A budget hatchback the Renault Kwid might be, but its SUV-inspired styling sure captured the imagination of buyers. Coming soon, we’ll have the S-Presso from Maruti Suzuki that seemingly subscribes to the same formula. It’s squared-out design, upright stance and relatively high ground clearance should appeal in our market where SUVs top the desirability rankings. 

While the two hatchbacks are built to the same philosophy, they are not very dis-similar in other areas. How they compare on dimensions, power and prices is what our specifications comparison makes clear. 

Dimensions

The soon-to-be-launched S-Presso stands at 3,565mm in length, 1,520mm in width and 1,564mm in height, with a wheelbase of 2,380mm. Despite eclipsing its sibling, the Alto K10, by a slight margin in every metric, the S-Presso falls short of the Kwid by 114mm and 42mm in overall length and wheelbase, respectively. It is even 59mm narrower than its French rival. However, the extra 86mm in height and larger wheels (14-inch vs. 13-inch) do work in favour of the S-Presso’s micro-SUV image. Both hatchbacks have an identical ground clearance of a respectable 180mm and are equipped with similarly sized fuel tanks.

Engines and gearboxes

The S-Presso is set to debut the BS6-compliant version of Maruti’s K10 engine that also does duty on other models in the carmaker’s line-up including the Alto, Celerio and WagonR (albeit in BS4 guise) where it puts out 68hp and 90Nm of torque. The Kwid’s engine has a similar 1.0-litre, three-cylinder configuration, as well as near identical output figures.

Transmission duties are handled by a 5-speed manual or an AMT automatic gearbox in both hatchbacks. Notably, unlike the Suzuki, the Kwid extends the option of a smaller 800cc petrol engine mated to a manual transmission as standard.

The Maruti K10 engine’s official ARAI-tested fuel economy figure is rated at 23.95kpl, for both the manual and auto versions, in case of the Alto. This can be expected to drop slightly in the S-Presso, especially due to the shift to BS6. In comparison, the Kwid delivers 23.04kpl with the manual gearbox and 24.04kpl with the AMT version. However, it is worth pointing out the Renault is yet to be updated to the cleaner emission norms.

Prices

The S-Presso will be retailed through Maruti Suzuki’s Arena network and is expected to carry a sticker price of Rs 3.3-4.5 lakh (estimated, ex-showroom). As such, it will successfully undercut the 1.0-litre Kwid variants that are priced between Rs 4.21-4.76 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Another advantage that the new entrant could pull over the 1.0-litre Renault hatchback is the wider choice it offers – four variants compared to the latter’s limited range of just two trims.

The S-Presso is Maruti’s big small car launch for 2019. However, Renault will not take things sitting down and will bring out its updated Kwid shortly. This is going to be a battle for the bottom of the pyramid. Stay tuned for our in-depth comparison.