[supremeBaleno]

Oops, I somehow assumed you are at Bangalore. My mistake. Anyway, that makes the car cheaper for you - given high road tax at Blore compared to Pune.

Regarding reviews, you have the definitive Official review of A_Star-AT by ajmat.
And if you want user reviews, you have atleast 2 that I know of for the AT version - by me and scuderiaferrari.

[sydras]

Originally Posted by aniketi

Now my wife is learning a car & i am going to require a new car for her. She is not very comfortable with manual gears. So i am looking for a Automatic version. But we have really little choice here in India. Hardly any small cars available in Auto. As of today i know only 2 cars available with Auto transmission. A-star & i10. A-star i dont like at all as it is very small car (cant accommodate 4+1 people ) & little costly as well. i10 is going out of my budget in Auto. Also i dont like i10 personally though it is very good car. I am very disappointed that Maruti is not making Alto K10 with Auto

So my question here is can i make Alto K10 with auto transmission in after market? A-star has same engine so it wouldn't be a problem. But will it be reliable? How much it will cost? Does it void warranty given by MSIL?

Experts please help me.

I am facing the same dilemma. While my wife knows driving (she has been driving my 1996 zen for about 6-7 months now), after seeing the sheer convenience of driving my City AT, she also wants a small AT car.

There's an ownership experience thread on Team-BHP about the headaches and unreasonably high maintenance costs levied by Hyundai for maintenance of the i10 AT. That along with the higher price tag made me strike the i10 AT off my list.

The Spark would've been an ideal choice if it came in an AT version. Sadly I don't think Chevy has any plans for a Spark AT.

I test drove both the Alto K10 and the A-Star automatic and I found a lot of difference between the two. While both the cars share the same engine, the Alto K10 has horrid engine noise entering the cabin at high speeds (or revs). The A-Star does a much better job of keeping the engine noise from entering the cabin. The build quality is more swift-like and superior to the Alto K10. Also, I thoroughly enjoyed the A-Star's handling. The car feels like a toy to drive .

Originally Posted by aniketi

In terms of rear leg space, boot space Alto is better in my opinion.

I tried the back seat of both the Alto K10 and the A-Star. While there is marginally more space in the Alto, the back seat legroom is bad in both cars. I would worry more about the height of the dashboard in the A-Star i.e. the dash is set a little high. It's not a problem for me(I'm 5' 11") was a problem for my wife (who's 5' 3"). But, the A-Star comes with seat height adjustment.

Also, if you're looking to sell your old zen, maruti is offering a 30K discount + 30K exchange bonus over the value of your old car.

[Cartman]

Aniketi, the A-Star has better headroom at the back when compared to the Alto K-10. I'm a 6 footer, though I'm uncomfortable in both, I feel better in the A-Star comparatively. Check the A-Star out again. Since you said your wife needs a brand new car, the old WagonR AT is ruled out. But I feel, learning on a second hand car is better/ preferable. Low initial investment saves a lot of money for any (probable) damages.

Cheers!
Cartman.

[aniketi]

Originally Posted by sydras

I test drove both the Alto K10 and the A-Star automatic and I found a lot of difference between the two. While both the cars share the same engine, the Alto K10 has horrid engine noise entering the cabin at high speeds (or revs). The A-Star does a much better job of keeping the engine noise from entering the cabin. The build quality is more swift-like and superior to the Alto K10. Also, I thoroughly enjoyed the A-Star's handling. The car feels like a toy to drive .

I tried the back seat of both the Alto K10 and the A-Star. While there is marginally more space in the Alto, the back seat legroom is bad in both cars. I would worry more about the height of the dashboard in the A-Star i.e. the dash is set a little high. It's not a problem for me(I'm 5' 11") was a problem for my wife (who's 5' 3"). But, the A-Star comes with seat height adjustment.

Also, if you're looking to sell your old zen, maruti is offering a 30K discount + 30K exchange bonus over the value of your old car.

As i said earlier i need to check A star once again. I need a long test drive myself & sitting at the rear as well to get good feel about space, comfort of the car. Thanks for sharing your valuable info about the both cars.

Only thing is after all discounts also, A star Auto will go around 4.5 L +

Originally Posted by Cartman

Aniketi, the A-Star has better headroom at the back when compared to the Alto K-10. I'm a 6 footer, though I'm uncomfortable in both, I feel better in the A-Star comparatively. Check the A-Star out again. Since you said your wife needs a brand new car, the old WagonR AT is ruled out. But I feel, learning on a second hand car is better/ preferable. Low initial investment saves a lot of money for any (probable) damages.

Cheers!
Cartman.

Yeah, i agree with you. She is currently learning on our old Zen only. She is driving well now except the gear & clutch judgment. In traffic she can control the car but cant operate fast to shift to second gear or third gear & move fast. Takes lot of time. Also in traffic she gets tensed & car keeps stopping while leaving the clutch in first gear. That's the reason i am looking for Auto