ROAD TEST:
Suzuki Splash 1.2 GL
The car companies have really conspired to ensure that there's no shortage of choice in the sub-R150 000 budget car market, but few have been as brave as Suzuki in positioning two of its own cars so closely.
Stroll into a Suzuki showroom and if the new Celerio cheapie doesn't float your boat, you can choose between a 1.2-litre Swift hatch, priced between R130 400 and R155 400, and a Splash that costs from R125 900 and R150 400. “Just let the customer decide” was Suzuki's answer to our question about the rather close pricing, which was even tighter at the time of launch.
Whereas the Swift is a pretty conventional and rather cool-looking B-segment hatch that's about the size of a Polo Vivo, the Splash comes across as something of a miniaturised minivan. It's a good 75mm shorter than its Swift sibling, but it has sprouted upwards to the tune of 90mm.
If you're vertically talented or you just have an afro that would make Marge Simpson turn from yellow to green, then here's an entry level car that you might just fit into comfortably. Its relatively long wheelbase and tall stature make the Splash spacious in all directions, but it's especially generous in the headroom department - offering far more, in fact, than the average person is ever going to need as well as easy entry and exit.
Not only is it spacious, even in the back mind you, but the cabin feels solidly bolted together and the surfaces are all of a really decent quality. The Splash, along with its Opel Agila sister car, have been around since 2008 abroad, but despite this it still has a modern look and feel that hardly shouts 'entry level'.
I took my test car on a road trip to the coast and the interior kept its end of the deal with comfortable seating, a roomy and airy feel and generously-sized storage compartments for drinks containers and other odds and ends. My girlfriend really appreciated this aspect and the storage tray beneath the passenger seat. The luggage needed a bit of a squeeze, but the 236 litre boot nonetheless swallowed the holiday gear we threw at it.
SLUGGISH
On the flipside, hitting the open road revealed what I believe is this car's biggest drawback: there's just not enough oomph to comfortably eat up those long-distance miles.
Not that it seems too underpowered on paper. Its 1.2-litre 16-valve, normally aspirated petrol engine delivers 63kW and 113Nm, which is quite reasonable at this price point. Yet the penny drops when you look at the licence disk and it reveals a 1090kg kerb weight. Given the car's age and Opel ties, I'm left to assume that it was designed at a time when carmakers were throwing weight at the safety conundrum rather than coming up with more lightweight solutions. At least it'll be pretty safe in a crash and the four-star EuroNCAP rating ( click here for the full report) attests to this.
Still, the price is sluggish performance on the open road, and I'm not saying this because I'm used to fast and flashy test cars. I've done the same route in a Renault Sandero and lapped up plenty of highway miles in a Toyota Etios Cross and both provided decent rural-road performance. The Splash, on the other hand, really struggled up hills, to the point where (despite using all momentum to my advantage and gearing down appropriately) I was slowing down traffic at times and even resorting to turning the aircon off.
The relatively low mileage of the test car could be part of the problem, but I wouldn't expect miracles from a run-in version and the bottom line is that this car is really at its happiest in urban confines.
CITY SLICKER
If that's where you plan to spend most of your driving time, the Splash is actually quite a compelling choice. In addition to all the interior plus points that I've already mentioned, it serves up a comfortable ride and it's really easy and painless to drive, with its light but communicative steering, smooth gear-shifting and spacious footwell.
The GL model under scrutiny here (yep, there's a stripped down GA for ten grand less), has all the creature comforts you'd want in a city runabout, including aircon, remote central locking, electric windows and mirrors, height-adjustable steering and a CD/USB/Aux sound system with steering wheel controls.
And what the engine lacks in sparkle, it gives you back in economy. Despite the pressure I put it under on the highway, it returned 5.5 litres per 100km on the down trip and after returning to Joburg and spending a week trundling around town (albeit in relatively light traffic), the onboard readout refused to nudge beyond the 6.1 l/100km mark.
VERDICT
The Splash is a well priced and comfortable town car that will particularly appeal to taller folk on a budget. It might be a bit of a drag on the open road, but as a city slicker it ticks all the right boxes. And big ups to Suzuki for providing so much choice at this end of the market, but given that, I think the Swift 1.2 would be more up my alley.
FACTS
Suzuki Splash 1.2 GL
Engine: 1.2-litre, four-cylinder petrol
Gearbox: Five-speed manual
Power: 63kW @ 6000rpm
Torque: 113Nm @ 4500rpm
0-100km/h (claimed): 12.3 seconds
Top speed (claimed): 160km/h
Consumption (claimed): 5.6 litres per 100km
Price: R135 400
Warranty: Three-year/100 000km
Service plan: Two-year/30 000km
ALTERNATIVES
Chevrolet Spark 1.2 LS (60kW/108Nm) - R138 800
Ford Figo 1.4 Ambiente (62kW/127Nm) - R141 900
Hyundai Grand i10 1.2 Motion (64kW/120Nm) - R147 900
Kia Picanto 1.2 EX (65kW/120Nm) - R146 995
Renault Sandero 0.9T Expression (66kW/135Nm) - R129 900
Suzuki Swift hatch 1.2 GL (63kW/113Nm) - R140 400
Toyota Etios hatch 1.5 Xs (66kW/132Nm) - R141 400
VW Polo Vivo 1.4 Conceptline (55kW/132Nm) - R143 800