[dZired]

Well, Saturday is gone. But still no news about the launch of the ALTO 800. Has anyone come across any possible date for the launch?

[MHG]

Originally Posted by dZired

Well, Saturday is gone. But still no news about the launch of the ALTO 800. Has anyone come across any possible date for the launch?

Wasn't this originally scheduled for a diwali launch ? A quick google search reveals diwali is on 13th November, 2013.

[dZired]

Originally Posted by MHG

Wasn't this originally scheduled for a diwali launch ? A quick google search reveals diwali is on 13th November, 2013.

Earlier it was speculated that the launch may happen around Diwali so that MSIL can take benefit of the festive season. But on the previous page of this post (page 17) many fellow members (including me) shared some links which reported that the new ALTO 800 would hit the Indian roads on the Saturday, 15th September.

This was the reason of my post that you have quoted.

So I dont think Maruti will now wait till Diwali for the launch.

[sarthakgupta]

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

I'm confused. Nano is positioned below Alto and eon is positioned above Alto. Then where will Alto800 be positioned? Below or above Alto?

Originally Posted by sameerg001

Below Alto for sure, If launched above alto, then you've K10 and spark sitting there.

It is neither below Alto nor above Alto. It is the replacement of Alto F8D (i.e. the 800 cc Alto). In a single stroke Maruti is replacing both Alto F8D and Maruti 800 by this one car "Alto800".

[agspins]

YEP it is replacement for F8D and launch would be around Diwali as confirmed by SA. F8D stock is cleared with heavy discounts.

[Diesel lover]

Some more pics of the car seen in real flesh:

Lxi model with company fitted CNG:


Front View:


Lxi with driver side SRS Airbag:


Interior pic:


The person said that the car will be launched in October or by Diwali.

[erohit]

Originally Posted by Diesel lover

Some more pics of the car seen in real flesh:
..
The person said that the car will be launched in October or by Diwali.

Thanks for the picture Diesel Lover. These are much nice and clear then the earlier pictures we have seen so far. I like what I see now. The car looks much better in red color and seems a good replacement for Alto F8D and M800.
In fact, these picture has some what changed my heart for Maruti design team. It is not a bad design at all. Though there are resemblance to some existing cars but I guess that is true with every other car. The only reason we do now know about it because the resembled car might not have been launched in India.
Overall a thumps up from me as an initial impression. Let's see what Maruti has in offer in next few weeks.

[itwasntme]

Looks amazingly similar to the Figo facelift! Ford will not be amused :-)

[dZired]

Originally Posted by Diesel lover

Some more pics of the car seen in real flesh:

Lxi with driver side SRS Airbag:

Thanks for the pics Diesel lover. They have changed my view towards this vehicle. It looks quite good and does not look "too" similar to any other existing model in India.

BTW, its a strange but a great step by MSIL to provide driver side airbag and power windows in the lxi variant.

Maruti again has a market changer on their hands. Hope they price it excellently (they are the best in pricing strategies).

[RSR]

Fabulous pictures, Diesel lover, many thanks for sharing! Any ideas about a factory-fitted LPG version?

Some observations from the pictures:

Pros

1) Though the front, side and rear seem to have clearly taken "inspiration" from other cars, the overall look is good enough. It may not have the flowing, stylish lines of an Eon or the cuteness of a Spark, but like a typical Japanese design, it is bound to please everyone and offend none.

2) The driver's airbag is definitely a welcome feature on the Lxi variant!

3) The interior quality looks like an improvement over the current Alto (from the pics, at least).

Cons

1) As mentioned previously, the ugly portion between the tail lamp and the hatch is an eyesore and spoils the rear looks. It looks as if a portion of the hatch has been left out to cut costs.

2) Horrible positioning of the front power window switches!

3) Cost cutting in other areas is quite evident as well, such as the single windshield washer nozzle. It looks like the left side door pocket is missing as well.

4) Absence of passenger side ORVM even on the LXi variant! C'mon MSIL, how much is it going to cost to provide such a basic feature?

Originally Posted by dZired

BTW, its a strange but a great step by MSIL to provide driver side airbag and power windows in the lxi variant.

Maruti again has a market changer on their hands. Hope they price it excellently (they are the best in pricing strategies).

As they say, God bless competition! The Eon Sportz has a driver's airbag and from the looks of it, Suzuki is willing to take the fight to Hyundai's stylish baby. Looking at the quality and finish of bits and pieces, I would say the interior is not as good as the Eon, but certainly improved over the current Alto. I bet Suzuki are willing to price it lower than the Eon to pull away customers.

I'm now eagerly waiting for the Team-BHP review of this promising new entrant which is bound to become one of the top-sellers in the market.

[romeomidhun]

Thanks for the pics, diesel_lover. From where did you take the pics? What about the width? Is it as narrow as Alto or as wide as Astar?

[silverado]

I dont think this verion has an Airbag.

It could be a steering wheel from higher version IMO.
This is a wagon R steering wheel.

Maruti offering Airbag over Music system, LHS-RVM and in a Lxi variant, is unheard of, and that too on a car which is supposed to be at the lower end pricewise.

Alto800 once in , MSIL should scrap AltoF8D and continue selling Altok10.

Slowly and surely plonk k10 if the car is well received and eventually kill Alto k10 as well.

The Gap between taillights and hatch is looking bad since the colour of car looks similar to tailights, in other colours it should look better i hope.

[abybabykcc]

Originally Posted by romeomidhun

And moreover, for me, the Swift design is far better than most of the the copycat cars by their rivals.

Isn't Swift a copycat design of the Mini? And isn't the Desire just a boot stuck onto the Swift? Doesn't A-Star have the ugliest looking front and Ritz the most wierd looking back (apart from the Desire, of course). Isn't Wagon R just a box with loads of wasted space at the top and not enough on the sides or at the back.

Maruti established its brand at a time when the only other options indians had were the Padmini and the Amby (and a few better options that not everyone could afford). The goodwill earned in those early years has kept it going. But there is no denying the fact that they've been bringing out one ugly product after another for the Indian consumers. And the Alto 800 is the latest in the series.

[anachronix]

I know this will sell like hot cakes, but I am only worried about the fact that I have see these ugly contraptions on the road. An uninformed TBHPian might just scoop a picture in the wierd & wacky mods thread

Why not spend a little more time on making cars that looks atleast less painful to the eyes!? All the products MSIL engineers have created are ugly looking products (A*, Estilo)

I am sure thats not going to be added across all the variants of the new M800. Adding airbags in an entry level car is very good move, but I would be worried about the way its intergrated with the complete design of the car. In such a short car, its very tricky to integrate airbags. A bad integration might end up doing more damage than good to the passenger/driver! I hope MSIL has spent sufficient time in engineering that rather than simply lifting the airbags from its portfolio and adding it to the M800 for marketing reasons!

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by abybabykcc

Isn't Swift a copycat design of the Mini? And isn't the Desire just a boot stuck onto the Swift? Doesn't A-Star have the ugliest looking front and Ritz the most wierd looking back (apart from the Desire, of course). Isn't Wagon R just a box with loads of wasted space at the top and not enough on the sides or at the back.

Read my post carefully. I was saying that Swift will sell even without the Fiat diesel mill, because of the looks.

And if you say Swift is a copy, I will say they copied it gracefully, and not even Mini manufacturers complained. Remember the old gen sonata, and Jaguar sued them in court.

Also, when you point out each and every part of Maruti and say that hey are ugly, think of their manufacturer's cars also - Tatas have worst set of rear lamps, i10 has the most irritating and uninspiring head lamps, santro has the most crude body design, and figo has the oldest kind of body design even now, imo.

Maruti established its brand at a time when the only other options indians had were the Padmini and the Amby (and a few better options that not everyone could afford). The goodwill earned in those early years has kept it going.

If that is the only reason for Maruti's supremacy, it would have been a past story now, just like those ambys and padminis. But even after more than 12 years after other global manufacturers' arrival, Maruti still survives with a 40% market share.