Shootout: Maruti Swift vs Hyundai Grand i10
Shootout No. 175
Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 5.76 – 9.71 lakhs (Maruti Swift), Rs. 5.62 – 9.02 lakhs (Hyundai Grand i10)
Two compact hatchbacks – one looks sporty while the other is practical
The all-new Maruti Swift was launched earlier this year and has already become the second best-selling car for the company. In its third-generation avatar, the hatchback packs in a lot and has got better in all aspects. The Swift’s primary rival is the Hyundai Grand i10 and we pit these two hatchbacks against each other to see who emerges on top this time.
Motor Quest: The last time we pit the Maruti Swift and the Hyundai Grand i10, it was the Hyundai that came on top. Two years later, in comes the new Swift and just going by the looks of it, seems the results are going to change.
Of the two, the Swift is the attention-magnet
Styling – Hyundai’s cars are known to be the best-looking ones. See for instance, the Elite i20, Verna, Creta and the Elantra. All these cars are the most desirable ones in their segment, all credits to the company’s fluidic design language. But wait, what about the Grand i10? The hatchback too dons the fluidic design language and looks clean and good too but in comparison to the 2018 Maruti Swift, the Grand i10 does look like it lacks the oomph and the charisma. The Indo-Japanese company has definitely taken the game a notch higher, especially, with the new Swift’s styling. The car looks younger and gets all sorts of modern design elements like LED projector headlamps with LED DRLs, 15-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels and LED tail-lights. The Grand i10, however, misses out on LED projector headlights and LED tail-lights but gets LED DRLs and a size down diamond-cut alloys.
Hyundai Grand i10 has a better build quality among the two
In terms of dimensions, the Maruti Swift is slightly longer, wider and taller than the Grand i10. Wheelbase too is marginally higher in the Swift. The Japanese also gets better rubber when compared to the Korean. The former does duty with 185-section tyres while the latter does the job with 165-section rubber. Ground clearance on the Grand i10 (at 165 mm) is marginally higher than that of the Swift (at 163 mm). Overall, both the cars look good in their own ways. Having said that, if youthful and attention-magnet kind of looks are what you’re looking for, the Swift will appeal you but if you need a sedate and a no non-sense looking car, then the Grand i10 will come across as a more pleasing car.
The Swift’s cabin is definitely the sportier one
Interiors – Step inside and both the cars have a very modern cabin. The Swift gets an all-black dashboard with silver accents while the Grand i10 gets a pleasing-looking dual-tone beige and black dashboard and this quite matches the exteriors well. However, the Swift’s cabin comes across as more sporty thanks to the driver-oriented design, flat-bottom steering wheel and the hooded instrument cluster with red dials.
Fit and finish is better in the Grand i10
Meanwhile, the Grand i10’s interior looks premium and classy. Both the cars here get a touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, USB, AUX and Bluetooth connectivity. However, in terms of the user interface, the Hyundai’s unit feels better as it doesn’t glare under direct sunlight (because of the matte finish) while the Swift’s unit is more intuitive. The quality of plastics used inside the cabin of the Grand i10 feels better than that in the Swift, the former gets a very basic and modest-looking instrument cluster as opposed to the sporty one in the latter.
Three adults at the rear will be better off in the Swift rather than the Grand i10
The Grand i10 looks a size smaller in front of the Swift but manages to offer more space inside the cabin!
In terms of features, both the hatchbacks get push-button start, automatic climate control, steering mounted audio controls, electrically adjustable and foldable ORVMs, leather-wrapped steering wheel and seat height adjustment for the driver. A unique feature in the Swift is the automatic headlights while the rear AC vent is unique to the Grand i10.
The Grand i10 has better leg room in the rear seat
Coming to the rear seat comfort, the Swift definitely has the widest cabin and also gets a wider rear seat but in spite of the car being dimensionally larger, it falls short of leg room in comparison to the Grand i10. Both the cars have the similar headroom but the Grand i10 gets more knee room and good under-thigh support while the Swift benefits from a larger shoulder room, which makes it a better 5-seater hatchback than the Grand i10.
Performance – Both these hatchbacks come with 1.2-litre, 4-cylinder petrol engines. The engines are rev-happy and the Kappa unit on the Grand i10 is quite refined while the K12 unit on the Swift also scores high on the refinement front. In terms of drivability, both the engines offer good performance within the city and even on occasional highway drives, power delivery is good. The Swift’s motor is more fun though, with a good surge of power coming in all the way to the redline and when it comes to fuel efficiency, it is again the K-Series engine that delivers a bit more. On the Grand i10, you can expect an efficiency of 11-14 km/l but on the Swift this figure ranges from 13-17 km/l.
The Grand i10’s diesel motor has good drivability when compared to the Swift’s
Both of them get diesel engine options as well, while the Swift gets the tried and tested 1.3-litre MultiJet unit in the same 75 PS tune, the Grand i10 got an update last year wherein the 1.1-litre unit was upgraded to a 1.2-litre unit but it still comes with 3-cylinders only. The engine on the Swift is more noisy while the Grand feels a bit silent in comparison. The Swift also has a more pronounced turbo lag while the i10 feels more easy-going at city speeds. Once you cross 2000 RPM, the Swift’s turbo starts spooling and there’s a strong wave of power all the way to a bit more than 4500 RPM while on the Grand i10, the turbo pull is pretty linear.
On the highways, you need to downshift a gear or two to overtake others in either of these cars but both these hatchbacks easily have some steam left even after crossing the ton. When it comes to acceleration, the Swift beats the Grand i10 in 0-100 km/hr and 30-80 km/hr (3rd gear) runs but the Grand i10 is quicker in 40-100 km/hr (4th gear) and 60-120 km/hr (5th gear) sprints. Fuel efficiency is excellent on both these cars with both of them delivering around 15-16 km/l in the city and more than 18 km/l on the highways. The Grand i10 diesel gets only a 5-speed manual gearbox but the Swift has an upper hand here because along with the 5-speed MT, it also gets a 5-speed AMT which is a boon for people who require convenience. The AMT gearbox isn’t very slick and has some lag but gets the job done for day-to-day driving. The manual gearboxes on both the cars have slick shifts complemented by a light clutch. The petrol Swift also gets 5-speed MT and AMT options while the Grand i10 makes do with a 5-speed MT or an archaic 4-speed AT unit which is quite outdated and has a tendency to sip a lot of fuel too.
The Swift loves taking corners; petrol engine offers good drivability
Driving Dynamics – The Swift, without doubt, provides more driving pleasure than the Grand i10. The steering doesn’t have the same feel as the older generations but it still offers decent feedback and is quite precise too. The steering on the Grand i10 is super light at city speeds but offers no feel at all and even on the highways it doesn’t weight up at all and feels dead and disconnected at all times which in turn drowns the driving pleasure. Body control on the Swift is also much better and it feels confident entering into corners at high speeds while the Grand i10 is a car that likes taking it easy.
The Grand i10’s compact footprint makes it easy to flick around in city traffic
On the highways, the Swift is a lot better in terms of driving dynamics
Tyres on both the cars have average levels of grip which means there is a lot of screeching and sliding when you drive aggressively. Brakes on the Grand i10 are very sharp and the bite is excellent, while the Swift has above average stopping power. In terms of ride quality, within the city both the cars feel more or less similar when it comes to comfort but on the highways, the Swift offers a better ride but the Grand i10 isn’t too bad either. The Grand i10 comes with 14-inch tyres even on the top variant while the Swift gets bigger 15-inchers.
The Maruti Swift takes the cake when it comes to safety features on offer
Safety and After Sales Service – The 2018 Maruti Swift scores over the Grand i10 when it comes to safety. The Maruti gets dual airbags, ABS with EBD & Brake Assist and ISOFIX child seat mounts as standard across the range while the Hyundai gets only a driver airbag as standard across the range (passenger airbag and ABS with EBD offered from the Sportz trim onwards). Both the automakers have a wide-spread after sales network across India. While Maruti excels with a wider reach, Hyundai excels in the quality of service.
By choosing either of the two hatchbacks you won’t go wrong
Verdict – Clearly, the 2018 Maruti Swift is the better car when compared with the Hyundai Grand i10. But if you are on a budget and looking for a diesel manual hatchback, buying the Grand i10 makes more sense as it is affordable and the diesel engine is better in terms of drivability than the Swift. However, if it’s a diesel automatic hatchback that you’re hunting for, the Swift is your only option. Coming to the petrol, the Swift clearly outshines here by offering the fun-to-drive factor.
Being a sporty car, the Swift misses out a rear spoiler while the Grand i10 gets it!
Further Reading –
2018 Maruti Swift Review
2018 Maruti Swift Video Review
2017 Hyundai Grand i10 Facelift Review
2017 Hyundai Grand i10 Video Review
Maruti Swift vs Hyundai Grand i10 – Video