Maruti Alto 800 2012-2016 LXI Anniversary Edition

Alto 800 2012-2016 LXI Anniversary Edition Review

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd is one of the leading car manufacturers in the country since they were first established in year, 1981. This is a joint venture between India’s Maruti Udyog Limited and one of the world’s biggest car makers Suzuki Motor Corporation, which makes cars as well as super bikes. The fleet of Maruti Suzuki India has vehicles in all the segments of the country’s rewarding car market. It is being said that this leading car maker holds a colossal 44.9% of the market share when it comes to passenger cars. Their range of cars includes entry level cars that are quite reasonably priced, but at the same time have premium sedans and formidable SUVs as well. Maruti Suzuki India is also termed as one of the car makers, which brought a revolution in the Indian automobile sector when they launched their flagship model of Maruti 800 way back in year, 1983. This was one of the cars which brought about an uprising among the Indian population. Then the company also introduced another such affordably priced version called as Maruti Alto, which was rolled out in year 2000. This small hatchback did incredible sales and helped the company to gain the market share in the passenger car segment. Maruti Suzuki India recently has stopped the manufacturing of their Maruti 800 small car, but at the same time has launched a new inexpensive Maruti Alto 800 for the masses. The company launched this wonderful small car in a few variants and is expecting this new 2012 Maruti Alto 800 to do tremendous business for them. The Maruti Alto 800 LXI is the mid level variant and has a well balanced quantity of comfort and safety features, which will certainly impress the customers. This new small hatchback has impressive exteriors and the company has put in a lot of effort to make the interiors refreshing and attractive. There are quite a number of features in this 2012 Alto 800 LXI such as a powerful air conditioning unit, a very responsive power steering, front power windows with switches placed between the seats, a 1-din music system with speakers now fitted in the doors and many more such remarkable features. The company has fitted this Maruti Alto 800 LXI with a 796cc engine, which is capable of churning out pertinent torque and power, which is apt for the Indian road and traffic conditions. This engine is mated with a smooth and efficient five speed manual transmission gear box. The company is offering this new Maruti Alto 800 in six vibrant and lively exterior paint options, which will have a couple of new colors along with the regular black, white, blue and red.

Exteriors

The exteriors of this new Maruti Alto 800 are very inspiring and have been refined a lot from its precursor. This new small car has a stimulating overall design, which is aerodynamic and very sleek. This latest entrant is taller and a tad wider, which means that it will have better interior space as well. The front façade of this Maruti Alto 800 LXI is neatly done up with a smart and trendy front radiator grille, which has a thick chrome strip and a large company badge embossed on it. This radiator grille is flanked by a biggish head light cluster, which is powered with high intensity lamps, which have been integrated with side turn blinkers as well. Below the front grille is a black colored large and wide air dam, which will help in cooling the engine faster. The body colored bumper is smartly styled, but it doesn’t have fog lamps nor does it have any provision to fix them. The front windscreen is made up of toughened glass and has been fitted with a couple of intermittent wipers to it. The side profile gets body colored pull type door handles and only a driver side outside rear view mirror, which is black in color. The wheel arches have been fitted with sturdy 12 inch steel wheels, which have been covered with tubeless radial tyres of size 145/80 R12 and these have a better road grip as well. The rear profile is very bland and simple with a large wind screen, a bright and radiant tail lamp cluster and the boot lid getting the standard badging on it along with a curvy body colored rear bumper. The overall dimensions of this roomy small hatchback are fairly good. The total length of this 2012 Alto 800 LXI is a reasonable 3395mm along with a good width of 1490mm that also includes the single driver side outside rear view mirror, which is pretty decent . The overall height of this new entrant is about 1475mm, while the sizeable wheel base of this small hatchback is close to 2360mm. The minimum ground clearance of this impressive hatchback is 160mm, which is quite remarkable. The fuel tank capacity of this new Maruti Alto 800 LXI is approximately 35 litres, whereas the total kerb weight of this small car is about 720 kgs, which is quite decent.

Interiors

The interiors of this wonderful Maruti Alto 800 LXI are very lively and inspiring. The company has done up the interiors of this small hatchback very efficiently and there is room for all and also the entire is very appealing and eye catching. The designers of the company has given this small hatchback a moulded dash board that comes with a new shade of color along with new accents and internal surfaces that are made of good quality plastics. The seating arrangement is quite comfortable with well cushioned slimmer seats, which help in increasing the internal space marginally and gives apposite room for five regular sized passengers. The front seats have integrated head rests while on the other hand, the roof gets moulded lining and fully clad improve the ambience of in-cabin tremendously. These seats are covered with premium quality upholstery with a spanking new design, which is carried forward to the door pads as well, which adds to the overall beauty of this charming small hatchback. The space is fairly reasonable with ample leg room along with good head and shoulder space, which will surely keep the occupants comfortable. The newly designed dash board gets attractively shaped air con vents, a large glove box and some open storage space above it as well. Apart from these, there are storage spaces in the doors as well to keep a few things handy for the customers. The central console has the AC controls and other buttons along with the music system, which has been integrated in it, while there is also a horizontally aligned bottle holder near the gear shift lever. The speakers are incorporated in all the four doors to keep the parcel shelf empty for added storage of other things.

Engine and Performance

The company has equipped this all new Maruti Alto 800 LXI with a peppy 796cc petrol engine , which is mounted in front transverse position. This lively petrol drive train has 3 cylinders, which further have been equipped with 12 valves and is a front wheel drive. This energetic power plant has the capacity to churn out a peak torque yield of 69 Nm at 3500 Rpm in combination with a maximum power output of 47.5 Bhp at 6000 Rpm, which is about 3.5 Bhp more than the previous Alto version. This brisk petrol drive train has been skillfully mated with a smooth and competent five speed manual transmission gear box. The company claims that this small hatchback, Maruti Alto 800 has the ability to generate a health mileage of 22.74 kmpl , which is also certified by ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India) and this mileage is apparently about 15% more than the previous version of Maruti Alto.

Braking and Handling

Maruti Suzuki India has fitted this small hatchback, the all new 2012 Alto 800 LXI with a very proficient braking system along with a stable and well balanced suspension mechanism , which will keep this small hatchback as well as its occupants steady and give a effortless driving experience. The front wheels of this Maruti Alto 800 LXI has been equipped with solid discs, while the rear wheels have been fitted with drum type braking system, which is very efficient on any road conditions. On the other hand, the company has integrated the front axle of this small hatchback with a gas filled McPherson strut type of mechanism along with the highly developed torsion roll controlling device. The rear axle of the Maruti Alto 800 gets a coil spring type of a mechanism along with gas filled shock absorbers, which have a three link rigid axle along with an isolated trailing arm. All these systems and mechanisms put together give this new small hatchback a steady and well balanced drive.

Safety Features

The company has given this small hatchback with some very essential safety features, which will take care of the passengers as well as the car. The list includes seat belts for all the passengers, A, B and C pillars for added all around protection from any accident. The body structure of this small hatchback isa monocoque construction, which makes this car firm and rigid. Then this small hatchback also gets central locking as well along with a few more such safety features.

Comfort Features

This all new 2012 Alto 800 LXI gets a powerful and efficient air conditioner unit, which cools the entire cabin quickly. Then there is a one din music system with speakers in all the four doors to add to the in-cabin ambience. The front seats are adjustable minimally, while this variant also gets a power steering. There are only two power windows for which the switches are placed between the front two seats behind the gear shift lever. There is an internally adjustable external rear view mirror only on the driver’s side. There are a couple of sun visors for the front passengers and also some storage spaces along with a large glove box. The instrument cluster has bright and large dials along with a number of notification and warning lamps, which help the driver to be updated with the vital statistics of the car . There is an odometer as well as a tripmeter along with a fuel gauge along with a couple of other lamps as well.

Pros

Newly designed and refreshing dash board, impressive fuel efficiency, exterior design is rather attractive.

Cons

Quite a lot of features can be added, pick up and acceleration needs improvement, a slight space limitation for the fifth passenger.