Frankfurt Preview: New Suzuki Swift Sport with 135HP

It's been a long time in the making, but Suzuki is finally ready to add a sporty variant to the Swift's range. The Japanese automaker released a single photo and details of the Swift Sport ahead of its official debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show next month.

The new Swift Sport is powered by a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine with an output of 135HP at 6,900 rpm and maximum torque of 160 Nm (118 lb/ft) at 4,400 rpm. The four-cylinder engine was developed especially for the Swift Sport and it transmits power to the front wheels via a newly developed six-speed manual gearbox.

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And the Most Appealing Brands and Vehicle Models for U.S. Consumers in 2011 Are…

Aside from the annual vehicle reliability study that determines which are statistically the most and least dependable cars on the market, J.D. Power & Associates’ also conducts an annual survey of the most appealing brands and vehicles in the States.

The APEAL study examines what consumers like and dislike about their vehicles and how gratifying they are to own and drive based on their evaluations of more than 80 different attributes. Some findings are expected but some may come as a surprise to you.

Beginning with the brand appeal, Porsche finished first followed by Jaguar, BMW, Land Rover (despite ranking close to last in J.D. Powers' reliability study), Audi and Mercedes-Benz.

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