but slippy and, unfortunately, the front seats are hard and too flat. As this one was fresh from the factory, the leather probably had some stretching to do, but there's not enough support. Front and rear parking sensors are backed up by an in-dash radar display as well as a reversing camera that uses the sat-nav screen. The 6.1-inch screen isn't quite bright enough and looks like an aftermarket unit. It makes up for it by being easy to use and, in contrast to other Suzuki Bluetooth units, is easy to set up. The Kizashi faces serious competition, both direct and indirect. Mazda's new 6 has just arrived, with a very pretty new body. The bottom-of-the-range Sport kicks off at $33,460 and already runs the Kizashi close on equipment. The logical rival in the 6 range is the Touring at $37,500. The 6 has a few more kilowatts and another 20Nm of torque and also carries less weight and uses less fuel. There is no AWD option but there is a diesel engine available.The Subaru Liberty 2.5i trumps the 6 and matches the Kizashi's AWD and CVT at $34,990. It's down on power but is a more relaxed engine than the Suzuki's. The Liberty isn't nearly as well equipped (you'll need to go to the $42,990 Premium) and on the styling front is a bit gawky.  It's less fun to drive, too, but has Subaru's bulletproof reputation to fall back on, as well as a price closer to the Kizashi Prestige.Other players in this size and price bracket include the Volkswagen Jetta and the Hyundai i45. Neither are particularly sporty and in the VW's case, a bit on the small side.TECHNOLOGYThe 2.4-litre VVT four-cylinder engine, shared with the rest of the range, develops 131kW at 6500rpm and brings along 230Nm for the ride. The Kizashi's transmission, a continuously variable unit with a six-speeds for sport mode, valiantly makes the most of the power and torque. Paddles on the steering wheel control the "gears" in the CVT.An evolution of the SX4's, the Sport's AWD system is activated with a dash-mounted switch. When in AWD mode, torque is sent to the rear wheels in response to the stability control system's sensors, as well as information from the steering and engine. Up to half the engine's torque can be sent rearward. Suspension on the Sport is 10mm lower and rides a set of 10 spoke 18-inch alloys wrapped in 235/45 Yokohamas.DESIGNFor a first effort, the Kizashi is a fine-looking car. The wheels are pushed right out to the corners, escaping the long front overhang of many all-wheel drive sedans. While a little tubby from some angles, the overall design is coherent and consistent. The Sport adds chrome trim that works in some places -- but the silver blades on the door look chintzy and wobble. The bright red of our test car magnified the chrome's blinginess.The interior is well put together and is better than most Suzuki interiors by a good margin. There's a lot of space inside, with good leg and shoulder room in the front and good room for two in the back, but centre rear footroom is compromised by a pronounced transmission tunnel. Even with a sunroof, there's enough headroom up front if you're under 190cm, but you'll want to be shorter in the back.The plastics all fit well and barring a couple of colour mismatches, look and feel good. However, if you knock on the dash top, someone three houses down will come to their front door. They're that hard. The boot is a commodious 480 litres and can be enlarged by dropping the 60/40 split rear seats.SAFETYThe Kizashi scored five stars in ANCAP testing. The whole range has ABS, front, side and curtain airbags and a knee bag for the driver. Stability and traction control are standard, as is brake force distribution and emergency brake assist and adds AWD. The Sport is also equipped with a reversing camera, useful from a safety perspective - the very high boot deck obscures the rear view.DRIVINGWith all that weight and a distinct lack of power, the Kizashi Sport is more a touring sedan than sports sedan. The lack of torque means the engine and transmission work together to keep the engine spinning in its upper reaches. As brave as it is, this little red engine was never going to set records.The steering is slightly under-geared, meaning you have to turn the wheel a bit more than is ideal when bombing around the suburbs or flying through the bends. Despite the adjustable wheel, the driving position is hard to get right. The pedals seem a bit too close, bringing to mind Alfa Romeo driving positions from the late 70s. It's not quite that bad, but the short leg/long arm feel is unmistakeable.Suzuki claims a 0-100km/h time of 8.8 seconds, but that seems a little ambitious from behind the wheel and is a second slower than the manual Touring. The 70kg weight impost of the AWD system is partially to blame. The upside is that the Kizashi rides comfortably and is hushed when you're moving, except for a bit of tyre noise at speed. The handling is confident and on a stretch of good back road with all-wheel drive switched on, it's a lot of safe fun. It's not exciting, but it's satisfying.The CVT gearbox is impeccably-mannered, and at times feels like a traditional torque converter, with smooth uptake under acceleration. When pushing on, it's best to use the paddles as the CVT doesn't do engine braking and if you're not careful, your speed can get away from you. The plastic paddles, however, are a bit nasty and you need long fingers to easily reach them.On balance, the car is fine in two-wheel drive on everything but wet or loose surfaces – where it needs the AWD system to be sure-footed. But being able to switch it off means you can save a bit of fuel, which is important because we found it impossible to match the Kizashi's claimed 8.4l/100km - we got closer to 12l/100km.VERDICTThe Kizashi Sport doesn't make an enormous amount of sense unless you are going to appreciate the  benefits of slightly better handling and the security of AWD. A lack of manual transmission is also a strange omission. Setting all of that aside, if you forget that it's not really a sporty sedan but a convenient monicker for the top-of-the-range, the Sport does make sense. It's got plenty of gear, is well-built and even stands up well to its moneybags Japanese competition from Mazda, Honda and Subaru.When you remember that Suzuki as a company is much smaller than most of its competition and doesn't have the benefit of a huge global partner to supply it with parts and knowledge, the Kizashi looks even better. While $39,990 might seem a stretch, the Sport is well-equipped, looks great in the right colour and is as much fun as you can have in the segment before a $60,000 price tag with a German accent. And on top of that, you're supporting the underdog.Suzuki Kizashi SportPrice: from $39,990Warranty: 3 years/100,000kmSafety rating: 5 star ANCAPEngine: 2.4-litre 4-cyl, 131kW/230NmTransmission: CVT; AWDThirst: 8.4L/100km, 198g/km CO2Dimensions: 2.7m (L), 1.8m (W), 1.5m (H)Weight: 1600kg

The Suzuki Swift hatch holds a special place in the hearts of Australian drivers, especially those who remember the peppy little GTi version last seen in 1999.With the blink-and-you'll-miss-it-new-model Swift update in 2010, fans were disappointed that the GTi still wasn't back on the list. For now, the Swift Sport is about as close to a GTi as Suzuki is likely to get. So is it convincing enough to coax buyers into its brick-like body?VALUEPriced from $23,990, the Swift Sport is $4000 more than the Swift GLX and a stout $6000 more than the faux-sporty RE.2. That extra cash buys you an upgrade from the 1.4 litre to the 1.6 litre VVT engine, a host of interior and exterior upgrades and a series of very effective chassis tweaks. The interior scores a six-speaker CD audio system with remote controls on the steering wheel, USB and Bluetooth phone and music streaming. You also get cruise control, headlight washers and keyless entry and start. The HID headlights are excellent, which was a pleasant surprise. An unpleasant surprise was the obnoxious beeping when the car is locked or unlocked.Hyundai's Veloster is the closest competitor philosophically and financially. The lack of proper rear access and the challenging looks play against the Hyundai, but it’s better-equipped and runs the Swift respectably close for road ability. The Veloster starts at an identical $23,990 and also has a double-clutch transmission option.Ford's Fiesta Zetec is down on power and torque and goes without the sportier chassis tune the Swift has, but is $3000 cheaper. The Fiesta's lower price you with some spare change to spend on the lengthy options list which includes the Powershift DCT double-clutch transmission. Both these cars best the Swift Sport's bizarre optional $2000 CVT auto with seven fake steps built in for the benefit of paddle-shifter fans.TECHNOLOGYThe 1.6-litre VVT develops 100kW of power and 160Nm of torque with the aid of variable valve timing. The six-speed manual manages 6.5l/100km on the combined cycle but is a little better on a steady freeway run. We saw 6.1l/100km in a mix of city stop-start driving, back road blasting and some freeway work. The chassis is a livelier package than the non-Sport Swifts, courtesy of re-tuned dampers and stiffer springs front and rear.DESIGNThe Swift's cheery face has been with us for two years, but in reality it's very similar to the car that preceded it -- which debuted eight years ago at Paris motor show. The current Swift grew in every direction but kept the same visual formula. It's a pleasingly chunky, upright shape and with the bigger wheels looks like a brightly-coloured Pixar-styled bug ready to leap into action, far more so than its under-wheeled brethren.On the Sport, you'll find deeper front and rear bumpers, side skirts, 17-in alloys, foglamps and a wing over the tailgate. The detailing on the Sport's ostensibly aero-related improvements give the car a more sporting, aggressive character -- you'll not mistake it for a lesser-equipped sibling. Inside is a big improvement over the lower models, with sports front seats and leather steering wheel. The slightly ill-fitting, scratchy plastics remain -- as does that haunting suspicion that something will start squeaking because the materials are so hard.As with the rest of the Swift range, the high roof is perfect for really tall people or those who like to wear their hair metro-gel high. The boxy, upright styling delivers a lot of cabin space, which is maximised by high-set rear seats. Shoulder room front and rear is hardly galactic and you may knock elbows while shifting gears. The boot looks ludicrously small when you first pop the tailgate. There's a false floor, but that extra space doesn't go a long way to making it a serious proposition.SAFETYThe Swift is packed with safety gear - ABS, front, side and curtain airbags as well as a knee bag for the driver. Stability and traction control are standard, as is brake force distribution and emergency brake assistance, helping the Suzuki to its 5-star ANCAP rating.DRIVINGIt takes a while to warm to the Swift. The manual gearbox is notchy and noisy, almost to the point of obstructive. A light touch is needed for a clean shift but the clunk-clunk-clunk is a little tiring. The clutch is light and the bite point could be anywhere, you can't really feel it. The electric steering is devoid of life, but quick and well-weighted.Despite the promise of the twin exhausts poking through the rear bumper, the noise isn't hugely inspiring and you begin to wonder what the fuss is about. Once you're moving, the car's dynamic ability quickly becomes apparent. Even though the ride is comfortable, the front end is super sharp, no doubt helped by a set of grippy 195/45 Bridgestone RE050s wrapped around 17-inch alloys.Nothing beats physics like a light kerb weight, something other manufacturers have taken a while to grasp. The Swift's 1060kg is 50kg lighter than the old model and lighter than most of its competition, making it agile and eager to change direction. We might, however, forgive a little more weight if it went to noise and vibration suppression - tyre roar is intrusive at high speed on anything but the smoothest surface and the pedals buzz more than we'd like.The 100kW power figure is adequate, but the 160Nm of torque is firmly at the bottom end of acceptable, forcing you to work the gearbox on even modest inclines. The torque arrives at 4400rpm, meaning you need to keep the needle pointing north by north-east to get the best out of the engine. It revs cleanly and happily, but you'll not want to stray too close to the redline as the engine runs out of puff and starts to thrash a bit.While getting up to speed can be a bit of a chore and won't trouble your neck muscles, keeping that pace is a genuine hoot. The Swift can be flung at corners at quite high speeds and it will hang on gamely before gentle understeer sets in, easily sorted with a lift of the throttle. The grip is surprising and while the chassis is moving around underneath you, it's never unnerving and always letting you know what's going on between each tyre and the road.The whole time the car stays remarkably flat and resists being knocked off-line by mid-corner bumps. The strong brakes never seem to give up, despite them looking tiny behind the big wheels. Again, the steering doesn't talk to you, but the chassis itself gives you plenty to go on with. Once you're past the apex of a corner, it almost begs you to get back on the throttle – and it promises to be a riot on the track.It feels a lot like the true spiritual successor to the original Mini, a fun car for drivers on a budget. Suzuki themselves were on a budget and choosing to put their effort into the chassis rather than chasing steering feel or a snick-snick gearbox to please the purists was the right choice.VERDICTYou could complain that the Swift is no GTi and that it needs more power, but that's missing the point. The comparatively low power and torque figures means the chassis will never be overwhelmed and it puts the driver in charge of the car, gets you involved and thinking ahead about gearshifts and braking. You'll hardly ever see the traction control light blinking at you.It shares little of the high-tech features its main competition enjoys and will have a harder job if Renault ever makes good on its unspoken threats and finally releases the Renaultsport Twingo. While lagging a bit on power and gear, the Swift is bags of fun once you're moving and the softness in its character means it is never hyperactive around town, its most likely habitat.It won't replace the Swift GTi in our hearts, but the combination of five doors, excellent handling and mechanical simplicity means the Swift Sport stands on its own as a budget sportster you can live with.Suzuki Swift SportPrice: from $23,990Warranty: 3 years/100,000kmSafety rating: 5-star ANCAPEngine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl petrol 100kW/160NmTransmission: 6-speed manual, FWDBody: 3.9m (L); 1.7m (w); 1.5m (h)Weight: 1060kgThirst: 6.5L/100km; 98 RON; 153g/km CO2