Hi,
As someone who has always had an interest in Japanese eco-boxes (I have a 2004 Daihatsu Charade) and previous cars include a 1987 Starlet 12 valve, I am naturally excited about the imminent arrival of the new Alto from Suzuki.
What seems to set this apart from previous Altos is that Suzuki are actively marketing it (excellent microsite can be accessed via their website) as a cool car, and seem to have got it spot on. With CO2 of 103g, combined mpg in the mid-60s, this promises to be a credit-crunch beater. It will be interesting to see the standard spec. Not sure if Suzuki will be as generous as Hyundai is with the i10. The microsite suggests the all-important mp3 compatibility is standard (though aux input extra) but they're keeping quiet about whether a/c will be included.
It's nice to see some interesting and different colours on offer, too. There is a metallic brown which reminds me of the cars of my childhood, some nice greens and a perky sea blue. Perhaps brown is making a comeback - I always thought it looked good.
Anyway, I recommend you check out the microsite and see what you think. It's nice that Suzuki seems to have got the marketing right and is promoting it as a cool car.
It goes without saying that the i10 will be its arch-rival, and I think Suzuki will struggle to match the standard kit on the i10. However, there is something about the Alto that seems to shout fun and character, which the rather dour i10 lacks. I'm pleased the Alto has a 3-pot (going back to the roots of the late 70s/ early 80s Alto FX - remember those, with the glass hatch and '5 speed' badge?!) as 3 cylinder engines seem to have so much more zest than a 4 cylinder, though the i10's new Kappa 1.2 sounds like a great unit.
As for the new Charade due in Feb... Daihatsu seem to be doing nothing. I think they could learn something from Suzuki. I'm sure the previous Charade would have sold in much greater numbers had it been decently marketed. Perhaps given the current economic climate Daihatsu are pulling the plug on importing it... small car, small profits after all.
Rob.
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I got that e-shot today too. And when I do the quiz to see what colour Alto I am, I come out as that metallic brown colour - really not sure if that's a good thing!
I only signed up to the site because I'm secretly in love with the Swift Sport though - I want it with bodykit, stripes and everything. I think I'm done with the sensible diesel golf and may be heading for a (slightly late) quarter life crisis!
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I read somewhere that the Alto would be coming in around the £7k mark, which I think is more likely to be a Fiat Panda rival than i10 atleast on price, which at this end of the market is often a big factor.
It does on paper seem to be pitched about right, lets hope so as Suzuki could hit the ground running with a car like this if they make sure poeple know its on sale.
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Rather like the Healing Green myself, always loved those shades of green.
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Made in India though - has anyone owned an Indian built car?
MVP
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Hi MVP,
The previous Alto was built in India and seems to be holding up very well. Scored well in JD power for mechanical reliability and interior quality, fell down on looks and external quality so landed up with a respectable mid-field result. Most of them that are on their non-original owner are now in the hands of those who want a budget buy and tend to skimp on maintenance and tlc. Have yet to see one showing any signs of rust (cf Fork Ka which was a similar 'cheap-build' car), and all that I see close up sound as though they're running very sweetly.
This augurs well for the new Indian-built Alto. At the end of the day I think the country of build is less significant than people make out. A classic example of this is the fact that Nissan, Honda and Toyota have been building in the UK since the late 80s with no real impact on quality or reliability, at the same time as MG/ Rover were churning out cars with a much inferior reliability record. What matters more is the underlying quality and durability of the mechanicals, and with Suzuki you can bet these will be good. The C1/Aygo/107 clone is proving to be mechanically robust. They are built in Poland, as was the FSO Polonez which was woeful in all respects. Ok so the demise of communism and entry into the EU may have something to do with this, but I think you can see my point!
Rob.
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A few years ago I had a Suzuki Whizzkid that was sold well as a fun car. It was more economical than almost anything, the few cars that were more economical were much slower so really they couldn't go wrong. If I recall they even got Noel Edmonds to appear in a few press photos - to make the car look bigger? ;-)
But a good fun car to drive, a bit like a gokart. Except with less luggage space.....
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I don't think I'm going to live long enough for the dedicated website to load - why do all car manufacturers do this? I'm getting a blinding 472Kbps this morning as well. So maybe their marketing people aren't all that clever!
Edited by Manatee on 24/01/2009 at 09:38
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Made in India though - has anyone owned an Indian built car? MVP
Hyundai i10 and i20's come from there. HJ raves about the i10.
Anyway for domestic consumption - Mercs/ BMW/ Skoda/ VW/Audi/ Ford/ are all built in India. Most of the issues are design faults and not shoddy workmanship
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