The Suzuki S-Presso is a city car styled as a crossover or mini SUV, manufactured by Japanese automaker Suzuki through its Indian subsidiary Maruti Suzuki. Slotting below the Alto and the Wagon R in the Indian market, the S-Presso is also sold in developing regions such as Egypt, Latin America, South Africa, and Southeast Asia, including the Philippines.
Launch
The model was introduced to Indian customers in 2019, eventually making its way to the Philippines in 2020. It replaced the Alto K10 in Suzuki’s Indian lineup as well as the Alto 800 in the carmaker’s Philippine offerings. In contrast with the India-spec model which comes in four variants with varying degrees of equipment, the Philippine release is available only in a single trim level, albeit with four color options.
This is second Suzuki Auto model named after a type of coffee, following the Suzuki Cappuccino two-seater convertible which was in production from 1991 to 1998.
The Suzuki S-Presso made its Philippine debut in 2020
Exterior
Coming in at 3,565mm long, 1,529mm wide, and 1,565mm high, the Philippine-release Suzuki S-Presso sports a hatchback form factor, with small dimensions offset by various SUV styling cues such as prominent fenders, a high beltline, and a tall ground clearance of 180mm. The slim black grille with trapezoidal elements is surrounded by multi-reflector halogen headlamps, with cutout panels for aftermarket fog lamps below. A black resin bumper houses the front air dam and a lower lip styled as a skid plate.
At the rear, C-shaped rear combination lamps are also located high up on the body, pushed to the corners flanking the tailgate, resting above the black resin rear bumper. The S-Presso rides on a set of 14-inch steel wheels with full wheel covers.
Interior
For the interior, the S-Presso sold in the Philippines comes in a predominantly black interior color palette. A single front-mounted cabin light provides illumination. There’s room for up to five occupants, with front seat featuring integrated headrests while the rear bench uses removable head restraints. The vinyl and fabric seats have a high hip point which provides occupants with an elevated seating position. There’s room for up to 239 liters of cargo, expandable by folding the rear seats.
Front power windows are standard equipment, with switches mounted on the dashboard. A digital instrument panel with amber backlighting is located at the center of the dashboard. There’s a front storage pocket between the front seats, as well as bottle holders on the center console and door pockets.
Technology & Safety
The Philippine-spec S-Presso comes equipped with a 7-inch touchscreen head unit that has an AM/FM radio tuner, USB and Bluetooth connectivity, as well as video, music, and photo playback. Manual air-conditioning controls with rotary switches are located below the display.
For safety, the Suzuki S-Presso offers anti-lock brakes with electronic brakeforce distribution, dual front airbags, four 3-point ELR seatbelts with one 2-point lapbelt, and ISOFIX child seats anchor points. Childproof rear door locks and rear parking sensors are also included, as well as seatbelt reminders for the front occupants.
In crash tests conducted by Global NCAP, the S-Presso scored zero stars out of five for the base variant without seatbelt pretensioners, front passenger airbag, and ISOFIX anchors, features that are omitted on the Indian-spec base trim.
Platform & Chassis
The Philippine-spec S-Presso is built around the fifth-generation HEARTECT K platform, which Suzuki claims uses advanced and ultra-high tensile steel. Better ride quality and handling are achieved through the increased rigidity, while the chassis reduces the vehicle’s weight by up to 30 kg. The platform has been in use since 2014 on the Suzuki Alto, and currently underpins a range of other Suzuki models such as the Swift, DZire, Ertiga, and XL7.
Suzuki designed the frame of the S-Presso to center around the Total Effective Control Technology (TECT) concept, resulting in a structure that can absorb and disperse crash energy in the event of a collision. Electric power steering combined with the vehicle’s small dimensions allow it a minimum turning radius of 4.5m. Front MacPherson strut and rear torsion beam suspension are standard.
Engine & Drivetrain
The Suzuki S-Presso sold in the Philippines runs on a 1.0-liter K10B 3-cylinder gasoline engine that produces 67 hp and up to 90 Nm of torque. This is mated to a 5-speed manual transmission that routes power to the front wheels.
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