Suzuki Celerio

Following the recent MSA conference at Wakefield Suzuki offered me the opportunity to test drive their Celerio model and my first impressions were very favourable. The Celerio is a cracking little car, the build quality is good, and the value for money excellent.

My first journey in the car was to drive from Wakefield the conference venue back to the MSAGB office in Stockport a distance of about fifty miles. The car loaded with two adults our luggage and a large amount of conference paraphernalia and equipment performed remarkably well. Considering this is a “city” car it performed well both on the motorway section of the journey and on the A roads.

Perhaps the most striking think about the car is the value for money it offers. Prices start with a pound change from £7,000 and include, air conditioning; Bluetooth; DAB radio; alloy wheels and five doors.

The car is very straightforward to drive and the new young drivers I have shown the car to have all commented on the seating position and excellent all round visibility. They also said they liked the way the car looked.

Certainly the exterior is easy on the eye. On the inside the there is a lot of plastic but the controls are all easy to see understand and operate. As one review I read put it “A simple stereo system with big buttons sits atop a similarly uncomplicated ventilation system, while ahead of the driver are easy-to-read dials and chunky, well-labelled indicator stalks.”

The ride is very comfortable although I would have like a bit more padding in the seat. And the door pockets are not exactly capacious although there is an excellent sized glove box and other useful cubbyholes.

The vehicle I tried out was fitted with He-Man dual controls which, as you would expect. Worked extremely well. A number of ADIs tried out the trainers’ position in the car and comments included “great position I feel confident that I can see the pupil the road and all the controls easily; the duals work well on this; I like the layout very unfussy.”

Also worthy of mention is the steering lock, on the Celerio I thought it seemed like a very small turning circle from driving the car and a little bit of research suggests that it has one of the smallest turning circle in its class which combined with the very good all-round vision, makes it a straight forward car to park and manoeuvre in tight spaces.

The Celerio also has reputedly got the biggest boot in its class, and there’s enough room for five providing the rear seat passengers are on the sim side. Getting into the back is easy because of the rear doors and there is a surprising amount of legroom for a small car.

If you are after style luxury and high performance, then you’re going to be disappointed by the Suzuki Celerio. However, for buyers looking for a VFM vehicle with lots of space, great visibility and high spec extras, the Suzuki Celerio is clearly a vehicle worth considering next time you are thinking about a new tuition vehicle.