Suzuki Motor Corporation unveiled the A-Wind Concept at the 30th International Thailand Motor Expo, 2013. The Suzuki A-Wind concept as the name suggests is set to bring a fresh wind to the A-segment as a global compact car. Essentially, what you are seeing here is the next generation A-Star (aka Alto for global markets) hatchback that has been caught testing at several occasions.
The A-Wind concept hatchback measures at 3699 mm in length, 1600 mm in width and 1540 mm in height. The wheelbase measures 2425 mm. The Suzuki A-Wind concept carries several distinct lines and creases that surely give it a friendly appearance. The exterior design of the concept looks production ready and very appealing. The front gets a twin split chrome grille with integrated funky projector headlights and also LED turn-indicators.
Coming to the side profile of the Suzuki A-Wind, the character lines have been accentuated to add more depth to the side profile in a subtle way. The doors receive pull handles like that on more premium cars. Even the doors are fairly large and allow easy ingress and egress to the passenger. The rear windscreen is large and should provide good view and Suzuki has stuck to a rather minimalist profile with the logo in the centre and the boot-lid at the bottom. The tyres used on the concept are 185/55 R16’s with funky design alloys. The A-Wind concept also gets corrugated roof for additional strength. The concepts have been displayed in two new colours namely energy yellow and panoramic blue.
The interior of the Suzuki A-Wind concept really shows of good quality and will be sharing a lot of its parts from its elder sibling, the Swift. The steering column and air-con come directly from the Swift’s parts bin, while the gearbox is integrated into the dashboard (like the Ritz) allowing more space within the cabin. The concept also features a touch-screen display that should come with USB and AUX connectivity.
Suzuki has generously used extensive amounts of beige along with the tall boy design to provide a roomy and airy feel to the cabin. The focus has been on comfort and the distance between the front and the rear seats has been extended resulting in more legroom at the rear. Suzuki also promises larger luggage space at the rear and the 60:40 split rear seats can be also be folded completely to add more space if needed.
Powering the Suzuki A-Wind concept is a 996cc petrol engine and a CVT gearbox. When launched in India, the 1.0-litre K-series engine will continue to do duty on the A-Star replacement, coupled to 5-speed manual and 4-speed automatic transmissions. There have been rife speculations of Suzuki developing a 3-cylinder diesel engine that will make its debut with this model. No details are out yet, but we sure hope to see that materialise soon.
The A-Wind has taken care of all the issues that made the A-Star (Alto in other markets) a dud and the company has made it more spacious and extremely pleasing to the eyes. The A-Wind will be filling in for the current A-Star and the discontinued Zen Estilo. Suzuki says the car will be production ready by 2014 and should be available for sale initially in Thailand before it comes to other markets. The 2014 Auto Expo will have the A-Wind as one of its exhibits. Suzuki definitely is planning an onslaught with as many as seven new products that will launch next year.
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