Maruti Suzuki Alto 800
The Indian Alto is not the same as the global Alto and Maruti Suzuki is selling us the previous generation model, as it helps them to price the Alto very aggressively. The Maruti Alto 800 is entirely made by Maruti Suzuki in India, including design, development and manufacturing. The vehicle does end up looking quite confused as the styling is not universally acceptable since the front and rear don’t really gel well. Maruti Suzuki has tried to take styling cues from the global Alto, which hasn’t really rubbed well on the Alto 800 in India.
Read The Maruti Alto 800 Test Drive Review
All models of the Maruti Alto 800 have a 5-speed manual transmission. The available models are Alto standard, Alto LX and Alto LXi (in both petrol and CNG versions). The Alto 800 (LX and LXi) feature a power steering and power assisted braking. The Alto contained all the plus points that the Maruti 800 offered Indian car buyers, in addition to features such as power steering, power assisted braking and a fifth gear that the Maruti 800 did not normally have. The popularity of the Alto has steadily increased over the past few years, mainly due to its aggressive pricing and class leading fuel economy.
Powering the Maruti Alto 800 is a .8-litres, triple-cylinder engine which generates 48 BHP of power and 69 Nm of torque. Several changes in the engine has yielded the increase in power. The engine is termed F8D and offers good performance in the city, where the Alto 800 seldom feels underpowered. It’s only when you want to do triple digit speeds do you realize the Maruti Alto lacks the grunt to cruise comfortably. However for most owners, the Alto has sufficient power, as it is also one of the most efficient petrol cars in India.
The Maruti Alto boasts of very basic underpinnings but the ride quality is surprisingly good, although bad roads really unsettle the car. The steering has very little feedback and handling is relatively nimble and predictable. The only fly in the ointment are the tyres, which are quite puny and offer little grip when you need some stickiness from them. Braking performance is decent, there is no ABS on offer, although airbag is offered as an option.
Basically the Maruti Alto is a value for money car, it is an upgraded version of the Maruti 800 with minor upgrades such as the body shape, headlight design, upgraded engine and better interiors. Some of the notable features in the Maruti Alto are Booster assisted brakes for shorter braking distance, collapsible steering column for avoiding injury to driver, low turning radius for effortless turning and parking, which makes the Alto an easy car to drive in congested city conditions. The not so nice things about the Maruti Alto are the design, low power for highway driving and lack of rear seat space. The Maruti Alto has only one direct rival, the Hyundai Eon.
Maruti Alto 800 Mileage – Maruti Suzuki has improved the fuel efficiency of the Alto by 15 percent, resulting in the Alto 800 delivering 22.74 km/l mileage as per ARAI. The CNG powered Alto 800 is even cheaper to run and offers a mileage of 30.46 km/kg. The good mileage is the crucial factor for many to choose the Alto 800 as their first car.
Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 Price
Alto 800 STD – Rs. 2.46 lakhs
Alto 800 LX – Rs. 2.81 lakhs
Alto 800 LXi – Rs. 3.03 lakhs
Alto 800 LXi (Airbag) – Rs. 3.19 lakhs
Alto 800 CNG STD – Rs. 3.21 lakhs
Alto 800 CNG LX – Rs. 3.41 lakhs
Alto 800 CNG LXi – Rs. 3.60 lakhs
(ex-showroom, New Delhi. Prices subject to change)
Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 Specifications
| Alto 800 | Alto 800 CNG | |
| ENGINE & TRANSMISSION | ||
| Fuel Type | Petrol | Petrol-CNG |
| Cubic Capacity (cc) | 796 | |
| No of Cylinder | 3 | |
| Power (BHP) | 48 @ 6000 | |
| Torque (N.m) | 69 @ 3500 | |
| Technology | MPFI, F8D | |
| Transmission | 5+1 | |
| Specification of Gear Box | Synchromesh | |
| AT/MT | MT | |
| Drive (Front/Rear/All) | Front | |
| DIMENSIONS | ||
| Length (mm) | 3395 | |
| Width (mm) | 1490 | |
| Height (mm) | 1475 | |
| Wheelbase (mm) | 2360 | |
| Ground Clearance (mm) | 160 | |
| Turning Radius (m) | 4.6 | |
| CHASIS & SUSPENSION | ||
| Body Style | Hatchback | |
| Weight (kg) | 695-725 | |
| Front Suspension | Gas Filled McPherson Strut with Torsion Roll Control Device | |
| Rear Suspension | Gas Filled Shock Absorber with 3 link Rigid Axle and Isolated Trailing Arm with Coil Springs | |
| SPACE | ||
| Boot Space (Normal/Seats Folded) | — | |
| No. of Passengers | 5 | |
| Fuel Tank Capacity (ltr) | 35 | |
| Leg Room (mm) | — | |
| Head Room | — | |
| BRAKES | ||
| Front (Dia/Type) | Solid Disc | |
| Rear (Dia/Type) | Drum | |
| SPEED & ACCELERATION | ||
| Top Speed | ||
| 0-100 kmph | ||
Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 Features
| Alto 800 / Alto 800 CNG | ||||
| Std | LX | Lxi | Lxi Airbag | |
| INTERIORS | ||||
| Music Player | N | N | N | N |
| No of Speakers | N | N | N | N |
| USB/AUX/SD/ALL | N | N | N | N |
| Blue-tooth Connectivity | N | N | N | N |
| Power Window (Front/All) | N | N | Front | Front |
| Tachometer | N | N | N | N |
| TripMeter | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Folding Seats | N | N | N | N |
| EXTERIORS | ||||
| Bumpers Colour | Black | Black | Body Colored | Body Colored |
| Door Handles | Black | Black | Body Colored | Body Colored |
| ORVM (Only Driver/Both Side) | Only Driver Side | Only Driver Side | Only Driver Side | Only Driver Side |
| OVRM Colour | Black | Black | Black | Black |
| OVRM Adjustment | Manual | Manual | Mechanical | Mechanical |
| Fog Lamps (F/R/All) | N | N | N | N |
| Tyres | Tubeless Radial | Tubeless Radial | Tubeless Radial | Tubeless Radial |
| Tyre Size | 145/80 R 12 | 145/80 R 12 | 145/80 R 12 | 145/80 R 12 |
| Wheel Type (Alloy/Steel) | Steel | Steel | Steel | Steel |
| Wheel Covers | Center Cap | Center Cap | Full | Full |
| Clear lens Headlamp & Tail lamp | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Front Wiper & Washer | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Rear Wiper | N | N | N | N |
| Spoiler | N | N | N | N |
| COMFORT & CONVENIENCE | ||||
| AC | N | Y | Y | Y |
| Climate Control | N | N | N | N |
| Remote Boot-lid Opener | N | N | Y | Y |
| Remote Fuel Cap Opener | N | Y | Y | Y |
| Central Locking | N | N | N | N |
| Height Adjustable Driver Seats | N | N | N | N |
| Tilt Steering | N | N | N | N |
| Power Steering | N | N | Y | Y |
| SAFETY & SECURITY | ||||
| ABS | N | N | N | N |
| EBD | N | N | N | N |
| Air Bags (Only Driver/Both) | N | N | N | Driver |
| Immobilizer | Y | Y | Y | Y |
| Traction Control / Cruise Control | N | N | N | N |