Suzuki Dzire GA 5MT review: I desire the Suzuki

By: Dylan Naidoo

Cold weather just hit Durban recently, quite the departure from the days before. It feels like the Durban weather is having mood swings. One day it is bright and hot, the sun beating down with extreme humidity. And the next day? Cold like when it snowed on Drakensberg. As such, it is important to get to work in a car that manages every adolescent phase of the Durban weather, with strong air-conditioning to handle those humid days, and cozy heating to handle those cold rainy days too. And the Suzuki Dzire? Well, let’s just say climate control is only scratching the surface of the positives about this car.

Technology and Engineering

The Suzuki Dzire is a small, budget friendly sedan, like its rivals the Honda Amaze and the South African built Corolla Quest. The model for review is the base manual model, featuring a 1.2l engine paired with a 5-speed manual. Power is great. Even with the aircon on, the car managed to hold its own at high speeds.

As standard, the Dzire is equipped with a touchscreen infotainment system, electric windows and a bright personality. It features six airbags as standard, and scored an impressive 5 - star safety rating at the Global NCap. This feature took me by surprise. It is quite rare to see small cars in this segment with a full 5-star safety rating, so this rating is a  welcome addition. So why did I talk about the weather? Honestly, it’s due to how great the climate control is. The Dzire’s climate control instantly cools or warms the car. Along with this, the climate control is quite easy to use, with easy to adjust switches and buttons. Overall, just like the Grand Vitara, the Dzire stands out with its climate control, which makes me notice a pattern with Suzukis.

The ride was also great. It is quite common for cars in this price range to be pretty rough, but I did not have this issue with the Dzire. It drove smoothly with very little bumps being felt on the road. The turbulence was not too bad, and the car handled pretty well at high speed.

Design

The first thing that stood out to me when I first heard what we were testing was the name of the car. Do you remember watching old Top Gear and one of the reasonably priced cars was called the Kia Cee’d, with the apostrophe there just to ‘look cool?’ I got the same vibe from the Suzuki Dzire. Whilst no apostrophe, I’m guessing the choice misspell “Desire” was to just, again, "look cool’.” Suzuki is thriving in the South African market (Look at my Grand Vitara article on that), catering to many demographics of people including the Gen Z, so as to market a snazzy cool name to the younger demographic. I like that the name gives off a hip and funky nature for the car, but not in a way that it’s trying too hard to fit into trends.

The design of the car is a massive upgrade over the previous model. I don’t like the previous model of the Dzire trying to look like a Swift, so the choice to make something original is a great change. It looks cool, attractive and vibrant. The grill is tastefully designed, and the proportions make the car look a slight bit sporty. So yes, on top of the snazzy name, the Suzuki Dzire has a cool design that pairs well with it.

Interior

For the price point, the interior of this test vehicle is great. The mix of a cream and black covered interior gives the look of something more up class. Compared to its rivals, the Dzire’s interior looks more expensive than it really is. Suzuki is really ramping up what budget cars should look like at this price point. And one look at the interior of the Dzire clearly showcases this point.

Pricing and Overall Thoughts

Pricing of the Suzuki Dzire starts at R229,900, with the CVT models starting at 272,900. However, I would suggest the manual. For the price, you are getting a very capable sedan that redefines what a budget car should be. It's priced well below its competitors and ticks all the boxes for a car in its class.

The new Suzuki Dzire GA 5MT