The Suzuki S-Presso’s improved fuel economy makes this crossover more appealing

The changes to the 2023 Suzuki S-Presso are so minor that if you’re not familiar with the car, you probably won’t notice the changes. But what you will notice, is the extra mileage out of your fuel tank.

Looking at the exterior design, Suzuki made minor changes to the bumper, eliminated the plastic door sills, and swapped the steel wheels with plastic covers with 14-inch alloy wheels (GL+ and S-Edition grades). Notably, the S-Presso now also comes equipped with standard ESP (electronic stability control), as well as a larger infotainment display (for the flagship S-Edition models only).

The 2023 Suzuki S-Presso also gets a new mill – a 1.0-litre 3-cylinder petrol borrowed from the new Celerio. It delivers a tad less power than the previous engine but makes up for it in fuel economy.

Suzuki offers three variants for the new S-Presso: GL, GL+, and S-Edition. They all carry the same Dualjet 1.0 K10C engine, which produces 1 kW and 1 Nm less than the previous mill. While that might not bother the drivers much, the boosted fuel economy of 0.5 L/100 km will cheer them when they would save about R10 - R12 per 100 km. Suzuki claims 4.6 L/100 km for the manual and 4.4 L/100 km for the automated manual transmission.

Flooring the pedal to its maximum limit will allow the engine to create 49 kW and 89 Nm, which isn’t bad for a high-riding hatchback weighing around 800 kg. However, if you have to drive lots of hills, you will experience a 10% to 16% power loss while driving uphill. That said, urban driving would feel just fine with a smooth gear shift.

Like the exterior upgrades, the interior changes are minor. The main highlights are the new infotainment displays that support Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The GL+ buyers can benefit from a new-generation 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system, whereas the S-Edition offers a 9.0-inch display as well as a reverse camera.

Since it’s a small hatchback, don’t expect ample room inside the cabin, however the rear seats do provide a fair amount of space. City driving won’t fatigue rear passengers, but they would need a few breaks during longer journeys to stretch their legs.

The Suzuki S-Presso has 239 litres of boot space, which is 40 litres less than its competitor, the Renault Kwid. However, the Kwid doesn’t offer stability control. So, it is up to you if you want extra luggage capacity or better safety.

The new S-Presso just has two airbags (for the driver and the front passenger) in all the variants, but we think the stability control is important for safety. Research shows that stability control has protected more occupants than seatbelts.

For a budget-friendly vehicle with a starting price tag of R162 900, you must make some compromises, but none of those concessions makes the S-Presso an unappealing deal. (Prices correct at time of publication.) Here’s the pricing structure of the new 2023 S-Presso (December 2022). Remember, all models have a 2-year / 30 000 km Service Plan and a 5-year / 200 000 km promotional mechanical warranty.

Looking for similar city cars to review? Check out the MotorHappy blog for some of our latest reviews. Click here to start reading.

Please note the imagery supplied in this blog was taken off www.news24.com