Alto becomes India's only car to sell 40 lakh units
In what comes as a remarkable milestone for Maruti Suzuki, the Alto has become the only car in India to record 40 lakh units in cumulative sales. The affordable hatchback was launched in the country roughly two decades back and has occupied pole position on the sales chart for 16 consecutive years. Here are more details.
A look at Alto's sales figures
Maruti Suzuki Alto became India's best-selling car for the first time in 2004 and has retained the crown ever since. By 2008, 10 lakh units were sold, which doubled to 20 lakh units in four years and went up to 30 lakh units by 2016. In November 2019, Alto became the only car in India to have sold over 38 lakh units.
Recalling the Maruti Suzuki Alto
The Maruti Suzuki Alto has an eye-catching look, featuring a blacked-out grille with the company's logo, a large trapezoidal air dam, and a sculpted bonnet. For lighting, the car gets sleek adjustable headlamps. On the sides, the hatchback is flanked by body-colored B-pillars, ORVMs, and designer alloy wheels. Dimensions-wise, it offers a wheelbase of 2,360mm and a ground clearance of 160mm.
Power and performance
The Maruti Suzuki Alto draws power from a BS6-compliant 796cc F8D petrol engine that makes 40.3hp of power at 6,000rpm and 60Nm of peak torque at 3,500rpm. The transmission duties are handled by a 5-speed manual gearbox that sends power to the front wheels.
A peek inside the cabin
The Maruti Suzuki Alto has a dual-tone five-seater cabin, featuring adjustable seats with fabric upholstery, and a power steering wheel. The hatchback also gets keyless entry, front power windows, a central locking system, and a Bluetooth-enabled audio player on the top-spec trims. For safety, it offers twin airbags, ABS with EBD, an engine immobilizer, a speed alert system, and crash sensors.
What about the pricing?
The Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 starts at Rs. 2.94 lakh for the base model and goes up to Rs. 4.36 lakh for the top-spec trim. At this price-point, the car takes on rivals like Renault KWID and Datsun-redi-go'>Datsun redi-GO.
