The Swift way to an affordable hot hatchback

* The Suzuki Swift Sport.

* Inside the Sport model. 

Suzuki Swift Sport road test by Steve Rogers

Is it just me or is there a lack of small, affordable hot hatchbacks around?

You are looking at more than 30 grand for the big names - Golf GTI, Honda Civic Type R, Focus RS, Seat Leon Cupra.

What if I want to spend less than £20k? Let me point you in the direction of the Suzuki Swift Sport. 

Not the first name to trip off the tongue may be, but definitely the most underrated.

In its own quiet way the Swift has been delighting its owners for more than a decade, while the Sport model has been perfect for speed lovers with a small bank account.

Not that the Sport has ever been red hot. The 1.6 litre 16-valver could only muster around 134bhp, not as much as a Peugeot 205 GTi or the 'once driven never forgotten' Renault Clio Williams of the early nineties, yet you will not find anyone complaining.

Now we have a new Swift Sport ... with a smaller engine. Come again, a smaller engine? Yes, but don't worry, it is quicker, cleaner, and does more to the gallon. The turbo charged 1.4 Boosterjet has been making a name for itself in the Vitara and now its cutting a dash in the Sport.

Output is still a modest 138bhp but there has been a sizeable increase in torque - 230Nm against 160Nm for the normally aspirated 1.6. Now response is rapid with a satisfying surge from 2500rpm, much earlier than before.

Some of this extra performance is down to a new platform which has allowed the Sport to shed 70kg but the real winner is handling. Although lighter the bodyshell is stiffer so the car never gets flustered even if the accelerator is stabbed mid bend. You can imagine the Sport saying 'bring it on'.

Nimble and very capable sums it up, an easy car to drive quickly through twists and turns.

So what has Suzuki done to justify a price hike to £18k. Basically it has loaded Swift Sport with a heap of new technology that includes a suite of safety features. Lane drift warning, radar cruise control, pedestrian detection, autonomous braking if you ignore the warning sounds of a vehicle a little too close for comfort make this the safest Swift ever built.

I would like to have seen an end to the hard plastic trim but what's there feels solid rather than cheap, and Sport benefits from subtle shiny red accent panels throughout the cabin. There is another red hot theme reminder with red piping on the seats and red lighting in the instrument binnacle.

The binnacle has an information panel well suited to performance anoraks with coloured graphics for turbo boost, engine output and torque data. There is other more meaningful stuff like what the car is doing to the gallon, average speed and a smart clock, but with all this technology there is no room for a digital speedometer.

Come on Suzuki, you must have enough brain power to sort that out, it is far more useful than being able to see how the turbo charger is performing!

Overall the equipment level is good with a 7inch touchscreen for navigation, DAB radio and all the Bluetooth connections. Auto dipping headlights is a great addition and there is a rear camera which had rather poor definition possible down to an intrusion from the rear spoiler.

Is there anything not to like about Swift Sport? Not really, the ride is a little harsh but no more than to be expected from hottish hatch, and there is above average road noise but who cares when you can have so much fun from an inexpensive, well appointed speedster which is bordering on brilliant.

Fast facts

Swift Sport

£17,999

1.4 litre turbo; 138bhp

0-62mph 8.1secs; 130mph

50.4mpg combined

Emissions: 135g/km

1st year road tax £205

Insurance group 35

Councillor says army should have helped tackle mountain fire

Hundreds of thousands of pounds and hundreds of acres of land could have been saved if the army had been called in to assist with a mountain fire, according to a county councillor.

Mabon ap Gwynfor, who represents the Llandrillo ward in the Dee Valley, said that the fire on Llantysilio Mountain near Llangollen last summer might have been put out sooner saving money, acres of mountain land, and freeing up firefighters to concentrate on other issues across north Wales.

The Plaid Cymru councillor (pictured) also said that more planning needed to be done to prepare for major weather-related events following evidence showing that there was no clear leadership nor lines of accountability during the first days of the fire on the mountain.

He said: “If you contrast the fire on Llantysilio Mountain with the one on Saddleworth Moor a month earlier, the army were called in by Greater Manchester Fire Authority within a few days of the Saddleworth Moor fire starting. 

"One hundred army personnel were involved as well as their equipment, including helicopters. This helped ensure that fire went out in a matter of days. The army recouped £42,000 for their part in that incident.

“By contrast the fire on Llantysilio Mountain went on for two months, firefighters from every fire station in north Wales had to be brought in to fight the fire and it cost the Fire Authority in excess of £290,000.

“I appreciate that senior officers of the Fire Authority felt that at no point did they think that they could not deal with this fire, and there’s no doubting the commitment and dedication of the firefighters, but the fact remains that the fire went on for many, many weeks, leading to huge damage being done to a vast tract of land. 

"Added to this, all of the fire stations across north Wales were involved in this fire at some point or another, meaning that these firefighters were not available in the case of any other instances. If the army had been called in then the fire might have been put out sooner, freeing up those firefighters and potentially saving some money at the same time.

“One of the key agencies involved should at least have raised the prospect of calling in the army to help tackle the fire. It’s certainly a lesson from this incident, and should be considered in the future.”

Cllr ap Gwynfor said that lessons should be learned from the fire.

“There are certainly lessons to be learned from the fire on Llantysilio mountain. The majority of my ward is made up of vast tracts of the Berwyn which could also have easily gone up in flames, and I must admit that I didn’t have much confidence that systems are in place to tackle such eventualities as I came away from the evidence gathering session in Llangollen [last Wednesday as reported in llanblogger].

“The firefighters and other agency workers worked tirelessly to tackle the fire and ensure that no life or property was threatened. But it was evident that there was no clear line of command and certainly no plans put in place in the event of such a catastrophe.

“I would hope that the key agencies will now come together and formulate a plan in preparation for such an eventuality, so that it’s clear from the word go what is expected of each agency and individual, and who takes the key decisions.”

Llangollen Scouting is looking to expand

* Above and below: Llangollen youngsters go scouting for adventure.

Leader Joanne Gregory gives an insight into the success of Llangollen Scouting

Did you know that Scouting has been around for nearly 112 years and in Llangollen for over 100 of them (if we ignore the blips when we couldn't find adult leaders)?

And 112 years on, Scouting is more relevant than ever, offering a mix of modern and traditional activities which allow our youth members to develop skills for life to help them survive and succeed in this increasingly stressful adult world.

Llangollen Scout Group do it well. From six-year-old Beavers experiencing their first night away from home (and yes, learning to pack up after themselves and wash up by hand) through Cubs (becoming experienced campers) and on to Scouts where adventure and adrenaline rises before settling down into chilled out and confident in Explorers, the group offers amazing opportunities and experiences.

International trips are becoming increasingly popular, with Explorers from Llangollen being part of a group that undertook a 10-day expedition through Bosnia last year aided by our Scouting colleagues in the country - a real benefit to being a global organisation - and our Scouts thinking about packing their bags for their trip to Kandersteg, the international Scout Centre in Switzerland this summer. 

We offer Bronze, Silver and Gold level Duke of Edinburgh Award support with expeditions on offer by foot or canoe - canoe is more popular.

The issue with all of this is we've become popular. We've been running with a 12-month waiting list for Beavers and had to refuse Cub places to anyone not in Beavers. And that's not fair. So we've made the decision, we've got to expand.

All of this is offered by a team of volunteers. A slightly mad bunch, who get a buzz out of seeing what our young members get out of Scouting as well as getting the opportunity to carry on enjoying fun activities themselves. 

The leadership team has grown well over the last few months which has helped our development massively and we now have a really strong, experienced team in every section. 

But there's always room for more. So if you fancy trying something new in life, need a laugh, or just fancy being part of a successful team, please get in touch. Time commitment is totally flexible to suit you.

* For details, contact Joanne by emailing her at: Jogregory2000@yahoo.co.uk 

Railway's Corwen project praised in Senedd

* The new signalbox is lowered into place at the Corwen end of the line. 

North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has raised the support needs of Llangollen Railway’s Corwen Project with the Welsh Government.

Speaking in the chamber during this week’s Business Statement, Mr Isherwood outlined the work that has been completed to date by volunteers, but said additional funding is required to complete the project.

Raising the matter when calling for a Welsh Government Statement on support for standard gauge heritage railways in Wales, he said: “I've been asked to bring to the attention of elected representatives an article in the Denbighshire Free Press earlier this month on Llangollen Railway's Corwen project. 

"This said that volunteers building the link between two Denbighshire towns say they need £10,000 to finally complete the project. They've completed 10 miles of the line between Llangollen and Corwen since trains stopped running 45 years ago, a platform has been created, but a gap remains in the embankment between the new station in Corwen and the rest of the line, and the aim is to fill that gap.

“The project for the terminal is costing about £1 million. Approximately £600,000 has been down to the work of volunteers, and they want to, hopefully, complete this before the summer season, because attracting people to join the train at Corwen is essential and the town will benefit from the additional visitors too.

“If I could call for a statement on support for our standard gauge heritage railways - because we know the Welsh Government does support our narrow gauge heritage railways - and applaud and see how we can support that massive volunteering effort, which is not only delivering heritage projects, but also offering so much to the tourism and broader economies of areas that so much need that stimulus.”

Responding, the Minister for Finance and Trefnydd, Rebecca Evans AM, said: “I will make sure that the appropriate Minister writes to you regarding the standard gauge heritage railways, but I will take this opportunity to join you in congratulating the volunteers on the work that they do in order to preserve this part of our heritage and our history, and also to promote and enhance tourism.” 

Wonderland adventure for Dinas Bran pupils

* Alice, the White Rabbit, and the Queen of Hearts visited Ysgol Dinas Bran.

Pupils in Denbighshire, including those from Ysgol Dinas Bran, have had the chance to take a tumble down the rabbit hole and get an exciting glimpse of Wonderland.

As part of World Book Day celebrations, Denbighshire Curriculum Enrichment teamed up with Magic Light Productions to visit 15 schools across the county.

Alice, the White Rabbit, and the Queen of Hearts herself visited schools, delivering her right royal batch of shortbread biscuits for the “Who Stole the Tarts?” schools’ biscuit decorating competition. 

The special heart-shaped biscuits are being provided courtesy of a unique sponsorship arrangement with The Pudding Compartment, Flint.

These themed and atmospheric school visits, celebrating Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, involved characters from the classic book in full costume. 

Denbighshire Curriculum Enrichment is a project run by Denbighshire County Council to enhance pupils’ learning.

New Dot cinema launches its spring programme

New Dot cinema's spring programme will be announced at tonight (Friday's) showing of the film Cold War. 

The cinema's big gala screening will be Bohemian Rhapsody on Friday, May 24 which volunteers reckon should be a brilliant way to start the bank holiday weekend. 

The new programme also includes Oscar-winning The Favourite, Stan and Ollie, the exhilarating Oscar-winning documentary Free Solo, in which brave man pits himself against big mountain without a rope, and the Japanese film, Shoplifters, about a dysfunctional but loving family of shoplifters who rescue a small girl and unleash all sorts of chaos as a result. 

The first film in the season, the British wartime classic A Matter of Life and Death, is being screened the night before Llangollen Railway's 1940s Home Front weekend, to help get everyone in the mood. 

More details, trailers and tickets are available on the website http://newdotcinema.org/dot/. 

Posters giving details of the programme are due to be distributed around town from early next week.

* Gales Wine Bar are now offering a 10% discount to early bird diners who are going to a New Dot screening, or other events in Llangollen. 

The promotion starts tonight Friday with the screening of Cold War. 

Gales will be open from 5pm  and diners just have to show their ticket (online or paper versions) to get the discount. More details on Gales' Facebook page.

Eisteddfod gets £75,000 Welsh Government boost

* Ken Skates AM with Clwyd South MP Susan Elan Jones at last year's eisteddfod.

Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod has received a £75,000 funding boost from the Welsh Government.

A letter to local Assembly Member Ken Skates from Eluned Morgan, Minister for International Relations and the Welsh Language, outlining the cash support says: “I am pleased to confirm that the Welsh Government will be providing a three-year funding package 2019-21 amounting to £75,000 to support the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod’s audience development project. 

"The overall aim of the project is to increase visitor numbers from the current 35,000 (2018 event) to 45,000 in three to five years.”

The Minister said the funding will "support the expansion of the festival, enabling it to widen the scope and reach of the event to a global audience and support the promotion of the festival through enhanced marketing activity".

Around 35,000 visitors descended on Llangollen last summer and the festival is estimated to generate around £1.5m for the region’s economy each year.

Mr Skates said he was ‘thrilled’ that the Welsh Government is supporting the world-famous event to help it increase visitor numbers by 30% in the next few years.

He said: “Llangollen Eisteddfod brings tens of thousands of visitors to Clwyd South and provides a huge shot in the arm for the regional economy each summer, with people staying in local hotels and B&Bs, drinking in local pubs and eating out in our fantastic array of restaurants and cafés.

“It’s a huge event which promotes our wonderful part of the world on a global stage.

“This year’s festival is also expected to be one of the first major international events staged in Wales after Brexit, so I think its messages of hope and peace is even more important than usual. I’m thrilled and proud that the Welsh Labour Government is supporting it.”

Eisteddfod chairman Dr Rhys Davies said: “I would like to thank the Welsh Government for its support in these uncertain times and its recognition that the Eisteddfod is the premier international cultural festival in Wales, where we have the opportunity to promote Wales on the international stage which will be so important in the future.

“The investment will enable us to promote Llangollen further and attract new audiences and competitors and thus a greater number of visitors to Wales and help sustain the viability of the International Eisteddfod.”

Mr Skates said the Welsh Government is currently in the process of planning its corporate presence at this year’s event, which runs from July 1-7.

* For more information on the festival visit international-eisteddfod.co.uk.