First drive: The Suzuki Ignis Adventure brings more character to an already cheerful package

What is it?

Think adventure and you’ll likely depict images of exotic landscapes, extreme sports and exploring new places. Suzuki however, wants you to add its jacked-up city car to that list.

Introducing the Suzuki Ignis Adventure — a chirpier version of the already cheerful little hatch. The base machine is nothing to turn your nose up at anyway, offering a fun and practical driving experience, but this latest trim aims to bring even more character to the table.

Does it really bring more Adventure to the supermarket run, though? We got behind the wheel to find out.

Don’t expect a total revolution here — this is very much the same Ignis that Suzuki launched back in 2015 — but there are a tweaked look and some more equipment to bring that sense of adventure here.

Exterior additions include a rear spoiler, front and rear skid plates for an even more rugged look. Hop inside and you’ll find a no-extra-cost rearview camera and individually sliding rear seats.

There’s also a new decal set which, if you opt for the Super Black Pearl body colour, makes the Ignis look like a micro A-Team van. Our test car was finished in Boost Blue Pearl, making it more akin to an Adidas trainer.

Powering the Ignis Adventure is a 1.2-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine that develops 88bhp and 120Nm of torque. That power is sent to the front wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox, resulting in a 0-60mph time of 12 seconds and a top speed of 106mph.

As the numbers suggest, it’s far from a quick thing — but there’s more than enough power for the town driving this car is bound to spend its life doing — though a slicker gear shift would improve the behind-the-wheel experience.

More relevant are its impressive efficiency figures. Suzuki claims it’ll achieve 61.4mpg on the combined cycle while emitting 104g/km of CO2 and it’s not an outrageous suggestion, with us achieving figures in the mid-50s during our time with the car.

What’s it like to drive?

The Adventure package does nothing to change the core driving experience of the Ignis, and we’re thankful for that.

It remains one of the most characterful cars to drive around town in thanks to light but responsive steering, exceptional all-around visibility and a comfortable ride. Parking it is a doddle too, especially on the Adventure thanks to the standard inclusion of a rear-view camera.

Motorway driving is a much less pleasant experience. It’s slow to get up to speed and thanks to its tall but small dimensions, it’s susceptible to the wind when it does eventually reach 70mph.

While the looks of the Ignis may split opinion, there’s no doubting the changes to the Adventure have given it a fresh edge.

Along with the addition of a new rear spoiler and skid plates for a rugged look, there’s also the addition of a decal set to really make it stand out. While the front of the car looks pretty good to us, the rear seems over styled and frankly awkward — especially with the Adidas-esque three stripe stickers on either side.

Black alloy wheels also present a bit of a cheap appearance against the Boost Blue paint finish on our test car — however, they do appear to suit the Super Black Pearl option perfectly.

There have been no drastic changes to the interior of the Suzuki Ignis Adventure, retaining the same basic-yet-rugged feel of the standard car.

It’s not a bad place to be, but don’t expect the last word in luxury. Hard plastics are prominent throughout the cabin, while the firm fabric seats clearly hint towards this car being to a price – a rather low one at that.
In terms of practicality, there’s a great amount of headroom up front thanks to a tall design while rear passenger space is one of the best in class. As for boot space, the Ignis Adventure boats a respectable 260 litres with all seats fixed in place – marginally more than the 206 litres of the Vauxhall Viva Rocks.

With the Adventure trim ranking high in the Ignis range, there’s a good amount of standard equipment. For no extra cost, it features a rear parking camera, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, automatic air conditioning, LED daytime running lights and a seven-inch infotainment display with support for Bluetooth connectivity, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

There’s also a good amount of safety equipment thrown in too — including hill hold and descent control, automatic emergency braking and cruise control with speed limiter.

It’s not a badly equipped package, but it’s quite pricey — starting at £13,999. That puts it ahead of the likes of the Vauxhall Viva Rocks and the Dacia Sandero Stepway — with quite some margin to the latter’s £9,595 base cost.

Verdict

While the Adventure package perhaps doesn’t live up to its name in bringing a whole lot more to explore with the Ignis, it hasn’t spoiled the hatch’s character-filled and cute formula.

It remains easy, yet good fun to drive — especially so around town — while providing impressive levels of efficiency. Sure, it’s a bit pricey compared with rivals in this trim and the looks are certain to split opinion, but it offers plenty for your pounds.

If the price is putting you off, the SZ-T grade is £3,000 cheaper and maintains all the character and charm — just without as many creature comforts.