SUZUKI S-CROSS 1.6 ALLGRIP : S-Cross ticks all the right boxes

Folks who place a premium on reliability, efficiency and value typically buy Japanese cars. And among Japanese cars, Toyota has the lion's share of the market, going by the number of cars on the road, followed by Honda and Nissan.

The other Japanese brands have relatively small slices of the pie and the most underrated among them is Suzuki.

No fault of its own, really.

The smallish company's forte is in making small cars, and small cars are just not sexy. They seldom make you go "wow", they hardly turn heads and the biggest compliment they get is probably, "Look honey, so cute!"

But Suzuki is actually more than that. It is also a leading manufacturer of motorcycles and marine outboard motors.

And it is promising enough for Volkswagen to buy into it. The German group holds close to 20 per cent of Suzuki's shares.

In the passenger car segment, Suzuki is long known for making sport-utility vehicles (long before SUVs were in vogue), cars with small footprints but roomy interiors and cars that are easy on the wallet.

But in recent years, it has also made huge leaps in build quality, refinement and driveability.

Just take a look at the S-Cross Allgrip - a car that combines Suzuki's past and present. It is an all-wheel-drive compact crossover that is more spacious than its exterior dimensions suggest.

And it stands out as one of the best- equipped cars in its price segment, with a level of fit and finish that rivals cars above its station.

But you are unlikely to know that at a glance.

The car comes across as rather restrained, with a styling that will not stop anyone in their tracks.

Step inside, though, and you will find a cabin that ranks as one of the best in its class.

A tidy wraparound cockpit incorporates a factory-fitted infotainment system that includes navigation (a $1,000 option). A multi-function three-spoke steering wheel lets you control the hi-fi as well as the car's auto-cruise function without your hands leaving the wheel.

There are also a dual-zone climate control system, a keyless access and ignition system, a panoramic sunroof with sunscreen and a manual mode for its CVT gearbox.

Clearly, not quite the stuff you expect to see in a budget car. And they are found in a passenger compartment that is almost as spacious as the cabin of a Toyota RAV4, a vehicle that is half a size bigger.

The way they are presented deserves mention too. The car gets high marks for sturdy build quality and fine finishing in all its panels and trim, with standards that will pass muster in a top-tier manufacturer.

The refinement extends to the way the car drives. Although of modest output, the engine revs strongly, with relatively mild doses of vibration and harshness.

Most times, there is enough low-end torque for you to keep up with traffic without having to send the tachometer past 3,500rpm.

Its performance is not exactly breathtaking, but this is compensated by good ride and handling.

The S-Cross feels like a bigger car in the way it moves, with well-controlled undulations and minimal road intrusions - even when speed stripes and humps are in the way.

Around corners, it feels more like a confident hatch than a compact crossover.

It offers noticeably better roadholding and neater turn-ins than the Nissan X-Trail and an all-round manoeuvrability that rivals a VW Polo.

Because of its compactness and tallish stance, visibility is also more than decent.

Nevertheless, the car comes with a reverse camera on top of parking beepers.

As you can see, Suzuki has come a long way and the S-Cross is the latest proof of that.

All it needs now is perhaps a small turbo and a dual-clutch gearbox.