Driven by Dzire: We Join the All-New Suzuki Dzire Hybrid Media Drive to Bataan

As he spoke to thank the motoring media participants at end the two-day media drive, Norihide Takei, Director and General Manager of the Automobile Division of Suzuki Philippines Incorporated (SPH), emphasized the three important qualities of vehicles made by Suzuki. “First and foremost, Suzuki cars are compact, which makes them maneuverable, fun and easy to drive, especially around the Philippines. Second, Suzuki vehicles are designed to be fuel-efficient as most of you have proven on this trip. And third, because a lot of people now depend on their cars for mobility, Suzuki cars are reliable.”

Compact. Fuel-efficient. Reliable. These attributes echoed in my head as my wife Shawie and I drove south back to Metro Manila after having a delightful lunch at Souq, a quaint restaurant in San Fernando, Pampanga, which was the last destination of our two-day sojourn from Metro Manila to Bataan and back. Shawie and I were among the thirty-plus motoring media participants invited by Suzuki Philippines for the third installment of their series of activities to commemorate their 50th Anniversary in the country. But I’m getting ahead of my story…

All-New Compact Hybrid Sedan  

After starting their golden year with the One Suzuki Kick-Off Ride on January 28-29, Suzuki Philippines then launched the all-new Suzuki Dzire Hybrid 4-door compact sedan on April 10 at the Manila International Auto Show (MIAS 2025). Three weeks after the auto show, Suzuki scheduled a media drive for several members of the motoring press to experience the all-new Dzire Hybrid in real-world road conditions. On the morning of April 29th, we gathered at the Suzuki Cars Taguig dealership, where we found 16 brand-new and gassed-up Suzuki Dzire Hybrid GLX CVT units waiting to be driven.

Before the media drive, which was dubbed as “Driven by Dzire”, we were briefed by SPH Product Planning and Development Manager Kennedy Adia about the new features and technology designed into their all-new hybrid compact sedan. The power output of the Z12E 1.2-liter 3-cylinder engine is augmented by 2.19-kilowatt electric motor ISG (integrated starter generator) that is powered by a 0.072 kilowatt-hour (kWh) lithium-ion battery. Sir Ken, as we fondly call him, emphasized that the NHV (noise, harshness and vibration) technology of the Dzire Hybrid has been improved for supreme driving comfort.

Start Your Engines       

Suzuki Philippines promotes the exterior design of all-new Dzire Hybrid as “Elegantly Sharp” and, with the car up close, we have no reason to refute that. However, we did not have time to fully admire the aesthetics because we had to pose for the group photo, then get into our respective units, and start the media drive at past 9:30 AM. Shawie and I were assigned to Car #14, a GLX CVT finished in Alluring Blue Pearl Metallic. After familiarizing myself with the controls, and adjusting the driver’s seat, steering wheel, and mirrors, we strapped ourselves and waited for our turn to drive off the parking lot.

We were told by Sir Ken that the media drive will include a fuel efficiency contest, thus some of the more-serious competitors among our media colleagues immediately drove really slow as we crawled through the heavy traffic around Taguig City, keeping their engine revs and speeds low to save fuel. I looked at Shawie and asked her if she wants to do an “Eco Run” and be as competitive as some of the other participants. Since it was the middle of the summer and the sun was scorching hot, turning off the aircon would be unbearable while opening the windows will create a lot of wind drag. She just smiled at me and joked, “We can try but let’s keep the aircon on. I don’t want to smear my makeup or mess up my hair. Let’s just have fun!”

Life is a Highway

Because some of the participants were driving slow while others drove at a normal pace, our convoy of 16 cars immediately got broken once we got on C-5 Road and at the East Service Road in Parañaque. Shawie and I followed two other participants up the Nichols Interchange into Sales Road, turning right into Andrews Avenue and making a U-turn to go up into the Skyway entry tollbooth in front of the NAIA Terminal 3. We caught the tail end of the morning rush hour traffic up until the Skyway’s Buendia exit, after which, it was smooth driving throughout. I was looking for the fuel consumption display on the instrument panel when Shawie pointed it out. “It’s on the 9-inch touchscreen, dummy!” Aww…What can I do without her?

The touchscreen displayed a plethora of information, but for the fuel efficiency contest, I kept it on the Fuel Economy display, which showed the Range in kilometers, the Average fuel economy in kilometers per liter (km/L) and a semi-circular graph that shows the Instantaneous fuel consumption in 10-, 20-, 30-, 40- and 50-km/L marks. When we drove off from Suzuki cars Taguig, our Dzire Hybrid showed an average fuel consumption of 7.5 km/L on the display. When we were crawling in traffic, it went up to 8.6 km/L. However, when we were cruising smoothly on the highways, we started to average around 16-20 km/L. That only goes to show how much fuel is wasted when driving in slow heavy traffic.

Cruise Control + AFE + WIFE

When we got off the Skyway and into the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), I started fiddling with the Dzire Hybrid GLX CVT’s cruise control system and took mental note of how different speeds affected the instantaneous fuel consumption graph. I noted that between 80 to 83 kilometers per hour (km/h), the graph was blue up to between the 30- and 40-km/L mark. When going up inclined roads, it would dip to between the 20- and 30-km/L marks while on downhill portions it would go full blue up to the 50-km/L mark. Even though Shawie was busy taking photos and videos during the drive, she was curious about my use of the cruise control buttons on the multifunction steering wheel.

After she understood how the instantaneous fuel economy graph worked, she started keeping an eye on it. We were still going at a fairly fast clip, averaging 80 to 90 km/h, but when I needed to move to the leftmost lane to overtake slower vehicles in front, Shawie would warn me that the graph was turning gray, meaning we were consuming fuel at an inefficient rate, thus lowering our average fuel economy (AFE). She kept an eagle eye on the graph and continued to warn me every time it was more gray than blue. I joked that our Car #14 had a feature that none of the other Dzire Hybrid GLX CVTs in our convoy had: Ours had WIFE – Warning Inefficient Fuel Economy – which included a verbal warning and a slap on the nape if the driver (me) did not heed the WIFE. (Ha-ha! Really funny honey. – Shawie)

Getting Measured in Bataan

From NLEX, we got into the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) and drove towards the Dinalupihan exit. After exiting the toll booth, we drove straight to Mesa Feliz in Balanga, Bataan for lunch. Once we had our fill, we rested for a while, and then drove a few more kilometers to Caltex Diwa-Pilar station along Gov. J.J. Linao Road in Pilar, Bataan to have our Dzire Hybrid refueled and measured. When we arrived, some of the participants were having their cars pushed by the Confluence team to the fuel pump to ensure that no more fuel will be consumed. Shawie wanted to see if they have Slurpee at the 7-Eleven in the station, so she left me to fall in line for the refueling.

When it was my turn to go near the fuel pump, I started the engine and drove our Car #14 in front of the pump. I thanked the Confluence team for their offer to push my car for the sake of the economy run, but I couldn’t, in all conscience, bear to see them push a 1,400-kilogram Suzuki Dzire Hybrid with a hot metal body along with a 170-kg driver and our stuff inside under a hot summer afternoon sun. Some of my colleagues were so focused on their own refueling that they did not mind me starting the engine and driving our car to the fuel pump. I overheard someone say that one of the participants only needed 6.98 liters to refill their car’s tank. After our Car #14 got refilled with 7.11 liters of gasoline, the attending marshal uttered, “Not bad, sir”. I smiled back, shrugged my shoulders, and replied, “It’s fine. We enjoyed the drive.”

Fun Night at the Beach

Shawie rejoined me in the car and confided that she felt a little disappointed. “The 7-Eleven store here does not have Slurpee. I miss my favorite cold drink”, she complained. “So… I bought Mentos and M&Ms instead!”, she teased. She did not ask about the gas-up and instead, directed me to drive to La Jolla beach resort in Bagac, Bataan, where we all will be spending the night. The road from the gas station to the resort had a fair mix of straight highways and zigzagging mountain roads, and since the fuel economy drive was done, I started to drive faster. Shawie was still watching the AFE and graph and would occasionally warn me. I jokingly reminded her to turn off the WIFE.

At the resort, we freshened up and then rested for a couple of hours. At about 6:00 PM we walked to the beach, where Shawie caught a fabulous photo of the sunset and by 7:00 PM, SPH Senior Marketing Manager Odessa Gan, Assistant Manager Che Cabotaje and Brand Communication Group Head Jeff Lopez joined Takei-san and Sir Ken in inviting the participants to the buffet dinner. After a hearty dinner and with an open bar, the raffle and games started with emcee Robbin Nambayan hosting the fun. There were lots of great raffle prizes and fun games where Shawie and I won nice prizes. Randy Peregrino of Business Mirror won “Best Photo” while Erica De Zuzuarregui of JamesDeakin.Ph won “Best Video Reel”.

And the Winner is…

All the time the winners of the raffles, fun games and contests were announced, Shawie and I were applauding, as we usually do. In fact, Sirikit Gavino of the Confluence team was laughing at me for using my flip-flop slippers to clap louder. (Blame the several glasses of Mojitos. – Ed.) You see, Shawie, our kids and I adhere to this principle: When you get invited to join an event or compete in a contest, it’s already a blessing. When you win the raffle or do your best and win the contest, then it’s a bonus. We were honestly not expecting to win the fuel efficiency contest since I overheard that someone did 6.98 liters and I assumed that another more-serious participant did better than that.

Thus, we were genuinely surprised when Sir Ken announced that the winning car was loaded with 7.11 liters of Caltex fuel… was driven for a distance of 188 kilometers from Suzuki Cars Taguig to Caltex Diwa-Pilar… and dividing the odometer reading with the amount of fuel… garnered a fuel efficiency rating of 26.44 kilometers per liter. Shawie and I were the Fuel Efficiency Winners of the “Driven by Dzire” Media Drive! What a great way to end a fun day and a great drive! Woohoo! Thank you, Suzuki Philippines! Happy 50th!

(Editor’s Note: The all-new Suzuki Dzire Hybrid CVT achieved a certified fuel efficiency of 25.81 km/L during official tests conducted by the Automobile Association Philippines (AAP). Thus, our achieved fuel efficiency of 26.44 km/L is consistent with and supports the results of the AAP fuel efficiency tests.)