Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios comparison review
This new Swift has almost immediately become the second-best-selling car in the country. So what makes it click when most of the other 10 best-selling cars in India happen to be SUVs? Do you need to look at an alternative like the Hyundai Grand i10 Nios? Or does paying a small premium for something larger like the Toyota Glanza make sense?
Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios styling, dimensions, boot spaceThe Toyota Glanza's greater footprint doesn't necessarily make for the most presence. It's 130mm longer and 20mm wider while also being 20mm shorter, but the Swift grabs more eyeballs. It's that iconic look that Maruti Suzuki has nurtured quite well. The new one is a good step forward with the clamshell bonnet and the more simplified front with the wide grille. The lighting and the prominent shoulder line add a styling finesse you don't usually find at this price point. The more compact rear may not be a great touch for some but the more conventional door handles do make life easier.
The Baleno has always been the more grown-up foil to the Swift, and despite some of the added flash you get with this Toyota version, that thought sticks. So the flatter bodywork, the simpler roofline and lighting have a degree of sophistication but it's not something that will get you a lot of attention.
The Hyundai Grand i10 Nios has been around the longest, although it got a minor facelift last year. It's no taller than the Swift but the narrow tracks lend it that Hyundai tall roof sense. It's got more finesse to its detailing than the Marutis with the flashier grille arrangements and around the glass area. But it's somehow missing the callback of the Swift and we don't like that foglamps have been deleted with this update.
The Nios and Swift also have very similar ground clearances and boot spaces. The Nios' 260-litre boot is better packaged, with its lower-loading lip and wider opening. But the Swift, aside from the marginally greater 265-litre volume, also offers a 60:40 split, which should be immensely helpful on the occasional airport run. The Glanza's boot is the only one that won't have you stressing over packing for a weekend trip with its significantly larger 318-litre capacity. It is also the deepest but you will have to deal with a small opening and high lip, so some advantage is lost.
Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios interiors, space, practicality
The Swift is the newest car here and it shows once you step inside the cabin. The layered, horizontal theme is the most contemporary feeling of the lot and you have some good texturing with the silver bands along the vents and the patterns on the dash fascia. But the largely single-tone dark cabin makes this feel like the smallest of the lot. Yes, with the great driver geometry that Maruti Suzuki always manages, you have that sporty sense that you expect from a Swift but the materials could have been of a higher grade. You notice scratchy plastics and flimsy vents and door trims.
This is where the Glanza or the Baleno, makes sense. It's angular dash theme is still smart and while the plastics aren't all too different, there's more in the way of satin and gloss black finishes to uplift the space. The latter may have a bad rep, but it does the job in this context. Adding to this sense are the well-placed soft surfaces on the doors and centre armrest. This armrest is one of the few small but effective touches that add to the premium feel. The telescopic steering adjustment and HUD are the others.
The Nios is another great example of what Hyundai does best. It's the most sparse in terms of high-end materials, you sit somewhat uncomfortably close to your passenger as the driver. But it gives off the most high-quality sense with the great finish and textures of the plastics. The grey and off-white theme also makes this space feel more spacious than it is and the tactile switchgear adds to this sense of value.
You also get part leatherette upholstery on the seats in the Hyundai. These seats also have better thigh support but the Maruti seats are the overall better choice. You have adjustable head restaurants to start with and the cushioning is better suited for longer journeys, finding a better balance between comfort and support.
In a surprising turn, the Glanza and Swift also offer a better infotainment package. The 9.1-inch touchscreen in these cars is larger than the 8-inch one in the Hyundai. It also happens to be more fluid and has sharper displays, making for a more cohesive experience. The Hyundai does have physical controls but wireless Android Auto/Apple Carplay is a big boon in the Maruti Suzuki cars. All three give you analogue gauges but the ones in the Swift and Glanza again do it better with the clean smart style and larger fonts. These also give you a colour MID instead of the smaller black/white in the Nios. An aberration with the Swift is that the screen intrudes on your field of vision unlike the other two.
The Nios claws back with its practicality. You have three charge ports in the front unlike the quite inconvenient single Type A port in the Swift and Glanza, aside from the wireless charging that all three offer. It also has good-sized door pockets, the Swift is quite hampered at the rear in this aspect. The Glanza's wider cabin helps its case in this regard, especially in the centre space. The Nios only makes do with a 12V outlet in the rear, the Maruti Suzuki-based offerings giving you both Type A and C charging.
One of the main reasons you might consider paying a premium for the Glanza or Baleno is the rear seat experience. The wide cabin makes it the most suitable for three adults here but the big boost is to legroom. Taller adults will be most comfortable here given the 70mm wheelbase advantage. There's not a lot to choose in terms of headroom between the three, the Nios possibly has a slight advantage.
The Glanza's seat base offers the most thigh support, followed by the Seift and Nios. It and the Swift also have better contouring, quite unlike the flat bench in the Nios which can get a bit cumbersome. The Maruti Suzuki cars have a more upright seatback which we liked, but others might prefer the greater recline angle the Hyundai offers. But we wish the Glanza came with a middle armrest, given its more premium positioning. A great addition to the Nios is the centre headrest.
Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios features, safetyAll three cars here give you LED lighting, auto headlamps, climate control, seat-height adjustment, cruise control, powered outer mirrors and push-button start. The Glanza and Swift give you a larger 9.1-inch touchscreen with wireless Android Auto/Apple Carplay and much better audio quality. The Nios does with an 8-inch display and wired phone pairing. The Glanza adds a HUD and telescopic steering adjustment but misses out on a wireless charger.
Common here are six airbags, ESC and hill-hold. You also get a 360-degree camera with the Glanza. It's not the clearest but makes life easier. The Nios is the only one with TPMS and a middle headrest for the rear passenger. The Swift and Baleno in turn give up adjustable head restraints in the front It also performed the best in our braking tests, taking the least distance to stop. The Swift was not up to the mark, it took a longer distance than even the Glanza and would also lose composure in panic braking.
Watch our Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios video review below
With these new models, Maruti Suzuki has done much to engineer out that tinny, flimsy feel that has always been criticised. But still, it's the Grand i10 Nios that has a more substantial sense on the move. It's also the most manoeuvrable in traffic with its more compact dimensions and slightly taller seating.
The Swift isn't too far behind but more appealing is the way it manages to engage you. You immediately sense you are in something sportier with the lower seating and in the way the controls just feel closer to you. The Glanza isn't quite the same with its more open cabin but it's still got a sportier sense to it than the Nios.
Maruti Suzuki's new 1.2-litre motor that debuted with the Swift has stirred some debate. It's not a good look on paper, compared to the older K-Series motor that's in the Glanza. It lost one cylinder and makes 8PS and 1 Nm less than the 90PS and 113 Nm of the older motor. In a broader sense, it is now right in the ballpark of the Nios with its 83PS and 114 Nm. But our real-world performance tests show that there's more nuance to this. The Swift is only 0.8s slower than the Glanza in the 0 to 100 kmph run, doing it in 12.8s. But surprisingly, the two managed identical acceleration times in gear, so there hasn't been a great performance dip in practice. We couldn't get our hands on a manual Nios, which makes its numbers not fully relevant to the other two, but we think the Nios should be within this range when specced with a manual.
As similar as these three cars seem on paper, there's more distinction to them on the move. The Swift's motor feels the most alert off the line. There's a linear, consistent stream of grunt right off idle and up to around 3,000 rpm. The Glanza's motor is smoother and feels more eager to rev, but you do need to give it a good slug of the accelerator to get it to wake up, it comes into its own in the higher reaches of the rev band, so in highway driving is the easiest to extract performance out of. It's the most energetic in this sense and makes for the most characterful engine here.
The Nios seem to split the difference. Its engine is easily the most refined, much quieter and smoother at city speeds although the drone isn't as pleasing as you pick-up speed. The Swift does have some of that three-cylinder thrum at idle but commendably this dies away the more you rev it, getting close to the Glanza's motor at higher speeds. The Hyundai has a functional sense to it, with its flat, consistent power delivery. This is effective but takes some of the character away from owning a small peppy hatch. The AMT is great for new drivers of course, but it must be said that even with the manuals the Maruti Suzuki derived cars here are easy to get used to. They are difficult to stall, you can drag them along in a high gear often and the controls are light and precise. The clutch doesn't take too much effort and the gear shifts feel the same with their well-judged throws and precise action.
So why go through the trouble of an entirely new engine? One of the main draws seems to be the astounding efficiency. We managed over 25.7 kmpl on the highway in the Swift, a notable improvement over the 23.3 kmpl in the Glanza. There are similar improvements in the city numbers, The Swift managed 19.2 kmpl here, up from the Glanza's 17.9 kmpl. The Glanza is only 10 kg heavier than the Swift, so the gains come from the engine. As has been the norm, the Hyundai is some way behind with its 14.2 kmpl city and 20.1 kmpl highway figures.
Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios driving impressions - ride and handling
Just like with its drivetrain, the Nios has a functional sense to it on the move. So the steering is the lightest of the lot, making it the least effort in most situations. But you get the sense that it's at its best when you take things calmly. So around bends, it seems to start running wide the earliest of the three here when driven hard. Despite the big focus on efficiency, Swift still manages to hold on to its image of being a fun driving machine. It's got the best-judged steering, as much as all three could do with a better straight-ahead feel on highways, and its square footprint means that it's still great fun. You have a clean, darty sense from the car at all times, it lets you carry higher speeds around corners and just generally keeps you more connected to the road.
But we think the Glanza may have found the most sensible balance. Its longer wheelbase and steering that still has some trouble recentering means it doesn't quite have the fizz of the Swift but it does have a more secure overall sense to it. So it's still poised around bends but feels quite a bit more planted than the other two on a high-speed cruise. The larger and wider wheels are a factor. The other two don't quite handle wavy tarmac as well, making for slightly more tiring long-distance driving.
This goes well with the Swift and Glanza's well-judged ride. Especially at low speeds, these seem to tackle potholes much better than the Hyundai. There's are soft edge to these impacts that makes the experience more comfortable. This sense continues at higher speeds, but the Glanza handles undulations the best. The Hyundai's better refinement extends to the way it controls wind and tyre noise at speed.
Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Toyota Glanza vs Hyundai Nios price, verdictAt Rs 10.00 lakh on-road, this Nios AMT undercuts the manual Swift which makes for a great deal. But we think the Rs 10. 63 lakh is well worth it. You don't quite get the quality or refinement but there's better tech on board and the driving experience makes journies generally more engaging and comfortable. But the big draw for owners will be the significant efficiency advantage, you will make up the added upfront cost throughout your ownership cycle.
But we think the Glanza is the most complete package. Yes, you can choose the Swift but push your budget a bit more to Rs 11.36 lakh and this jump makes its value felt. It's a genuine family car, has some great headlining features and drives more maturely in real-life scenarios.
Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Hyundai Nios vs Toyota Glanza real-world mileage, performanceMaruti Suzuki Swift vs Hyundai Nios vs Toyota Glanza scorecard
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2024 Maruti Suzuki Swift review, first drive â€" stylish, but effective?