I had one of these little gems from 1994-1996. It was a 1990 G reg car, which I ran from 65,000 to 100,000 miles. It was in white, and was one of the most gorgeous looking cars on the road. It was also one of the fastest, with a 0-60 time of around 8 secs.

Mechanically, this car was years ahead of it's time. It was a 1.3 litre 16 valve engine which produced 100bhp. My 1992 1.8i 16v Orion only managed the same 100bhp with half-a-litre extra capacity! The swift was one of the most exhilerating drives I have ever had.

The performance was explosive. It would accellerate with breathtaking ease from that tiny engine, and the car was so light that the power to weight ratio meant it would keep accellerating right up to it's top speed of 115mph.

Handling was a mixed bag. The car was shod with 185/60/14 tyres on alloy wheels. This is quite a wide tyre for such a small car, and in the dry it would corner well, although you could throw it around if you were inclinded to do so. In the wet however, it was a very scary car. There was so little weight in it, that it would slide at the slightest invitation, and wheelspin was inevitable if trying to race away from the lights.

I can only describe the car as a road-going go-kart. It looks like an angel - again the designers got the asthetics of the car spot on, with the deep font spoiler, front fogs, side skirts, beautifully crafted rear windows, and the rear spoiler.

If you're looking for creature comforts, you won't find many of them on this car, although I think the later one's were better spec'd. There's a tilting sunroof, a rev clock, and electric mirrors. You are left with manual windows, no power steering, no ABS, no central locking! The dashboard is functional at best, and looks like a cheap japanese design, although the cup holders are extremely useful. At speed, both front doors would let air through, this made it very noisy on the motorway, but we cured
this with a bit of window insulation from B&Q!

The car was fantastically reliable, and the japanese build quality showed here. The bodywork also stood up very well, with no signs of rust. There is one very important thing you should watch for on these cars however. The gearbox needs topping up with oil. Clearly my one had been neglected by the previous owner, the box ceased. I was extremely luck to find a specialist who had a 2nd hand one - parts for these cars are few and far between, and even a 2nd hand box cost me £600. Make sure that oil level is checked every service!

From a drivers point of view, the lack of ABS means that you can make the car powerslide, and if you learn to master it, wet weather driving can be a fantastic experience! Also, the lack of power steering means that the feedback on the wheel is positive, and in actual fact the car is so light anyway, that the steering is not particularly heavy.

As a drivers car, it is fantastic, and if you're looking for something that goes fast, and fills you with a pleasant glow when you look at it, you will not find a better car. The lack of equipment, and ropey interior will not matter to you. What will matter is the look on the faces of the xr3i you just overtook, or beat away from the lights, when they see this gorgeous looking car powering away from them with a 1.3 badge on the back!

Take it on this basis, and this car is unbeatable!