Suzuki Splash - performance and load tests

One of the things we noticed when we wrote about the Suzuki Splash was the reasonably powerful engine running under its hood and the nice dynamics that this unit provides. So we decided to check how much of this temperament the Japanese city dweller will retain when we want to take full advantage of his transport capabilities.

Segment A cars are not famous for their high performance, because no one requires them to. The engine range of such vehicles consists mainly of small engines, often with 3 cylinders, which should provide low production and maintenance costs. Splash also offers such an engine - a 1-liter engine with 68 hp, which accelerates it to 100 km / h in 14,7 seconds, which is more than enough in city traffic. However, the test specimen was equipped with a more powerful alternative - a 1.2-liter unit that develops 94 hp, which allows Splash to accelerate to 100 km / h in 12 seconds. high turnover. This is confirmed by a look at the maximum torque - 118 Nm is not so much for a 94 hp motor, and this value is reached only at 4800 rpm, that is, just before the unit develops maximum power (5500 rpm). Subjective driving experience, however, does not confirm this pessimism, which is partly due to variable valve timing. So let's see if these feelings translate into hard numbers.

Prepare

We are doing our test with a driftbox, i.e. a device that can measure many parameters using a GPS signal (acceleration to various values, flexibility, maximum speed, acceleration time to 100 km/h and stop time, and many others). We are interested in the most basic of them, which make it easy for anyone to judge them - acceleration to 100 km / h and “flexibility”, namely the time required to accelerate from 60 km / h to 100 km / h in 4th gear. The Splash is approved to carry 5 people and has a payload capacity of 435kg. So we decided to check how additional passengers affect its work - from a car with one driver to a full set of travelers.

Test Results

Let's start by checking the manufacturer's data - equal to 12 seconds, Splash to 100 km / h should pass. The best result that we were able to get was 12,3 seconds, which is very close to the catalog data and we can assume that the “human factor” is responsible for the difference. Flexibility in 4th gear from 60 to 100 km / h, which we received, was 13,7 seconds, which is quite average, and the acceleration of the Splash seems to take forever - even down to second gear is necessary when overtaking.

And what value will we gain by traveling with several people? Already with the first passenger on board, the car seems noticeably less accommodating. This confirms the result of the sprint to "hundreds" - 13,1 seconds. The third person (lighter than the predecessor) worsened this result by 0,5 seconds. Four people got 15,4 seconds, and with a full set of people Splash accelerated to 100 km / h in 16,3 seconds. A heavily loaded Suzuki microvan is reluctant to pick up speed, especially in higher gears. It takes 80 seconds to reach 10,5 km / h, so for an additional 20 km / h of acceleration (when you have to shift into third gear) you have to wait almost 6 seconds.

The agility test (60-100 km/h in 4th gear) went better, with a car with a full complement of passengers taking 16,4 seconds to accelerate, just 2,7 seconds slower than with a single driver. However, this is not much consolation, and if we want to overtake Splash on the road, we must select the lowest possible gear.

Wnioski

Our subjective feelings about the good dynamics of the Suzuki microvan were not fully reflected in the numbers. Yes, the car readily responds to the addition of gas and it is very pleasant to drive, but on the condition that we are driving around the city alone, perhaps together, and we are not going to drive with anyone. If we want to use the full potential of the engine, we will quickly notice that, apart from the first two gears, it is not very willing to rev up and is clearly tired, especially if several people are driving the car. Splash, of course, is not a hindrance even on the road, but when driving on it somewhere in a large group, you must adhere to a calm driving style, and if you want to overtake something, ventilate the gearbox strongly.