We recently had the Suzuki Ignis for a week, the Ignis competes with rivals like the VW UP, Fiat 500 and the Toyota Aygo. Suzuki has done really well in offering consumers who are on a budget great value for money. From what we see consumers appreciate and love this. I mean they are the brand of the year, two years in the row, right?
The Suzuki Ignis GLX offers a sporty look that is available in two colour palettes; metallic blue with a white roof and mirrors and metallic red with a black roof and side-mirrors. The Ignis offers a host of personalised options which we think is really cool, making sure that your Ignis experience is truly a personal one, #likenoother.
You will need to fork out an extra R 20 000 for the GLX model but you do get some cool extras like alloy wheels, front fog lamps, rear park sensors, steering wheel audio and phone controls, keyless start, auto air-conditioning, Bluetooth, six speakers, chrome trim interior elements, LED projector headlamps and daytime running lights, and some pretty neat roof rails to name a few. Dual airbags, ABS and Isofix anchors are also standard on all models.
The Ignis is available in a 5-speed manual transmission and an automatic transmission which is considerably more expensive, and we don’t think it’s as simple and fun to drive as the manual which is mated to the 1,2-litre four-cylinder engine. The power output is just 61 kW with 113NM of torque but with the Ignis coming in at just 850 kg it certainly moves along well. The Ignis is capable of going from 0 to 100 km/h at 11,6 seconds with a top speed of 165 km/h.
The Ignis offered a soft, comfortable drive and is definitely economical to run around with. Fuel consumption is claimed at just 5,1 L/100 km for this manual model. Honestly, we did achieve the claimed 5.1L/100km but for the most part, we were able to get to 6,1L / 100km but really not far off the claimed figures.
The Ignis interior was quite pleasant, the black on white was a great extension of the funky exterior. There were sufficient storage areas for all your needs, including cup holders, a USB slot, cloth seats, a really retro looking aircon control unit which we thought was pretty sweet. If you think space is going to be an issue in this subcompact car you would be pleasantly surprised. The Ignis was more than sufficient for such a compact vehicle, we can understand why Suzuki dubbed it a compact crossover. The Ignis really offered much more than I expected from a car that, I remind you, is available at under R 200 000.
The Ignis is available in two models the GL and GLX with pricing starting at R 173 900 including a 2 Year/30 000km service plan and a 5 Year/100 000km warranty (Promotional: 5 Year/200 000Km). If that’s not great value, then I don’t know what is. Overall, if you are looking for something fun, sporty, relatively spacious and economical on a budget, I think you have found what you are looking for, but you can also check out the new Suzuki Swift which we really like too.
Ignis GLX Facts:
Price:R193 900
Engine:1,2 litre transverse four-cylinder
Power:61 kW
Torque:113 N.m
0-100 km/h:11,6 secs
Top Speed:165 km/h
Fuel Consumption:5,1 L/100 km
Transmission: five-speed manual
Maintenance Plan: 2-year/30 000 km service plan
