[abhi413]

Originally Posted by Nilesh5417

By the way...how does the current strike at maruti plants in manesar hit the production? Launching variants is one thing, delivering it is another!

Alto is produced only from Maruti Gurgaon. The Manesar plant has been typically used to produce Diesel Cars like swift, Dzire, Ritz and others like SX4 & A-Star.
Thus far the labour trouble has been affecting Manesar more than gurgaon. Even though MSIL Gurgaon plant is facing productivity problems due to unavailability of gear boxes from Suzuki Powertrain(whose workers are agitating at Manesar alongwith Maruti workers)!

[girishglg]

Originally Posted by ACM

Ideally in the longer term Maruti needs to drop Alto closer in price to the Nano (which presently actually exceeds the Alto in all manners and yet does not match up in sales) and the A-Star close to the EON.

+1 as this is the time Maruti should finally let go of its 800 and make the Alto its base car. It is very wrong to assume that Alto can compete with a brand new car/ platform called Eon. And if Nano pulls up its socks well then Alto will be well and truly sandwiched. IMO they know that very well but cannot do anything quickly to change the situation.

Hence the launch of any kind Alto variant on the same day is a carefully planned strategy just to steal some publicity mileage from Hyundai and nothing more than that. It is very clear that people will not fall for some graphics and add ons which do not add significant value. With Eon at 2.69 L it is the new benchmark for the A+ segment now comprising of Eon, Spark, A Star and its one's best guess who the winner is.

[aniketi]

Instead of doing this Maruti should increase cash discount on both F8 & K10. It will surely help. Many people dont like such accessories from Manufacturer. They prefer of there own choice. If they drop price more by 15K along with current discounts, it will surely attract more people.

I guess Maruti will take wait & watch stand for first few months as always. They will see how market reacts. Also they will make sure that there new M800 will bring more sales for them.

[neoonwheels]

Is it only a marketing gimmick to alter customer's attention from EON, as the Alto production is already put on hold due to the strike. May be just making a noise to get attention.

[akhilesh51]

Maruti responds to Eon and how so tamely... I am sure Maruti should be a lot more aggresive or are they gonna sit on their laurels thinking this willbe another Nano story. (BTW, we have seen no end to Nano saga. Frantic activity at Sanad Plant suggests Tata too are gearing up for second innings and this time even they are not leaving anything to second chance.)

[Mr.Beat]

No doubt that many will criticize Maruti for making this move. I, however feel that this is not a bad move at all. In case of a customer who has a preference for EON which i assume will provide bluetooth and leather seats can then think about the alto. What if there was no such move? We would have then criticized them for not doing anything. This will help reduce the impact of EON, but it will not make alto compete against it. The positioning of Alto may have to be re-considered.

[oxyzen]

I think an Alto K10 with Hyundai like interiors can be an EON challenger. Nothing else.
This limited edition can easily be performed at dealer end.

Other than the quirky looks of EON, I see no reason for anyone to go for a 800cc Alto.
Be it on the space front EON wins hands down.
Be it for the feature list EON wins.
And on interior quality it is miles ahead.
And as the reviews suggest it is more powerful than the 800 cc Alto.

This limited edition is nothing but a joke.

[Ranga]

Any day EON looks to be a better car in the overall specifications .
EON looks to have better space ( Good Interiors & Outer body line )
Brand new design Vs age old looking ALTO
Look and feel is better
This kind of knee jerk reaction by releasing a limited edition showcases Maruthi acknowledges EON and the impact its going to have on its bread & butter selling brand ALTO

[Durango Dude]

The only way Alto can compete is with a price reduction. No amount of make up on this "relic" is going to do any magic. Maruti has had its dream run, its time to move on, bring one of it's 660 cc turbocharged petrol engines and plonk it in a sexy body/good interiors and let the numbers do the talking. Why the hell doesn't it bring its latest models to India? Look at its model range: Wagon R is old, Estilo is older, Alto less said the better, M800 forget it. India is Suzuki's largest market in the world and what do we get here is trash compared to whats on sale in Japan, I think MSIL has to show Indians some respect and commitment for the amount of support we are giving it and adding to the coffers of Suzuki Japan.

[shortbread]

Suzuki has a Eon rival under development, the 'YE3' project and rumors suggest that it will be revealed at the 2012 Auto Expo.

[puchoo]

I dont know if this was meant to be a response to the EON or whether it was an edition they were planning to roll out on Diwali anyway , but if the launch had an objective at some level to steal Hyundai's thunder then that has not happened.

Exteriors matter - Alto loses out period.

While the double din and the bluetooth add on to the value of the Alto , they are not going to be party spoilers for Hyundai.

[HammerHead]

Maruti needs a 'Cervo' to shake EON. To hold the fort till then, they should relaunch K10 at lower price point i.e. @ 2.4L onwards.
I don't see a reason why someone will not buy EON over Alto 800.

Here is Cervo again, if someone missed it in other threads.

[Panko]

Come on people. Agreed that Eon appears to be a good proposition. But it has not proven itself in the market yet. Let the ownership reports come. So, I will keep my fingers crossed.
And Maruti is famous for it's swift counter-attacks. They will fight hard for their bread and butter. So, it will be a battle to watch for (and remember)!

May be- it will decide the future of Indian Automotive Market & it's king. Will Hyundai Conquer or will existing Emperor (Maruti) roar?

[man_and_machine]

EON should not make the mistake of projecting itself as a premium entry level car. If they need to counter the Alto they need to look good but make every average earning Indian their friend. When you think of Maruti you instantly feel at home, like is your childhood friend. This segment buyers are not all from the cities.

The market is the 1000 odd town and even prosperous villages. There anything practical, rugged and long living is given priority over mere looks. You will never get the 20,000 units from Cities alone! The Alto (maruthi) has that image, and for Hyundai its the first time. Like Mahindra breaking the image of jeep manufacturer to a premium urban SUV maker Hyundai will need to do the opposite.

Entice yet connect to the common man.

With the pricing, I see this already a bit against them, may be they want to start with the City, Towns etc so that an image gets built and then offer discounts (price cuts) to move rapidly into the small towns and villages.

Look at the bolero v/s Tavera market (a bolero v/s Innova would be unfair). Practical v/s jazzy (not that the Tavera is jazzy, but not as Desi looking or feeling as the bolero)

Bottom like Eon needs to connect to people, something like the new Nano ad!

[KPS]

Lot of posts in this thread talk about MSIL reducing pricing by 10-15%. But this may not actually happen unless the situation becomes desperate. As a public listed company MSIL has to have a bottom line commitment to its share holders.

MSIL must up its game by rationalizing the portfolio killing products like M800, Omni Estilo etc and bring in new models which they sell globally. High time they treat India as their No.1 market and give the respect Indian customer deserves. Move towards VFM game not reduce prices by removing the sun shade, no paint under bonnet etc

Cheers

KPS