Suzuki claims that the new car delivers space and style in a compact car, combined with low fuel consumption and low emissions. Prices start at €11,995 before delivery charges.

The car has a new petrol engines and new transmissions. The entry model uses a well-proven Suzuki three-cylinder 93bhp engine to give 99g/km of CO2.

The new Dual Jet 90bhp petrol engine available in 2015 is also a three-cylinder design and it will have a lower 84g/km emission level. This latter new engine is claimed to give a 3.6l/100km (78mpg or 28km/litre) fuel economy level, using start/stop systems which is impressive for a small petrol engine and adds €1,000 to the list price.

The boot space is impressive at 254 litres, making it one of the most spacious in the small car market, while smaller than super minis such as the Ford Fiesta and Toyota Yaris.

The car has a new 5-speed manual gearbox , which Suzuki claims boosts efficiency. It claims that torque loss has been reduced by 40% by the reduction of oil volume and the installation of low-loss bearings. It claims that the use of an improved lever ratio gives more accurate and slicker gearshifts while driving.

The new Celerio features Suzuki’s Total Effective Control Technology (TECT), which uses high-tensile steel, along with features such as crumple zones, to disperse impact loads. The Celerio comes with six airbags, ESP5 for safer driving. It has a hill-hold control system to prevent the car sliding backwards during a hill start. The car comes with an EU compulsory tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) to monitor tyre inflation.

The Irish small car sector, in which the Celerio will compete, is expected to reach 3,300 sales in 2015. Suzuki expects to sell in the region of 150 Celerio models for the full year.