India’s Maruti Suzuki Alto completes two decades

India’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Tuesday said its entry-level model Alto has crossed 40 lakh (4 million) sales milestone since its launch 20 years ago. Empowering more than 40 lakh Indian households, Alto proudly celebrates 20 years of setting unmatched industry benchmarks, MSI said in a statement. The model is testament of an iconic brand that evolved itself with the changing aspirations of young India, it added.

The compact car has undergone multiple changes and upgrades in the last two decades which has made it more contemporary and aligned to the evolving needs of the customer, the auto major said.

"Alto, over the past two decades has changed the way India commutes. It has been ranked as the number one selling car in last 16 years and continues to win hearts and surprise Indian car buyers with its exciting value proposition," MSI Executive Director (Marketing & Sales) Shashank Srivastava said. The model has strengthened its appeal with every upgrade and has become the preferred choice for first-time buyers, he added.

"We've seen that nearly 76 per cent of Alto customers have selected it as their first car in 2019-20, which has further increased to 84 per cent for the current year," Srivastava said. MSI had launched Alto in 2000. It crossed 10 lakh (1 million) sales mark in 2008, 20 lakh (2 million) mark in 2012 and 30 lakh (3 million) figure in 2016.

The mass acceptance of Alto has helped it to emerge as the largest selling model in the highly competitive passenger car segment every year since the past 16 years, MSI noted.

In 2019-20, 59 per cent of Alto sales came from upcountry markets which has increased to 62 per cent for the current year, the company said.

Besides selling in the domestic market, MSI has also exported the model to over 40 countries, including markets in Latin America, Africa and South Asia.