Maruti S-Presso

The Maruti S-Presso is one of the carmaker’s many hatchbacks that offer good space and easy city commutes at an affordable price. But, it has a quirky looking design, the features are outdated, and its safety is questionable. In today's day and age, does it make sense to pick the S-Presso? Or should you go for its rivals or siblings? Let's find out.

• The S-Presso looks like a jacked up hatchback with its boxy shape and high ground clearance (180 mm).

• However, the quirky design can easily split opinions, as some might find it to be cute, and others might feel it looks cartoonish.

• All lighting elements including the headlamps, tail lamps, and indicators are halogen, and there are no DRLs on offer.

• From the side, it looks like a tall version of the Alto K10, and even the top-spec variant comes with 14-inch steel wheels with covers.

• Lower variants of the S-Presso get 13-inch steel wheels without covers.

• At the back, the design is plain and simple, and a lot of space is taken by the chunky bumper.

• The flat tailgate and the big tail lamps give it a rather bland look.

• Maruti offers it with 7 monotone shades: Solid Sizzling Orange, Pearl Starry Blue, Solid White, Solid Fire Red, Metallic Granite Grey, Metallic Silky Silver, and Bluish Black.

Design & Quality

• Just like the exterior, the S-Presso’s cabin also has a very quirky design.

• The most standout element is the circular infotainment panel, which houses both the touchscreen and the instrument cluster.

• Maruti has also added subtle orange inserts around the outboard AC vents, but this is limited to the orange exterior shades.

• Other colours get silver finish around these AC vents.

• Rest of the cabin is finished in all black including the seat upholstery, and both the dashboard and door pads are finished in hard plastic.

• There are no issues in terms of quality and fit and finish, especially considering the price.

• The cabin quality is better than the Alto K10, but not as good as the Wagon R.

Driving Position

• Getting in and out of the S-Presso is super easy due to the tall boy design and wide opening doors.

• However, once you sit behind the wheel, you’ll realize there is no steering adjustment and no height adjustment for the driver seat, which will make it difficult to find an ideal driving position.

• It has enough room for a 6-foot driver and a 6-foot passenger in the front, and due to the narrow door armrest, width is not an issue.

• Maruti has opted for soft cushioning for the seats, which is good for short city commutes, but if you’re spending hours in this car, you’ll wish for something firmer.

• The side support is also less, and headrests are fixed, so both side and neck support are only adequate.

Passenger Comfort

• Just like the front, the rear seat can also accommodate two 6-footers, even if there are 6-footers sitting at the front.

• But seating three passengers will not be comfortable as the middle one will struggle for shoulder room, and there is no middle headrest as well.

• There is enough legroom and knee room, but the underthigh support can leave you wanting for more.

• Here as well, there is a lack of side support, no armrest to keep your hand, and fixed headrest which provides virtually no support if you’re 6-foot or taller.

Storage Options

• The front doors get 1-litre bottle holders, there’s a decent sized glovebox, a tray on the dashboard to keep your phone or wallet, two cupholders, and a tray to keep your phone below the climate control panel.

• While the front has more than enough storage spaces, the same can’t be said for the rear.

• Rear passengers only get one bottle holder behind the handbrake, which is shared with the front passengers, and they miss out on cupholders, seatback pockets, and door bottle holders.

Features

• Even in the top-spec variant, the feature list is pretty small, and you only get basic daily use equipment.

• It gets a 7-inch touchscreen which has an outdated user interface and your inputs can take some time to be registered.

• It does support wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and they work as intended. But the connection takes some time.

• Other features are pretty basic like manual AC, keyless entry, front power windows, and a 2-speaker sound system.

• It could benefit with features like rear power windows, rear AC vents, push button start stop, additional speakers, and maybe even cruise control.

• Similar to the feature list, the safety kit also feels incomplete and lacks some important equipment like 6 airbags, ISOFIX child seat anchors, and a rearview camera.

• Standard features include dual front airbags, electronic stability program (ESP), ABS with EBD, and rear parking sensors.

• The only major addition in the higher variants is hill hold assist, and that too is limited to the AMT powertrain.

• With 270-litres of boot space, you can fit two medium and two small suitcases. Large ones will be difficult to fit.

• There is no 60:40 split in the rear seat, but you can fold them down if you need to carry large items.

• Maruti offers the S-Presso with a 1-litre, 3-cylinder, naturally aspirated petrol engine which is available with a 5-speed manual and a 5-speed AMT.

• This engine is also offered with a factory-fitted CNG kit which is available solely with a manual transmission.

1-litre Petrol

• While it is a 3-cylinder unit, vibrations are very well controlled, and you only feel them if you're driving at slow speeds in a high gear.

• The engine is peppy, delivers power smoothly, and has quick acceleration. 

• You can easily drive in the city constantly in 2nd or 3rd gear and the engine will not complain.

• Due to its small size, which is just a little over 3.5 metres, it is very easy to navigate in the city.

• On the highway, you can easily cruise around at 80 to 100 kmph, but overtaking will need effort if you’re in 5th gear.

• To overtake at those speeds, you need to downshift to get the required acceleration, and this will make the process time consuming.

• While the manual has a light clutch and gear throws are smooth, we will recommend the AMT if your commutes are mostly in the city.

• This AMT does make you notice the gear shifts, but it works properly, does not take a lot of time to change gears, and keeps noise to a minimum.

• However, if you want to overtake someone, the AMT will take a second or two to downshift, and you’ll have to plan your overtakes well in advance.

• City fuel efficiency with both the manual and the AMT is around 18 kmpl, and on the highway it will go up to 21-22 kmpl.\

1-litre Petrol + CNG

• In the city, you won’t feel the drop in power when driving in CNG mode, and the driving experience will be similar to petrol.

• However, there will be a noticeable lack of power on the highways, and you’ll need to plan your overtakes.

• The engine will also become noisy under high acceleration, and this powertrain is only available with the manual transmission.

• At slow speeds, the S-Presso gets a little unsettled over potholes and speed breakers, which results in side to side movement of passengers inside the cabin.

• To avoid this, you can go over the smaller potholes and speedbreakers at a slightly higher speed, as the S-Presso remains much more stable in that case.

• Deeper potholes should be taken at slow speeds to avoid any loud thud coming from the suspension.

• On the highways, the S-Presso remains stable and well composed when you're cruising at 80-90 kmph.

• It also handles undulations and cracks well while remaining planted.

• But, at triple digit speeds, it feels light and a little floaty. The steering wheel lacks weight which takes away the confidence, so we recommend taking it easy and not doing sudden lane changes.

• The 2025 Maruti S-Presso is offered in four variants: STD (O), LXi (O), VXi (O), and VXi+ (O).

• CNG is offered with the mid-spec LXi (O) and VXi (O) variants, and AMT is only available with the VXi (O) and VXi (O) variants.

STD (O)

• Gets halogen lighting setup, 13-inch steel wheels, and side cladding on the outside.

• The cabin gets an all black theme with black fabric seat upholstery.

• Doesn’t even get basic features like manual AC or front power windows.

• Safety kit includes features like dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, electronic stability program (ESP), and rear parking sensors.

LXi (O)

• Entry level CNG variant.

• No changes to the exterior or interior.

• Gets basic amenities like manual AC and power steering.

VXi (O)

• Entry level AMT variant.

• Gets body coloured bumpers, 14-inch steel wheels with covers, and a roof antenna as exterior upgrades.

• Feature upgrades include bluetooth connectivity, 2 speakers, front power windows, and manual adjustment for ORVMs.

• The only major addition to the safety kit is hill hold assist, that too in the AMT variants only. 

VXi+ (O)

• Exterior upgrades include body coloured ORVMs and body coloured outside door handles.

• Cabin gets Orange inserts around the outboard AC vents if the Orange exterior shade is chosen. With remaining colours, these inserts are silver.

• Gets a proper infotainment system with a 7-inch touchscreen and wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

• It also gets a rear parcel shelf and electrically adjustable ORVMs.

CarDekho Recommends

• Go for the VXi (O) variant if you’re on a budget. While it does not get the best exterior or interior packages, it comes with basic daily use features, and offers the options of both AMT and CNG powertrains. Make sure to keep some money aside for an after market infotainment system.

• Pick the top-spec VXi+ (O) variant if you want a better deal. It gets a better exterior along with a proper infotainment package.

The Maruti S-Presso, with its interior and exterior design may not appeal to everyone and can easily split opinions, but it still manages to stand out.

While it may not be the most good-looking car in its space, and it may not have the best features, it is still a stand out product that delivers in terms of style, comfort, and ease of driving, all at a reasonable price tag.

Other Options To Consider

Maruti Ignis

Reasons To Consider

• Bigger size and looks sporty

• Looks and feels more premium

Reasons To Ignore

• No CNG option

• Slightly less rear seat knee room

Renault Kwid

Reasons To Consider

• Straight forward design is appealing to most people

• Better features in lower variants

Reasons To Ignore

• Less refined petrol engine

• No CNG Option