[hillram]

Originally Posted by sourabhzen

I could not relate the two cars at all. Request you to educate and elaborate on what front the two are similar.

+1..I too dont see any relation or similarity to the Reliant Robin.
Please explain us your thought process.

[naren_L]

Though I was never 'unhappy' about the looks of my alto K10, this car In my Personal Opinion makes it a good-looking car now. One major scope for refreshment was - adding space inside the car - which doesn't seems to have happened here, whereas the looks which was not a big drawback of the current alto have changed now to a 'not pleasing all' sorts, I really doubt how this gamble will get response from market!

[YashD]

Originally Posted by naren_L

Though I was never 'unhappy' about the looks of my alto K10, this car In my Personal Opinion makes it a good-looking car now. One major scope for refreshment was - adding space inside the car - which doesn't seems to have happened here, whereas the looks which was not a big drawback of the current alto have changed now to a 'not pleasing all' sorts, I really doubt how this gamble will get response from market!

Well, this car is going to sell like hot cakes. Its the cheapest Maruti available with a good engine and now with some features like power windows and optional airbag and in-built music system. The updated interiors has got positive feedback. The only thing which doesn't justify the car is a price hike of 30k which I think in this segment is a bit high. Well, Maruti is an expert in this segment and if they can sell Around 16k petrol WagonR then selling the Alto more than 22k would not a be a problem for them.

[Trust_In_Thrust]

I saw this car in Gurgaon today and it looks bad .The wheel/tyres are really thin compared to body size .

[motorworks]

The sad part is that this car will literally kill the A-star! It has very similar proportions and the already low selling A-Star, even though a fantastic car, will now have lesser buyers.
Maruti has made a strategic error here. They are quite well placed in the entry level segment with the alto and the alto K10. Zen estilo and A-star have been real duds and they should have ideally tried to find a replacement for these two.
This new alto will not generate any big numbers individually. Rather the 20k monthly sales of alto may become 25k at best.
Maruti should rather concentrate on getting new cars instead of the estilo and the a-star and also a good replacement for the SX4. Right now its just the swift, dzire and Ertiga making up the numbers.

[S_U_N]

At the moment, I feel Nano to be more VFM.
The tires are really skinny. An upgrade will be compulsory.
Just like the EON, there will be lot of vibration felt on the gear lever and that would be bad for a city car.

[romeomidhun]

I wonder why didn't Maruti use the AStar platform to develop this car. They already have a lot of cars with less than 1500mm width. Why can't they use AStar platform to develop a 1600mm wide, low slung car (like the old Zen) with 1/1.2L K series engine that costs between 3.5 - 5Lakh and compete against i10 and Figo? They can name it Zen and use that name's goodwill as well!

[supremeBaleno]

Heard an ad on FM today about the new Alto800 and that it is more FE, better interiors, spacious etc and that bookings are open. I assume it is this car that is being advertised.

Originally Posted by motorworks

The sad part is that this car will literally kill the A-star! It has very similar proportions and the already low selling A-Star, even though a fantastic car, will now have lesser buyers.

You have a point. I own an A-Star_AT and if I were in the market today for a small MT hatch with all safety features, good handling and super FE at a very competitive price, I would not look any further than the A*-Zxi. Due to selling less, one can even get a good discount on this car. It does have some -ves (which car does not) like lower boot space (due to loading area starting higher), a little claustrophobic rear (due to window and roof design) etc, but it is miles ahead of the current Alto or even the K10 in build, features, safety etc. Infact today it is the cheapest car that you can pick up which has the full works - ABS, airbags, OE-Audio, driver seat-height adjustment etc.

So, it is indeed a pity that this car has to go even before it has proved its worth. Ofcourse if the new entry was a better car allround that the exiting A*, this is OK. But from what I see in the pics, it is not the case - it seems to be carrying forward the same quirky design, rear-space issue and maybe boot-space too. Then what's the point in bringing in a new car that is not really better than the replacement. Beats me.

[S_U_N]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Due to selling less, one can even get a good discount on this car.

.. But from what I see in the pics, it is not the case - it seems to be carrying forward the same quirky design, rear-space issue and maybe boot-space too. Then what's the point in bringing in a new car that is not really better than the replacement. Beats me.

It would be unfair to compare this new car with A-star.
A-star is much more expensive (starting at 3.8 lac ex-showroom for the base model) even with all the discounts thrown in.
So, comparisons should be with Alto or M-800.

[romeomidhun]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

So, it is indeed a pity that this car has to go even before it has proved its worth. Ofcourse if the new entry was a better car allround that the exiting A*, this is OK. But from what I see in the pics, it is not the case - it seems to be carrying forward the same quirky design, rear-space issue and maybe boot-space too. Then what's the point in bringing in a new car that is not really better than the replacement.

The new Alto800 is not going to replace Astar officially.

A true replacement for astar would be a car which I mentioned in my previous post, with atleast 220L bootspace. Maruti can pit that car against the likes of i10 and figo.

Come on Maruti, give us the true and original Zen experience in a much better package than Astar.

[neerajpv87]

I feel design wise Maruti has gone a step backward. Old Alto was never a looker, but I feel compared to this one, it looked much better. But Maruti knows that the badge is enough for them to sell the car.( Case in Point, The old Dzire)

Had they done some research like Hyundai did for their Eon, I believe they could have come up with a better car.

[supremeBaleno]

@S_U_N, I was not comparing the cars. Though in different segments price-wise, they seem to have quite some design similarities which made me wonder why bring in a new one that is similar to an existing dud. But then yeah, the price is a big factor and since it is much lower for this car, who knows, this might be a success.

@neerajpv87, while most Maruti offerings have been a success, the badge alone does not ensure success. If that were the case, the A-Star, Estilo, Baleno, GrandVitara, Kizashi etc should also have been success stories, while in reality they are pathetic market duds.

The old Dzire might be looked down upon by us here (I hate its looks too), but it is a very practical car and the consumers find value in it which is why it is a success. For eg. I read somewhere on the forum that its boot volume is more than even cars in the 12-14 lakh segment too like the Civic, Cruze etc. Not bad for a car that costs close to half these cars.

[RavenAvi]

First official images released.


Front :-



Rear three-quarters :-



Side profile :-




The Alto 800 will be launched on October 16th in six variants (3 petrol, 3 CNG) in a price range of 2.5L-3.5L (ex-showroom, Delhi).

[CARDEEP]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

First official images released.

The Alto 800 will be launched on October 16th in six variants (3 petrol, 3 CNG) in a price range of 2.5L-3.5L (ex-showroom, Delhi).

The car doesn't looks good at certain angles, but, manages to appeal in few images.

Mods, now the official images are out, please upload the Test Drive report of the car.

[MHG]

Originally Posted by motorworks

The sad part is that this car will literally kill the A-star!

Strongly disagree! A-Star is the international Alto and except for its looks, it fills the role of entry-level drivers' car really well! Most of its production is exported to Europe!

Its just not suited for Indian markets. Here people prefer the identically priced WagonR that has lots more headroom, legroom and bootspace and oozes with "Indian practicality" in the LPG and CNG versions and hence the sales figures of 16k. But its no way a driver's car thanks to lots of body roll.

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

First official images released.


The Alto 800 will be launched on October 16th in six variants (3 petrol, 3 CNG) in a price range of 2.5L-3.5L (ex-showroom, Delhi).

3.5L ?? Pricing does seem to be on the more ambitious side. Heck, the Alto k10 is cheaper. Unless this is the CNG version that is....