So which category does the Suzuki Ignis Sport fall into? On first glance, it's hovering with the no-hopers. It's a tarted-up version of the competent but dull Ignis supermini, as loved by pensioners on a budget or people who have no interest in cars and chose one because they happened to live near a friendly dealer. It wears a badge usually associated with either boxy, ugly mini-MPVs (Wagon R+) or boxy, ugly 4x4s (SJ-series/Samurai, Jimny, Vitara). Nope, it's not hitting the right buttons yet...
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| Usual hot hatch trademarks |
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But look at the figures: its 1.5-litre, 16-valve engine produces 107bhp, 103lb ft of torque and results in a top speed of 107mph and 0-60mph in 8.9 seconds. That's quicker than the similarly warmed-up MG ZR 105, the hot Citroen C2s, the Ibiza Sports (petrol or diesel), Ford SportKa, Yaris T Sport or 206 XSi and even the MINI Cooper - and at £9,995, it's considerably cheaper kit-for-kit than all of those bar the MG, the same price.
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| Recaro seats, complete with yellow webbing |
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Don't forget Suzuki's rally credentials, either: the company won the Junior (Super 1600) class of the World Rally Championships last year with the Ignis, and this production car's engine is directly derived from that of the JWRC car. Add to this the rally-inspired lowered, stiffened suspension, a close-ratio five-speed gearbox and sharper all-round disc brakes, and the Ignis Sport starts to look a whole lot more credible. Sure, the body kit's a bit cheesy - huge bumpers, flared wheel arches, a large tailgate-mounted spoiler and sculpted lower side cladding, plus a sports exhaust and 15-inch white-painted wheels - but that's par for the course in this sector. Inside, it features Recaro sports seats, white-backed instrument dials, carbonfibre trim (fake, obviously) and a small leather steering wheel, in addition to the usual high-end Ignis spec of air conditioning, ABS anti-lock brakes, remote central locking, electric front windows, twin front airbags and a radio/CD/MP3 player. Just about everything you'd need, in short.
