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CarsLore / Compare / Small cars / 318i vs Swift

BMW 318i vs Suzuki Swift

Two small cars, compared on the same official records: MOT and inspection results, safety ratings, fuel use, recalls and owner complaints. 1 like-for-like measure: the BMW 318i leads on 0, the Suzuki Swift on 1.

Where each one leads

BMW 318i

Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.

Suzuki Swift

  • On Canada's official test the most frugal 2011 Suzuki Swift uses 8.1 l/100 km, the 1999 BMW 318i 10.3.

Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare

At a glance

BMW 318iSuzuki Swift
Model years in the US safety record1984–20051988–2002
New cars registered in Europe—607,111 (2010–2022)
Licensed in the United Kingdom—155,407
On the road in the Netherlands—95,548
In traffic in Finland—3,396

EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).

Reliability and problems

BMW 318iSuzuki Swift
UK MOT first-time pass rate—72%
… against cars of the same age—+1%
Illogical odometer records (NL)—2.7%
US owner complaints9041
Most complaints aboutEngine and engine coolingSeat belts
Model year with most complaints1994 (14)1991 (7)
US recall campaigns44
Manufacturer service bulletins4744
NHTSA defect investigations35

Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).

Fuel, emissions and price

BMW 318iSuzuki Swift
Official combined fuel use, Canada10.3 l/100 km (1999)8.1 l/100 km (2011)
Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid—5.4 l/100 km
Real-world use in Europe, petrol—5.4 l/100 km
Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe—113 g/km
Average power of new cars in Europe—66 kW (88 hp)
Average mass in running order—1,006 kg
Dutch list price when new (median)—€16,544
Average odometer in Finland—121,000 km

Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).