Maruti Suzuki India Limited is celebrating 20 years of its iconic marque, the Alto in the Indian market. The Maruti Suzuki Alto was launched in the year 2000 and in four years time, it became the country’s bestseller. In 2008, the Alto reached the 10 lakh sales milestone and in 2012 the car reached the 20 lakh sales milestone followed by the 30 lakh sales in 2016. The brand in August 2020 announced that it had already crossed the 40 lakh sales milestone as well, proving itself as the ultimate small car for aspiring entry-level car buyers.
The Maruti Suzuki Alto sales in the FY 2019-20 59% came from rural markets which have increased to 62% for the current year. The Maruti Suzuki Alto is also exported to over 40 countries including markets in Latin America, Africa and South Asia, making its mark as the Pride of India. The Maruti Suzuki Alto has also been garnered with India’s No.1 selling car for 16 consecutive years.
The brand has also upgraded the Maruti Suzuki Alto with features such as Smart Play Dock, a new infotainment system which can connect to the user’s phone and transform it into a touch interface with access to calls, music, navigation and features like tubeless tyres, adjustable headlamps, power steering, front power windows, remote keyless entry, air-conditioner with heater, Bluetooth connectivity etc. The Alto also comes with safety features such as ABS and EBD along with other features such as driver-side airbag, over-speed alert system, seat belt reminders for both driver and front passenger and reverse parking sensor.
Recent changes in the emission norm have also led the brand to upgrade the Alto’s powertrain and now the popular car runs on a BS6 emissions-compliant F8D 800cc 3-cylinder, 12-valve petrol engine that produces 47.3 hp of maximum power mated to a 5-speed manual transmission. The Alto is also available with a factory-fitted CNG kit. The Maruti Suzuki Alto BS6 is available in the Indian market starting from INR 2.95 lakh ex-showroom, Delhi.
