Suzuki (the world’s 12th-largest automaker) created and popularised the mini-MPV category in 1993 with the launch of the first-generation Wagon R in Japan – a car of a type never seen before. The Wagon R was such a hit that, by the end of 2007, sales had reached 3.2 million units in Japan and exceeded 4.1 million worldwide.

The man responsible for the Splash’s design and a fundamental contributor to the earlier development of the Swift, is 44-year-old Akira Kamio. In 2003, Kamio started analysing the characteristics needed for a future European mini-MPV. It quickly became clear to him that the car should not look like a shrunken van but should, at the same time, offer the same advantages as a van: a slightly higher seating position; concomitantly good all-round visibility, a pleasant feeling of roominess and easy configurability enabling the entire rear part of the cabin to be turned into a large luggage space. In short, Kamio saw the need for a charming design without any concessions made in terms of functionality.

To gain a thorough understanding of current needs, a 10-man Suzuki design team travelled from Japan to Germany in January 2004 and spent six months there researching European car trends and developments in fashion, lifestyle and design. Their impressions and findings led into model studies involving so-called “car clinics”, where potential customers showed a preference for a design that combined dynamism, sportiness and youthfulness with a pleasantly positive interior ambience and maximal practicality for everyday use. At the end of September 2006, Suzuki gave a preview of the forthcoming Splash in the form of a “Project Splash” study at the Mondial de l’Automobile show in Paris. A highly positive reaction from the public confirmed that Akira Kamio and his team had taken the right route with the Splash by creating it for tight parking spaces yet ensuring sufficient room for five people and their sport or leisure equipment.

With an overall width of 1.68 metres, the Splash is 8cm wider than the Wagon R+. Smartly shaped headlights give it a friendly appearance, and they combine with a trapezoidal grille to form a “face” that reflects the new Suzuki family identity. The Suzuki brand emblem proudly takes its place in the centre of the grille, and the entire front end of the car incorporates energy-absorbing structures for pedestrian protection.

The Splash is streamlined rather than boxy, but it is uncompromised in terms of interior roominess, functionality, and configurability. Its profile displays a gently rising nose, A-pillars that blend into the roof and a roofline that gently slopes toward the back, culminating in an almost vertical tailgate. Short overhangs create a compact and neat appearance. And to further enhance the look of compactness and nimbleness despite a relatively tall body (the Splash’s overall height is 1.59 metres), the wings are boldly contoured. The Splash’s drag coefficient is just 0.32 – an outstanding result for a car in the mini-MPV category.

Seen from the rear, the Splash immediately catches the eye with its large boomerang-shaped taillights that are positioned toward the outside on the C-pillars. (The look is even more distinctive when it gets dark.) The positions of the rear lights allow a wide tailgate, which makes loading and unloading luggage easy.