Mini or suzuki swift s? cost to run/reliability

She is reading it!
Yes, I was wondering re the price drop thing.
A 2002 mini cooper 75km is $16000 so holding price.
Mechanic has said would cost more to service with more exp oil etc but
better resale.Had people say they love them, but find 2 doors can be
annoying.Just dont want a car that costs a fortune to run.
I guess next step to test drive one. Tested a Suzuki
couple yrs ago and decided couldnt see it being 20k better than my
1995 Honda Civic exi.

As there are only two of us, two doors is not an issue.

You really do have to drive both to see what you like best but as we have said on here many times before, few moderns are really crap when it comes to reliability.I haven't even sat in the Swift but the Mini is one of the few cars I have driven in recent years that accommodates my long legs without having the seat all the way back.

I can't see either of them costing a fortune to run, but if buying secondhand, the most important consideration is the way it has been driven and looked after - and that isn't always easy to establish.

+1 Couldn't have put it better myself.

Without wanting to add fuel to the fire. You are quite right, that's always been the catch with the Suzuki, its a very cheap car, which is fine, you just have to make sure you are paying what its worth and are aware of what you are buying.

I remember testing one brand new when they came out. I was very excited as I had heard great things and they looked sharp at the time. However I was very dissapointed. I had a 2000 Mk2 Punto at the time and the Punto was a better car right across the board.

Thats where the "fasion" thing comes in, they were fantastically marketed and over hyped, and as a result over priced. But as they become "last weeks news" all they have to stand on is their actual abilities as a motor vehicle.

Looking at them from that perspective, yes they are functional and they do the job, but they don't excel in any area's. The technology is also very dated now, as they were even behind the times when they were new.

But, at least they are starting to fall into line price wise and an astute buyer will be aware of that and buy accordingly. That said I still think they have a way to drop yet before they reach "real value" especially the sport models.

OP, I still think you should drive the Grande Punto, as I said I like the Mini but possibly the Grande Punto may also suit you as well or better. Its going to have the edge on economy over both cars, its well ahead of the Swift in terms of how much car you are getting for your money yet at the same time they are designed for inexpensive servicing. Plus, its plenty of fun to drive even in standard form.

Without wanting to add fuel to the fire. You are quite right, that's always been the catch with the Suzuki, its a very cheap car, which is fine, you just have to make sure you are paying what its worth and are aware of what you are buying. Technologically its really not much ahead of the Honda at all, they were an old car in a new skin when they went to market.

I remember testing one brand new when they came out. I was very excited as I had heard great things and they looked sharp at the time. However I was very dissapointed. I had a 2000 Mk2 Punto at the time and the Punto was a better car right across the board, and despite being an older design was well ahead of the Suzuki technology wise.

Thats where the "fasion" thing comes in, they were fantastically marketed and over hyped, and as a result over priced. But as they become "last weeks news" all they have to stand on is their actual abilities as a motor vehicle.

Looking at them from that perspective, yes they are functional and they do the job, but they don't excel in any area's.

But, at least they are starting to fall into line price wise and an astute buyer will be aware of that and buy accordingly. That said I still think they have a way to drop yet before they reach "real value" especially the sport models.

OP, I still think you should drive the Grande Punto, as I said I like the Mini and its definitely my pick of the two. But possibly the Grande Punto may also suit you as well or better. Its going to have the edge on economy over both cars, its well ahead of the Swift in terms of how much car you are getting for your money yet at the same time they are designed for inexpensive servicing. Plus, its plenty of fun to drive even in standard form. BTW, the Grande Punto is a model ahead of the MK2 which I found better than the Swift so is even better again.

Funnily enough, Fiat actually supply the Diesel engines for the Suzuki Swift in countries that sell the Diesel ones and both diesels are the same fantastic units that are used i the Grande Punto. You can of course get the Grande Punto in petrol too. The Fiat 1.9 Diesel used in the Swift and Grande Punto is about the most well proven and heavily utilised Common Rail Diesel engine in the world.

Aside from perhaps the auto transmission that is simply not true.

vitz rs yayer haha

True the new Mini is named wrong cos' its not a small car anymore & shouldnt be compared to a swift to start with.

The modern Swift is also much bigger than the old ones - it may even be a bit longer than a Mini

True again they both are trucks in there own right.

My fairly standard 1.2 Punto vs the Standard 1.3 Auto Swift

Punto had:

* Significantly better CVT trasmission(but fair enough you covered that)

* Noticeably more power

* Handling was noticeably better even at regular urban speeds on the first corner.

* Better economy

* More relaxed at speed

* Better equipment (Dual mode power steer, factory sub-woofer, 4 airbags)

All this in a design that was several years older than the Suzuki's.

What was most glaring though was that the Suzuki didn't really have anything over the Punto in any area, at best it could only match the older designed Punto in some aspects. That's the point, the Suzuki does the job, but it always just scrapes in with a pass mark.

Remember too, the Punto I was testing it against was an old model. The newer Grande Punto came out about the same time as the Suzuki Swift and was the rightful fair competition. Just for the old model MK2 Punto to give the new Swift any sort of run for its money at all was an achievement, let alone be the better car!

Its an O.K/Good car when you are paying a price that reflects what you are getting though. so long as its a manual one.

My fairly standard 1.2 Punto vs the Standard 1.3 Auto Swift

Punto had:

* Significantly better CVT trasmission(but fair enough you covered that)

* Noticeably more power

* Handling was noticeably better even at regular urban speeds on the first corner.

* Better economy

* More relaxed at speed

* Better equipment (Dual mode power steer, factory sub-woofer, 4 airbags)

All this in a design that was 5 years older than the Suzuki's.

What was most glaring though was that the Suzuki didn't really have anything over the Punto in any area, at best it could only match the older designed Punto in some aspects. That's the point, the Suzuki does the job, but it always just scrapes in with a pass mark.

Remember too, the Punto I was testing it against was out of date. The newer Grande Punto came out about the same time as the Suzuki Swift and was the rightful fair competition. Just for the old model MK2 Punto to give the new Swift any sort of run for its money at all was an achievement, let alone be the better car!

Its an O.K/Good car when you are paying a price that reflects what you are getting though. so long as its a manual one.

I guess the thing with the Swifts is to avoid the basic imported models (and the povo spec NZ new cars)

An NZ GLX or up will have front+side+curtains and much more performance than those Puntos (except for the 1.8 which is a great little car)

Yes, but I was comparing pretty much like for like in terms of equivalent spec.

In Automatic you had to go to a 1.5 Swift to keep up with a 1.2 Punto and then its pretty evenly matched and the Punto is still the much nicer vehicle to be in with the hammer down. Also, the 1.5 only puts the Swift further behind in the economy and value for money stakes.

PLUS, I was comparing a whole model behind, the Grande Punto which is the actual competitor to the Swift gives you a whole new lineup of engines.

I have a 2007 Swift, jap import. It is quite a peppy car even though it has the smallest of the swift motors (1232cc). The auto is great, so smooth. Awesome round hills, with little to no body roll (very planted). Big enough when the seats are folded down to carry a new dishwasher home, with heaps of room to spare.
Very economical, I travel on the motorway every day and fill up about every 3 to 31/2 weeks. 6.5km/l.
Heaps of head room and nice seat height, perfect for my old parents! (in fact since I got mine, my 73yo father now wants one!)
There is nothing wrong with the Swift, they are a great car. I would have gone for the sport model if my finances allowed me at the time, but I am more than happy with the one I have.

So there you have it. Satisfied owners of both so we can assume that you would be happy buying the one you like the most.

Exactly!

We're not talking about Puntos thejazzpianoma.

As an aside.Took my Mini in today for a WoF. Tester said that in all his years of testing, that is only the third car he has ever put through with 0% variation on the brakes!Not bad for a car almost 10 years old.