May 25, 2005 may not hold particular relevance to the world at large but for Indians with anything more than a passing interest in cars, it was a red letter day. Because on that hot summer afternoon, Maruti launched its most exciting car in its then two-decade history — the Swift. That the car was being brought in mere months after it went on sale in Suzuki’s homeland of Japan promised much. The Maruti Swift was not going to be another last-gen hand-me-down product from abroad but a thoroughly modern one built to the latest international standards. It certainly looked like nothing else on Indian roads and, as an increasing number of buyers found out, drove like little else either. And we mean both in the best possible way.
Equipped with the 87bhp, 1.3 petrol engine from the Esteem, the original Swift quickly made a reputation for being somewhat of a hot hatch. Enthusiasts simply couldn’t get enough of it. In addition, the chic design, good ride and Maruti-typical excellent fuel economy won it ever more admirers across the cross section of the car buying public. And let’s not forget that it was also our Car of the Year 2006! Soon enough, the Maruti Swift made its entry into the list of best sellers in India, a position it hasn’t let go of in a decade.
By January 2007, the Swift found its 100,000th buyer in India. Of course, 2007’s next big moment for the Swift was the introduction of the diesel version. It featured the now ubiquitous Fiat-sourced 1.3 Multijet and just widened the car’s appeal further. Buyers clearly couldn’t have enough of it and Maruti just couldn’t make enough of them. It literally got to a point where bakers wished their hot cakes would sell as fast as the Swift. The sales trajectory will tell you we aren’t overstating things. Maruti sold its 200,000th Swift in March 2008, 300,000th Swift in February 2009 and 500,000th Swift in January 2010.
