CarWale
    AD

    Maruti Swift ICOTY Drive 2019 - Etching the letter I on the map of India

    Authors Image

    Ninad Ambre

    33,722 Views
    Maruti Swift ICOTY Drive 2019 - Etching the letter I on the map of India

    Introduction

    What's with the bold ICOTY stickering on the red Swift, you may ask? It caught many people's attention and we had to explain it to them too. We were on this unique ICOTY (Indian Car Of The Year) drive to etch the letters SWIFT on the Indian map with the help of GPS trackers. The locals were impressed to know that we were there in their region to form the alphabet 'I' by driving from Nagpur to Jalgaon.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    It's not surprising how popular the Maruti Suzuki Swift is in India. And it’s already been established that the Swift brand has always had an upper hand over its rivals. However, an astonishing achievement is the Swift brand winning the ICOTY award for every generation model. It won this award in 2006, then in 2012 and now its third-gen car has also won this title in 2019. No other car has achieved this. The drive itself, was organised to celebrate and mark this success in a unique way, along with motor journalists and ICOTY members from India.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Start from the geographical centre of India

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    The etching of each letter of the word SWIFT constituted a separate drive in itself and all the drives happened simultaneously. Our plan was to drive from Nagpur to Jalgaon, which is almost a straight drive on the map. We threw our bags and camera equipment into the boot and then were flagged off from the Zero milestone in Nagpur, which is geographically the centre of India.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    In and around Nagpur

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    The Swift with its light steering, a compact footprint, and decent visibility makes for an easy-to-drive car especially within a city. And despite the time constraint, we could go across town and through neighbourhoods, which we wouldn't have visited otherwise. We wanted to quickly try some local street food and meet and connect with the local people. After all, they say food and travel are one of life’s greatest experience intersections. A couple of hours later, after satiating our hunger and taste buds, we visited some famous spots in Nagpur and then headed out towards Amravati - our next stop on the journey.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Out on the highway

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    A quick math made me realise that in order to reach Jalgaon while shooting and with detours, we might have to cover about 450km through the day. My guess was that one tank-up would be enough. And it was, even though we weren’t hypermiling. In fact, as the roads widened into a dual carriageway, we just stepped on and stayed on the throttle for most part. Now, the Swift might be a small car, but in its latest generation, not only is it a joy around corners, it also remains planted and stable at higher highway speeds.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Meet-and-Greet

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    The Swift is almost a cult car. And its owners, as it turns out, are its biggest fans! One such owner, amongst the many who were tracking our drive, specially came on our route to meet us. Interestingly, we discovered that his parents owned older-generation Swifts and when it was his turn, he too turned to the Swift, in its latest iteration. He also reminded us of what we had forgotten to take back. Something that Nagpur is world-famous for. Yes, the oranges that give Nagpur its moniker of the orange city. And with so many orchards around, it wasn’t difficult to source a few oranges, especially since there was an array of stalls along the highway.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Just for some driving thrills

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    The road turned into a single carriageway after the super smooth roads beyond Amravati. We encountered many diversions and this stretch was marred with potholes and speed-breakers. But thanks to this car's plush ride quality and comfortable seats we were happily cruising along without any fuss.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    However, it was post lunch, when the straight monotonous roads became boring. We wanted a break and a barren field nearby grabbed my attention. It was the perfect place to kick up some dirt and snap out of the stupor induced by our midday meals. The light-weight Swift with its quick steering is good for driving thrills. What a refresher this turned out to be. Just have some quick fun and move on!

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Oranges to Bananas

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    By the time we crossed Akola and completed half the journey, the sun had come down. Our overall speeds had also dropped due to bad roads. Nonetheless, it was amazing to drive the Swift into the sunset.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    We reached Jalgaon late at night, but with the satisfaction of having safely completed the drive. And yet this hatchback ensured that even the journey towards the end was incredibly relaxing. What’s more, unwittingly, we had linked together two places with strategic importance to fruits. Nagpur as the Orange city and Jalgaon, as the banana capital of India.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Looking back at the journey I realised how true the Swift is to Indian sensibilities. For a majority of Indian car buyers reliability, value for money, efficiency and design are must-haves in a car. The Swift has always had it all. And now in its latest generation, it has brought back the added spunk of being fun to drive. No wonder, the Swift has won the ICOTY three times. But that’s not all, Maruti Suzuki has also managed to sell more than twenty lakh Swifts since 2005! That’s some achievement.

    Maruti Suzuki Swift ICOTY Drive 2019

    Pictures by Kaustubh Gandhi

    Related News

    Popular News

    Recent News

    Maruti Suzuki Swift [2018-2021] Gallery

    Featured Cars

    • HATCHBACKS
    • JUST LAUNCHED
    • Upcoming
    Maruti Suzuki Baleno
    Maruti Baleno
    Rs. 6.66 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Maruti Suzuki Swift
    Maruti Swift
    Rs. 5.99 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Hyundai i20
    Hyundai i20
    Rs. 7.04 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Maruti Suzuki Alto K10
    Maruti Alto K10
    Rs. 3.99 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Tata Altroz
    Tata Altroz
    Rs. 6.65 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Maruti Suzuki Wagon R
    Maruti Wagon R
    Rs. 5.54 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Hyundai Grand i10 Nios
    Hyundai Grand i10 Nios
    Rs. 5.92 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Renault Kwid
    Renault Kwid
    Rs. 4.70 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Lexus LM
    Lexus LM
    Rs. 2.00 Croreonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    JUST LAUNCHED
    15th MAR
    Hyundai Creta N Line
    Hyundai Creta N Line
    Rs. 16.82 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    JUST LAUNCHED
    11th MAR
    BYD Seal
    BYD Seal
    Rs. 41.00 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    JUST LAUNCHED
    5th MAR
    Mercedes-Benz AMG GLE Coupe
    Mercedes-Benz AMG GLE Coupe
    Rs. 1.85 Croreonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Mercedes-Benz GLA
    Mercedes-Benz GLA
    Rs. 50.50 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Porsche Macan Turbo EV
    Porsche Macan Turbo EV
    Rs. 1.65 Croreonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Rolls-Royce Spectre
    Rolls-Royce Spectre
    Rs. 7.50 Croreonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Tata Punch EV
    Tata Punch EV
    Rs. 10.99 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Mahindra XUV300 facelift
    Mahindra XUV300 facelift

    Rs. 9.00 - 15.00 LakhEstimated Price

    Mar 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    Toyota Urban Cruiser Taisor
    Toyota Urban Cruiser Taisor

    Rs. 12.00 - 16.00 LakhEstimated Price

    3rd Apr 2024Unveil Date

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    Maruti Suzuki New-gen Swift
    Maruti New-gen Swift

    Rs. 6.50 - 10.00 LakhEstimated Price

    Apr 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    MG Gloster facelift
    MG Gloster facelift

    Rs. 40.00 - 45.00 LakhEstimated Price

    Apr 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    Nissan Qashqai
    Nissan Qashqai

    Rs. 25.00 - 30.00 LakhEstimated Price

    May 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    Volkswagen ID.4
    Volkswagen ID.4

    Rs. 50.00 - 60.00 LakhEstimated Price

    May 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    Mahindra Five-door Thar
    Mahindra Five-door Thar

    Rs. 15.00 - 16.00 LakhEstimated Price

    Jun 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    Skoda Superb
    Skoda Superb

    Rs. 28.00 - 35.00 LakhEstimated Price

    Jun 2024 (Tentative)Expected Launch

    Get Launch Alert on WhatsApp

    AD
    • maruti suzuki-cars
    • other brands
    Maruti Suzuki Fronx
    Maruti Fronx
    Rs. N/A
    Price is not available
    Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara
    Maruti Grand Vitara
    Rs. 10.57 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city
    Maruti Suzuki Brezza
    Maruti Brezza
    Rs. 8.27 Lakhonwards
    Avg. Ex-Showroom price
    Show price in my city

    Popular Videos

    Mail Image
    Sign up for our Newsletter
    Get all the latest updates from the automobile universe
    • Home
    • News
    • Maruti Swift ICOTY Drive 2019 - Etching the letter I on the map of India