Suzuki Celerio review

If there was a beauty contest for small city cars, then it’s pretty unlikely the Celerio would make it past the first round. It’s not that it’s bad looking, it’s just a little bland, certainly when lined up against the more quirky and stylish designs of the VW Up! and the Toyota Aygo.  

The car’s boxy looks with a wheel at each corner do come with some advantages – as we’ll see – but they’re never going to turn any heads. Unlike some small city cars there’s not even the option of a panoramic sunroof. On the plus side, metallic paint does come as standard and the range of colours is great. 

There’s only a single engine for the Celerio - a one-litre, three-cylinder non-turbo version. This sadly means you’re never going to be the first out of the blocks.  

It is ideal for zipping around town, and the car’s suspension makes it a far less jolting experience than some. It’s also got a pretty decent turning circle so doing a U-turn when you spot a parking space on the other side of the road is a piece of cake.  

The big, vertical windows all round mean that seeing your way into that space is also easy, and rear parking sensors are included in some models to make it even simpler. 

It’d be fair to say that Suzuki hasn’t exactly gone to town in making this a great interior. There’s quite a cheap feel to all the materials and none of the quirky fun that other cars in this class often include. That said, there’s everything you need, including a driver’s seat and steering wheel that you can adjust to give you a great driving position. All the instruments and controls are neatly laid out and there’s plenty of headroom thanks to the Celerio’s high roofline. 

In the back, there are three seatbelts, which is optimistic instead of very practical. Sure, there’s plenty of room for a couple to sit pretty comfortably in the back. The third person in the middle will always find themselves in a bit of a squeeze. Again, there’s plenty of headroom and enough legroom to make even long journeys not quite as tough as you might expect.   

In terms of tech, if you don’t expect much you won’t be disappointed. There’s no sat-nav but there is Bluetooth connectivity. There’s also a USB charging point for your phone, as well as a little shelf for it to sit on.  

It does seem a bit mean to pick on the Celerio for its basic interior though. At the price, and for this class of car, you’d not really expect heated seats and ambient lighting, after all. 

Again, the shape of the Celerio might not be so beautiful but the near-vertical tailgate means its boot is about the biggest in the class. Think three bags-for-life full of your supermarket shopping and that’s about the measure of it.  

Fold the 60/40 seats down and it’s not quite so impressive, with the Skoda Citigo offering more space. There’s also quite a lip to the boot, which isn’t the most convenient when you’re trying to load up. 

If you intend to use the car as a four-seater, it’s a definite winner when it comes to boot space. If you’re going to be carrying larger loads, it might not be your best choice for small car.  

Whether you go for the standard 1.0-litre engine or the ‘dual-jet’ version, you’ll soon discover that fuel costs are pretty low for the Celerio. The comparatively light weight of the car means that the former should give you around 65mpg, with the latter delivering 78mpg.  

Cars registered before April 2017 should pay no road tax at all, with post-2017 models paying £140 a year. Insurance is pretty cheap too. Suzuki always ranks fairly high on reliability tests, but the recommended 9,000-mile service intervals mean that maintenance costs can work out higher over time than other cars in the class. 

Relatively cheap to buy and with everything you need for a city runabout, the Suzuki Celerio is always going to be a good choice for simple, reliable driving. Don’t expect it to get your pulse racing.