Why The Honda Jazz And Suzuki Swift Are The Best Picks For A First Car

Buying a car is almost always a daunting prospect, due to the heavy financial commitment it entails - and this is no truer or scarier than when it's your very first time. But in addition to the monetary aspect, another source of anguish comes when deciding what car to buy.

Given any first-timer's inexperience in matters automotive-related, simple questions like "what exactly is considered good?", or "what attributes should i be looking out for?" aren't so simple to answer - let alone the stressful process of viewing and inspecting a potential purchase (check out our used car buying guides for help on that).

By and large though, compact cars are usually at the top of any recommended list. Two of our favourites are the 2008-13 Honda Jazz (or its parallel-imported twin, the Fit) and the 2005-11 Suzuki Swift, and here are the reasons why:

Driving can be a stressful enough activity in its own right, and that goes doubly so for new drivers who haven’t yet developed a sense for judging speed and distance from behind the wheel. That’s why small cars like the Jazz and Swift are popular - they're the easiest cars in the world to drive!

Compact dimensions, tight turning circles, short overhangs front and rear, large windows, and light steering - these are all traits that the Jazz and Swift both share, and they help to reduce the stressfulness of any driving situation; parking, dicing with traffic, and maneuvering through tight spaces all become effortless affairs when you can see out clearly and there's simply less car around you to worry about.

Different people have different needs and wants in their cars, but there's a universal constant for everyone: lower costs are always welcome. If you're looking for a Japanese car, the Jazz and Swift are among the cheapest currently on the market. At time of writing, a Jazz or Fit with 9-10 years of COE can be had for as low as S$4,500/year in depreciation (S$40,000 purchase price), while Swifts with fresh 5-year COEs cost from around S$5,500/year, but are consequently much cheaper to buy (just over S$25,000).

In addition to the upfront figures, both cars are affordable to run as well. They're economical on fuel (around 14-15 km/litre in real-world driving); servicing, consumables, and wear-and-tear parts (like tyres, brake pads, shock absorbers, bushings, and filters) are cheap; and annual costs like road tax and insurance are relatively low as well.

Nobody enjoys a car that throws up a new issue every other week, and thankfully, the Jazz and Swift are as far removed from this as can be. Not only do they enjoy the same reputation for reliability as Japanese cars in general, but they're also backed up by good showings in reliability surveys the world over.

Furthermore, for those rare occasions where something does go wrong, the downtime is likely to be short as these are simple cars with few fancy electronics, pretty much any workshop will be able to work on them, and parts supply is plentiful.

Thanks to their small size and low weight, both the Jazz and Swift can be a hoot to chuck around if the mood takes you. Less weight means less inertia, which means a more eager and responsive drive than what their low horsepower figures suggest.

Once you've become more familiar with the intricacies of driving, you can even alter the way your car feels with some choice mods from point 5) that can make it go faster and handle better! In fact, it's these very same reasons that make both the Jazz and Swift popular choices as grassroots-level race cars!

The need for individuality and to stand out from the crowd is a classic human trait, and that often applies to our cars too. As the Jazz and Swift are both very popular models, there is an immense range of customisation options available at reasonable prices - from wheels to bodykits to audio systems and more - and a lot of them can be found on Carousell!

#Jazz #Swift #Honda #Suzuki #Used #Cars #Autos

Credits: Words by Jonathan Lim