Maruti Swift Dzire review, test drive

Twist the key and the familiar 1.3-litre, 74bhp engine settles into a smooth, refined idle. You’ll discover a bit of hesitation at low revs, but this engine’s power delivery has been tuned to be far less spiky than the old Dzire, so power comes in more smoothly when the turbo comes on. Still, it’s not as immediately responsive as the 1.4-litre DiCOR motor in the Indigo CS, so you do need a bit of planning when you slot in and out of gaps.

Post 1800rpm is where the action is, and the strong mid-range is where you should aim to be when you are driving. The engine is impressively refined and smooth at low and mid-rpms, but really doesn’t like being stretched to its redline. So it’s best when you use the mid-range, upshift early and power on. Because the engine, gearbox and kerb weight are identical to the Swift, the 13.4sec 0-100kph time is almost identical. It is beyond this where the Dzire’s slightly slipperier shape gives it a two-second advantage to 140kph. Even the in-gear times are, not surprisingly, very similar to the Swift.