Maruti Suzuki to launch Alto 800 in Algeria

Maruti Suzuki has announced that it will launch the Alto 800 for the Algerian car market in March during the 2013 Algerian Motor Show.  The Alto 800 was launched in the Indian car market on October 17 and was the first major update for India’s highest selling car in a decade. The car has been a major success for the Indo-Japanese automaker garnering over 40,000 bookings in just three months. 

The Alto 800 is an updated version of the Alto and is powered by a 796cc petrol engine producing 48bhp and 67Nm of torque. It has an ARAI certified fuel efficiency figure of 22.74kmpl, a 15 per cent increase over the previous model. MSIL also introduced a CNG version of the car but this is unlikely to go to Algeria as the country does not have a well-developed CNG supply network. 

Developed at a cost of Rs 470 crore over a four year period, the small car is 3.3 meters in length and 1.4 meters in width. It has now been given thinner body panels, a taller roof and better packaging resulting in more headroom and shoulder room. The scooped out back of the front seat improves the rear leg room by over 15 mm.      

Over the last three years Maruti’s focus has shifted from Europe, where it traditionally had a large export market, to Africa which has seen a surge in demand for such cars. It currently retails the M800 and the Alto in developing countries like Egypt and Algeria with much success and is currently mulling the prospect of setting up an assembly plant in the continent to reduce the cost of the cars. If Maruti is launching the car for the Algerian market, then it is sure to be launched in the other countries where the Alto and the M800 are sold. 

Source: auto-utilitaire