Suzuki Ignis review

Sitting behind the wheel is a relatively comfortable experience; only SZ3 trim does without height adjustment for the driver’s seat, but most buyers will likely opt for mid-range SZ-T and above. As is the case with many city cars, it's a shame that the steering wheel moves only for height and not reach. There’s no lumbar support adjustment available for the front seats, either, and, as they’re flat and don’t provide much side support, holding onto the steering wheel is your only form of support in tight corners.

With such a short bonnet, front visibility is good and accurately placing the car is very easy, but looking over your shoulder and trying to see past the Ignis’s thick, heavily styled rear pillars is more of a challenge. Still, SZ-T cars come with a rear-view camera as standard.

Unfortunately, interior materials are uniformly hard and feel low-rent compared with those of a Hyundai i10, Kia Picanto or Volkswagen Up, and the car’s wobbly centre console betrays a less-than-stellar build quality. The Ignis is, however, marginally more attractive inside than the bland and cheap-feeling Dacia Duster, and Suzuki has at least experimented with a convincing two-tone dash that looks quite attractive. 

SZ-T and SZ5 cars get a Pioneer infotainment system that does look and feel rather aftermarket, but comes with mod-cons that include a 6.2in colour touchscreen, sat-nav, Bluetooth and a DAB radio, as well as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring. Sadly, the system isn't great to use; its menus are pretty unresponsive and tricky to navigate and the screen’s resolution is low. SZ3 cars get a simple system with no touchscreen, but it does feature a DAB radio and Bluetooth and a CD player.