But along with the Swift comes a brand-new engine, the first to be thrown under the 2024 Maruti Swift Review: the Z12E. It is a three-cylinder unit, but at 1,197cc, the displacement remains the same as the outgoing four-pot K-Series unit of course its bore and stroke have been revised to 74mm and 92.8mm, respectively.
For better thermal efficiency, its compression ratio is relatively high at 13.0:1 (as compared with the older unit’s 11:1), and it has an electric water pump that lowers the direct load on the engine. Also included are a high porosity catalyst and a Lambda sensor to keep a check on emissions.
2024 Maruti Swift Review: Engine
The 2024 Maruti Swift Review doesn’t take the mild-hybrid system with this engine, though that is available in international markets, but it does offer an automatic stop-start system to save fuel and meet its emission reduction goals.
The three-cylinder unit brings some shake to life. For comparison, the old four-cylinder unit was completely vibration-free. As a result, you can feel some tremble at idle, particularly if you’re sitting in the front seat. But these vibrations fatten out on the move, and things get better from thereon.
2024 Maruti Swift Review: Torque
An 82hp and 112Nm of torque are modest, and 8hp and 1Nm lower than the outgoing petrol that powered the Swift, though Maruti has tuned the engine with a clear focus on drivability. It feels crisp in responses and takes off well enough and in a fairly peppy manner.
Very smooth power delivery and up to 3,000rpm, there is far more than enough performance to potter around town and even keep up with highway traffic.
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Driving enthusiasts, however, who like to spin the motor harder, will crave better mid-range acceleration and more paces at higher revs. There is a slight, gentle push in performance past 5,000 revs but the revs top out at 6,000rpm: a 300rpm decrease from before and a tad disappointing.
2024 Maruti Swift Review: Gearing & Interior
Its gearing is very similar to the outgoing – the final drive ratio and the first three gear ratios are identical, but its fourth and fifth gears are taller.
Designed with a new generation in mind, the 5-speed manual gearbox has been reborn, and in terms of smoothness as well as shift quality and precision, this unit is the best in the market. Assisting this manual is a new hydraulic clutch, which feels less snappy than before and is extremely light to use.
2024 Maruti Swift Review: Speed
We thrash it through our performance tests and discover that in absolute acceleration, this new Swift has taken a step backward. In manual guise, it sprints to 100kph from standstill in 13 seconds, making it over a second slower than the outgoing car, and interestingly, it is also slower than the Gen 1 2005 version.
However, this new three-cylinder redeems itself in rolling acceleration times, almost at par with the others, and in certain cases, even better than all its previous generations, making it the most drivable Swift till date.
On the other hand, its clutch-free, 5-speed automated manual transmission or AMT proves how this technology has graduated. And though this transmission upshifts to top gear as soon as possible in the interest of economy, it responds to accelerator inputs and doesn’t take long to downshift two or three gears when necessary.
Further, the 2024 Maruti Swift Review provides tiptronic or manual mode, whereby, unlike the automatic version, it will not upshift automatically and give you full control over the transmission; it will automatically downshift if the engine speeds fall low enough to prevent the engine from stalling.
However, a sporty hatch like the Swift deserves much better than an auto gearbox. It’s all right in everyday stop-go traffic but the engine-gearbox calibration isn’t fluid enough.
Spirited drivers, in particular, will be left disappointed as the AMT truly makes the Swift feel gutless. Under hard acceleration, the pause between the AMT shifts is more noticeable, and from a standstill, it takes nearly 3 seconds more than a manual Swift to do the 0-100kph dash.