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All models / All cars / City cars / Suzuki Celerio

Suzuki Celerio

All generations and engines together · 27,263 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 39k

Reliability verdict
BBy age
ABy miles

Graded against its peers

Better than most city cars for its age, and one of the best per mile driven. Watch brakes and suspension. A solid used buy, provided its MOT history has no repeating brakes advisories.

First-time failure at age 7
15.8%
Across 5,284 tests. The average for city cars is 20.2%.
First-time failure at 50-60k miles
20.3%
Across 3,135 tests. The average for city cars is 30.1%.
Rank in its class
2 of 18
1 = lowest failure rate among the 18 city cars we can rank.
Typical mileage at age 7
39k miles
How far the average car has gone by seven years old. Low-mileage models can look better by age than they are.

What owners report

Reported

Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.

Brake pedal retraction recall (early cars)

Partly in the MOT data

On UK launch in February 2015, two press cars suffered brake pedal failure during an 80mph emergency stop test, with the pedal sticking to the floor and no braking effect. Suzuki pulled the Celerio from sale, recalled the roughly three dozen cars already delivered, and fitted an updated pedal mechanism, a fix done free at a dealer in about half an hour. This model's measured MOT data flags brakes as the standout fault in the city segment, and this recall is the nearest owner-folklore match, though it's a one-off factory fix on very early cars rather than a wear item that keeps recurring.

Recall issued Feb 2015, dealer fix ~30 min · sources: Autocar, Honest John, Parkers

Front seat airbag bracket recall (early 2018 build)

Confirmed pattern

Cars built in a narrow window around January to March 2018 left the factory with a front seat side-airbag webbing bracket that wasn't secured properly, meaning the airbag might not deploy correctly in a side impact. Suzuki issued an official recall and dealers resecure or replace the bracket free of charge. Only affects cars from that build window, but worth checking before buying one from that period.

Affects cars built roughly Jan-Mar 2018 · fix free at a dealer · sources: Parkers, car-recalls.eu

Early clutch wear and judder

Disputed

A number of owners report the clutch feeling worn, judder pulling away, or a biting point that's crept high within the first 10,000 miles, sooner than you'd expect on a car this light. When owners have taken this to Suzuki dealers, some have been told it's driving style rather than a parts fault, and opinion on forums is split on whether it's a genuine weak point or just heavy-footed use. Where a clutch kit is needed, expect somewhere around £300-500 fitted.

Reported from as low as 8,500 miles · sources: Parkers owner reviews, Suzuki Forums

AGS automated gearbox hesitation

DisputedAutomatics only

Cars fitted with Suzuki's AGS automated gearbox, which is really a robotised manual rather than a torque-converter auto, pause noticeably between pressing the throttle and the car moving, and nod at each gear change. Reviewers describe it as cumbersome next to a normal automatic, and buyers expecting smooth shifts are sometimes caught out. It's a design trait rather than a fault as such, but it uses the same clutch as the manual, so harsh or inconsistent changes on a test drive are worth querying with a dealer. Manual Celerios aren't affected.

Automatic (AGS) cars only · sources: Honest John, owner forums

Suspension knocks and interior rattles

Emerging

A minor but repeated complaint: creaks and knocks from the front suspension over rough roads and speed bumps, plus rattles from the dashboard and door trim, generally turning up from around 40,000-60,000 miles. Auto Express and owner reviewers flag it as an isolated niggle rather than a widespread pattern, and it's usually a top mount, drop link or bush rather than anything structural. Cheap to put right, roughly £50-150 a corner, but worth running down before you buy so you're not paying for someone else's neglect.

Reported from 40-60k miles · sources: Auto Express, Parkers owner reviews

What to check on this car

Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.

Saveable checklist

From this model’s MOT record

The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.

Brake pipes underneathRuns high on this model Follow the metal brake lines with a torch where they run along the sills and over the rear axle. White crust or flaking metal means they are corroding, and the online MOT history usually shows the same advisory creeping up for years before the fail.Recorded on 13.3% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.9%
A binding brakeRuns high on this model After the test drive, hold the back of your hand near each wheel hub. One wheel running much hotter than the rest is a sticking caliper. A car that slows itself down when you lift off on a flat road is saying the same thing.Recorded on 2.6% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.7%
Underneath, with a torchRuns high on this model Get down and look at the sills, the subframes and the rear suspension mounting points. Flaking scale and bubbling matter; light surface rust does not. On older cars this is the one check that finds the fault that scraps them.Recorded on 2.2% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.6%
Lights and horn walkroundRuns high on this model With a helper, run every light: dipped, main beam, indicators, brake lights including the high-level one, reverse, fog, and the horn. On newer cars a dead LED section can mean replacing the whole lamp unit rather than a bulb.Recorded on 2.1% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.8%
Rubber boots and gaitersRuns high on this model On full steering lock, look in behind each front wheel at the concertina rubber boots on the driveshafts and steering rack. Splits, or grease flung around the arch, mean dirt is getting into a joint that costs far more than the boot protecting it.Recorded on 2.0% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.6%
Coil springs Look through the wheel spokes at the bottom coil of each spring; when springs snap it is usually there, and the break is visible. Step back and check the car sits level too. A dropped corner is often a broken spring.Recorded on 1.6% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.3%
Bushes and ball joints Drive slowly over broken tarmac with the windows down and listen for clonks from either end. Back at the car, have someone rock the steering wheel while you rest a hand on each front wheel; play you can feel through the tyre is a worn joint.Recorded on 1.1% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 5.9%

Worth doing on any used car

These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.

Tyres, all fourRuns high on this model Check the tread across the full width of each tyre, inner edge included, and look for cracking and mismatched brands. A set of decent tyres is £500 or more on most cars, which makes this the easiest money to take off a price. If the pressure warning light is on, budget for sensors too.Recorded on 22.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 11.1%
Pads and discs Look through the wheel spokes at the brake disc. A pronounced lip on its outer edge, or a rusty and scored face, means discs and pads are due all round, a few hundred pounds on most cars. A haggling point rather than a reason to walk away.Recorded on 5.9% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 8.7%
Windscreen and wipersRuns high on this model Scan the glass in daylight for chips, especially in the driver's line of sight where even a small one can fail the MOT. Run the washers and check the wipers clear without smearing.Recorded on 5.1% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.7%

Because of what owners report

Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.

Check the MOT history for repeated brake advisories, not just a pass. Brakes are this model's biggest measured fault; recurring advisories mean it's an ongoing wear issue, separate from the old recall.
For a 2015-reg car, ask for proof the February 2015 brake pedal recall was completed. No record on file means that fault may never have been rectified.
For any car built January to March 2018, check the front seat airbag bracket recall has been done. An outstanding recall means the side airbag may not deploy properly in a crash.
Dip the clutch and pull away from a dead stop several times. A high biting point or judder points to premature wear, which some owners report from well under 10,000 miles.
If it's an AGS automatic, drive it in real stop-start traffic, not just a clear road. Some hesitation between gears is normal for AGS; harsh or inconsistent changes suggest the clutch actuator needs a dealer look.
Listen for knocks over speed bumps and give the dash and door cards a firm push. Clunks point to worn suspension bushes or top mounts; loose trim rattles are cheap but worth knowing about upfront.
Get the full service history and check oil change intervals were kept up. This is a simple, tough little engine; gaps in basic servicing, not the design, are what actually cause problems.

Open the saveable checklist, tick it off at the car

The MOT data

Measured

Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.

How this model wears

Suzuki CelerioClass average, all tracked models

What testers flag

Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.

Faults with the car itself

The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 22,999 tests in this band.

Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
Advisory
13.3%class 1.9%
A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated
Minor
3.0%class 1.6%
Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake
Advisory
2.6%class 0.7%
A brake hose ferrule excessively corroded
Advisory
2.5%class 0.4%
Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
Fail
2.4%class 0.2%
A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded
Advisory
2.2%class 0.6%
Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
Fail
2.1%class 0.8%
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Advisory
1.6%class 1.3%
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
Advisory
1.1%class 5.9%
Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users
Advisory
0.9%class 2.0%

Wear, upkeep and luck

Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.

A tyre seriously damaged
Advisory
23.6%class 12.7%
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Advisory
19.4%class 22.9%
A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
Advisory
5.9%class 8.7%
Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen
Fail
5.1%class 1.7%
Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured
Advisory
4.3%class 10.1%
Wiper blade defective
Minor
2.6%class 1.0%
Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn
Advisory
2.6%class 3.4%
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Fail
1.9%class 2.3%

Others in its class

Same segment (City cars), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.

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