Swift Maintains Record-Breaking New Zealand Run

Swift Maintains Record-Breaking New Zealand Run

The most successful Suzuki passenger car model ever sold in New Zealand has continued on its record-breaking way.

Once again the Suzuki Swift was the top selling new car in May, according to official Motor Industry Association figures.

Overall for the first five months of 2010, the Swift is the second best selling new car, beaten only by the Toyota Corolla and lying well clear of the third placed Holden Commodore.

In addition, the Swift is clearly the most popular supermini on the market, a position it has maintained in recent years.

Despite dominating the small car category in 2009, the Swift has further increased sales and improved its market penetration this year.

Swift has been an international success story for Suzuki with solid world wide sales and continued demand.

In Britain the compact Suzuki is among the top ten models for the lowest depreciating cars.

The authoratative Glass’s Guide in the UK said the Swift had a particularly strong residual value of 59.5 per cent after three years and 62,750 kilometres.

To celebrate the fifth birthday of the launching of the current model Swift, Maruti Suzuki in India invited owners to drive in unison through the streets of Gurgaon early in June.

A total of 342 Swifts took part, setting a Guinness World Record, while a further 1,400 Swifts gathered in Mumbai and 600 examples were attracted to a similar function in Chennai.

The Swift parade shatters the Guinness Record for one make of car in a parade set by Ford in New Zealand with 250 vehicles.

More than 600 Swifts took part in the Chennai parade but some owners did not comply with the regulations so the attempt was disallowed by Guinness.

Such has been the popularity of the model in India that local production has increased to more than 12,000 units a month, compared to an original target of 5,000 Swifts a month.

More than one million current model Swifts have been sold, including 450,000 in India. The world car is built in several locations and New Zealand sources its production from Japan.

Swift is now the top selling Suzuki in South Africa, and has become a favourite among young people in Saudi Arabia.

“The continued popularity of the Swift in New Zealand and elsewhere is testament to the strength of the model,” said Tom Peck, General Manager of Marketing for Suzuki New Zealand.

Nine versions of the Swift are available locally, ranging from the five-door XE which has an on-road recommended retail of $18,500, including five-year roadside assistance.

Apart from the range-topping $26,500 1.6-litre Sport variant, all Swifts boast an efficient 1.5-litre double overhead camshaft engine.

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