The Maruti Suzuki Alto becomes the only car in India to cross the 40-lakh sales milestone, while consistently remaining the bestselling model for 16 consecutive years.
Becoming a top-selling model is a great feat, but remaining on the top for 16 consecutive years is an achievement like no other. The Maruti Suzuki Alto is one such car model, which has become the unchallenged leader in its segment. A position of power the much-loved hatchback has held almost every year since it was introduced in India back in 2000. This small car has retained the crown as the bestselling model in the country for 16 consecutive years now.
In a statement, the Japanese carmaker claimed that the Alto is the preferred choice of 76% of first-time car buyer in India. The key factors for this success remain its compact size, affordable pricing starting at Rs 2.95 lakh (ex-showroom), a frugal BS6 engine and proven reliability. In the last 20 years, Maruti Suzuki Alto has also achieved numerous milestones like achieving 10 lakh units sale 2010 and rapidly doubling the number to 20 lakh by 2012, till reaching the remarkable 40-lakh mark now.
Speaking on the success, Shashank Srivastava, Executive Director (Marketing & Sales), Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said, “Alto has been ranked as the No.1 selling car in India for 16th year in a row and we are immensely proud to announce another remarkable milestone of 40 lakh cumulative sales. This has become a sales record never achieved by any other Indian car.” (Also Read: Maruti Suzuki Launch Alto BS6)
He added “Over the years, brand Alto has established a strong emotional connect with our customers and has become a strong symbol of Pride. We would like to dedicate this achievement to all our proud and happy Alto family members who have trusted and supported us in this journey to become India’s favourite car.”
With the rising competition from various quarters, the engineers have been constantly reinventing the Alto with timely upgrades. This has helped the Maruti Suzuki Alto maintain the momentum in the Indian market. And with an engine upgrade in 2019, the Alto led the way by becoming the first car in its segment to become BS6-compliant. The Alto gets a 796-cc, three-cylinder BS6-compliant petrol engine and produces 48 hp at 6,000 rpm and has a torque rating of 69 Nm at 3,500 rpm. The major competitors for the Maruti Suzuki Alto have been the Renault Kwid and Datsun redi-GO.
