Facelift of 2013 Suzuki Alto(A-Star)

A while ago, spyshots of the facelifted A-Star bound to the Chinese domestic market surfaced onto the interweb. We even showed you a render on how the facelifted A-Star could possibly look like. Now, we have another set of spyshots of the facelifted A-Star, this time the clearest set of images yet. By the looks of it, the A-Star gets a brand new front end, replete with new headlamps, a new front grille and redesigned bumpers. From the sides, the car remains bog similar to the current version of the car, clearly hinting at the fact that the facelift is a mid career makeover rather than a full model change.

2013 Suzuki Alto(A-Star) Facelift

The visual upgrades continue to the rear of the car, in the form of new tail lamps and a new rear bumper. Both the front and the rear bumper of the facelifted A-Star seems to have been designed with a sporty intent in mind. In India, the A-Star has been positioned as a sporty hatchback designed to appeal mainly to the younger and upwardly mobile set of car buyers. The car even comes with an automatic gearbox, which gives it the unique distinction of being the least priced entry level automatic car in the Indian car market.

The A-Star is powered by a 3 cylinder, 1 Liter K-Series petrol engine that outputs a peak power of 67 Bhp while peak torque comes in at 90 Nm. The engine is mated to a manual 5 speed gearbox as standard. Though the engine is quite fuel efficient as well as reasonably peppy, the car has been a dud for Maruti Suzuki at the hustings in the Indian market. The primary reason for the poor sales of the A-Star has been the cramped interiors and tiny boot. Also, the car’s price positioning sees it competing with Maruti’s other hatchbacks, resulting in some amount of cross shopping/cannibalization.

2013 Suzuki Alto(A-Star) Facelift Side Profile

2013 Suzuki Alto(A-Star) Facelift

2013 Suzuki Alto(A-Star) Facelift Rear

Globally though, the A-Star has been a good seller, given that it represents Suzuki’s entry level model, as the Alto. Nissan also sells the A-Star in the form of the Pixo while in certain markets, the car is also badged the Suzuki  Celerio. For the time being, it remains unclear whether Maruti Suzuki will launch the facelifted model of the A-Star, that is doing the testing rounds in China, in India.


Courtesy: AutoHome.com.cn