It was action all the way at the Simola Hillclimb in Knysna at the weekend with the massive crowd hugely entertained by three automatic Suzuki Swift Sport models contesting Class A1 - and simply blitzing the times to set a new record.
Thomas Falkiner, Wesley Greybe, and Brendon Staniforth were behind the wheel and It marked Falkiner's debut in the Simola event driving the front-wheel-drive Swift Sport and Staniforth's first ever participation in a hill climb. Greybe, the seasoned contender, returned to guide a new cohort of journalist-racers, building on his extensive experience.
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The team’s performance was exceptional, with both Falkiner and Greybe breaking the 54-second barrier, and Falkiner setting a new Suzuki Swift record of 53,,551 seconds.
The 2023 campaign was particularly distinctive as Suzuki opted to enter three identical Swift Sport models, each equipped with a six-speed automatic transmission. In the past, Suzuki had mixed manual and automatic models to demonstrate their equivalency in providing a satisfying driving experience.
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Staniforth commented: "It’s incredible how much fun you can have for such a reasonable cost. I shaved over two seconds off my time from the first run to the last!"
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Falkiner, a veteran of the Hill Climb since 2010, finally celebrated a win."To finally win the class and set a new record for Suzuki feels incredibly rewarding. It's a year I’ll remember for a long time," he said.
Greybe, finishing just behind Falkiner, also enjoyed the tight competition.
"It was great being in such a closely contested race with a talent like Thomas," he commented.
This year also saw the first private entry in the competition, with enthusiast Giles Missing driving his five-year-old Suzuki Swift Sport. "I’ve seen the fun the Suzuki team had in previous years and wanted to be a part of it," said Missing.
Originally entering the Simola Hill Climb in 2022 to demonstrate that competitive fun didn’t have to be expensive, Suzuki Auto has also leveraged the event to launch new motorcycles, including the Suzuki GSX-S1000 GX Sport Crossover.
Colin Windell
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