Suzuki Ignis Review

Suzuki Ignis prices from £7,499  Finance from £157.02 per month

City centre office blocks are built tall to provide as much space as possible, while using a small area of land.

Suzuki’s designers have used that philosophy when creating the Ignis. It doesn’t take up a great deal of space on the road, so parking and nipping through traffic is easy, but the car’s height makes the interior spacious and airy.

Like an office block, the Ignis is meant for the city, but is also available with four-wheel drive so it can cope with some off road conditions (think muddy grass slopes rather than boulder-strewn desert).

With a brief like that, it’s little surprise that the Ignis turned out with such a distinctive, some might say zany, look. If it’s not enough, there are a selection of graphics that can be added.

Its individuality continues inside, with a two-tone dashboard and body-coloured inserts that brighten up the car, and a central screen (just a radio on lower-specification models) that juts out from the middle.

The feel of the materials gives away the Suzuki’s budget price. With new cars starting from less than £11,000, it’s little surprise that the plastics are hard and less solid than those that you’ll find in the less-charismatic Volkswagen up!.

The Ignis’ extra height creates more headroom, while a sliding rear seat that’s fitted to all but the cheapest SZ3 car, allows you to ability to push it back and create a comfortable amount of legroom.

It feels as roomy as the the more-expensive Suzuki Swift. Luggage space is on a par with the Volkswagen up! and sister cars the Skoda Citigo and Seat Mii, with 260 litres available, which is reduced if the rear seat is moving back. The sliding seat also reduces the Ignis’ capacity to four passengers.

All Ignis models are powered by a 1.2-litre petrol engine which, while no ball of fire, is at least nippy around town.

There’s also a mild hybrid version called SHVS, which can recover a small amount of energy and provide a small power boost during acceleration. This boosts real-world fuel economy to around 58mpg from the 50mpg of the standard car.

Light, nippy and agile, the Ignis is great fun to drive. You sit quite high with a good view of the road and the corners of the car, so you can place it easily in bends.

It’s out on the open road that it’s less impressive and where it leans more in fast corners and can struggle to keep up with traffic, especially when fully loaded. At least the manual gear change is slick to use. An automatic is available, too.

Opt for the optional Allgrip four-wheel-drive version, and the price of the Ignis climbs - to almost £15,00 when new. It’s hard to justify, given the limited use that many buyers will make of it, as well as the availability of another characterful alternative: the Suzuki Jimny.

It’s still cheap, though, when compared with other tall crossover cars, such as the Volkswagen T-Cross, Seat Arona and Kia Stonic.

Apart from the lack of electric rear windows mid-specification SZ-T cars include most features that buyers look for, including air conditioning, alloy wheels and a touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for easy control of phone apps.

The standard Ignis onlay has a three star safety rating (out of five) from the independent Euro NCAP organisation because it lacks some effective assistance systems as standard. The score rises to a full five stars when fitted with the Dual Camera Brake Support system, an automatic emergency brake that can slow or stop the car to reduce the severity of a frontal cars, which is standard on SZ5 cars.

 

Key facts

Warranty	3 years/60,000 miles
Boot size	260 litres
Width	1690mm
Length	3700mm
Height	1595mm
Tax	£130 to £150 in the first year, £145 thereafter

Best Suzuki Ignis for...

Best for Economy – Suzuki Ignis SZ5 1.2 SHVS

Thanks to its small petrol engine supported by hybrid power, this version of the Ignis can do up to 54.1mpg. However, this figure falls to 48.6mpg, the lowest in the model range, when optional Allgrip four-wheel drive is added.

Best for Families – Suzuki Ignis SZ-T 1.2

If you have three children to carry, then the basic SZ3 is the version for you since it has three seats in the back. However, move up to SZ-T and you have two seats set in a sliding rear bench that can free up extra legroom or boot space. Being mid-spec it gets additional equipment and looks more stylish but still manages to undercut top-spec SZ5 trim by £1500.

Best for Performance – Suzuki Ignis SZ5 1.2 SHVS Allgrip

The addition of optional Allgrip four-wheel drive is enough to give this version of the Ignis the extra traction it needs to get off the line quicker than the other models in the range. That said, it’s only 0.3 seconds faster from 0-62mph than the SZ5 without Allgrip, has a lower top speed, costs more to buy and is the most uneconomical in the range.

One to Avoid – Suzuki Ignis SZ5 1.2 auto

The SHVS hybrid system is only available with SZ5 trim and the manual gearbox. Buy the SZ5 automatic and not only do you pay more for the gearbox but you also go without the hybrid system. You’re better off with the SZ-T auto, even if you must put up with manual rear windows.

History

Understanding Suzuki Ignis names

Trim SZ5

These indicate the car’s level of luxury with SZ3 being the most basic, and SZ5, the best equipped. In the middle is not SZ4 but, confusingly, SZ-T.

Engine 1.2 Dualjet

The figure 1.2 is the size of the petrol engine in litres. Dualjet is Suzuki’s name for its fuel injection system. SZ5 trim is the only one available with a hybrid power system, which Suzuki calls SHVS (Smart Hybrid Vehicle by Suzuki). It boosts power and economy, and reduces emissions.

Drive Allgrip

Allgrip is Suzuki’s name for its four-wheel drive system that’s an option with SZ5 trim.

Suzuki Ignis Engines

Suzuki Ignis Trims

Suzuki Ignis Reliability and warranty

Used Suzuki Ignis