Maruti Suzuki A-star: The small car with big dreams

Maruti Suzuki Ltd. (BOM:532500) is a leading automaker in India. The company specializes in producing compact cars. On November 19, 2008, a new chapter has been revealed in the company’s history with the launch of Maruti Suzuki A-star. Launched in less than 40 months, the Maruti Suzuki A-star is Maruti Suzuki’s eighth model and Suzuki’s fifth world strategic model which will be made in 200 variants and will be exported to around 150 countries in Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia, Australia and Africa. The car was launched by Mr. RC Bhargava, Chairman, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, and other senior company officials.

Maruti Suzuki is hoping that the Maruti Suzuki A-star is going to contribute to achieve 50% of its export target of 200,000 units by 2010-2011. In early 2009, Maruti Suzuki will start exporting A-star in Europe.

The Maruti Suzuki A-star is produced at the Manesar plant, in Gurgaon New Delhi. It is an A2 segment car, made for city people who want small fuel efficient cars that will endure the hazardous roads and potholes of the city. An environment friendly high quality car, Maruti Suzuki A-star sports latest trends in its design and targeted towards young urban people. Maruti Suzuki is built under the slogan “Small cars big future.” The car is also significant because it is the first car by Suzuki which is entirely (95% machineries in India) made in India. It is available in three variants: LXi, VXi and ZXi.

Dimension:

Length: 3500 mm

Width: 1600 mm

Height: 1490 mm

Interior:

• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has a smart tachometer pod.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has digital trip meter, odometer, fuel gauge, clock.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with an integrated music system with AUX-in facility. (CD player with 4 speakers)
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with a short-throw 6-gear shift.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with a floating cockpit design, sculpted aero-dashboard and wrap-around console.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has crimson illumination which is gentle to the eyes and has stress relieving properties.

Exterior:

• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has sweeping expressive lamps.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with comet shaped tail lamps.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with remote boot and remote fuel filler.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has rear Defogger with rear wiper/washer.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with fog Lamps.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with a wide sporty grille that also offers good engine ventilation.
• The highly contoured rear bumper of the Maruti Suzuki A-star adds to the overall sporty look.

Engine: The Maruti Suzuki A-star is powered by a light weight 998cc K10B petrol engine. It is the first engine in KB series, which conforms to the present BS-III emission norms in India. Designed and developed for three years in collaboration with Suzuki Motor Corporation (TYO:7269), the KB engine is produced in a Rs. 12 billion plant. The engine has undergone over 250,000 km of endurance testing and over 500 hours of engine calibration and 7,500 hours of engine validation on dynamometer.

Power: 67ps @ 6200 rpm

Torque: 90nm @ 3500 rpm.

Flat torque curves: In the stop-go city traffic conditions the flat torque curves makes it very easy to drive the Maruti Suzuki A-star.

Fuel efficiency: According to Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), the Maruti Suzuki A-star is a highly fuel efficient car. Its fuel efficiency is 19.59 km per liter.

Safety:

• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with crushable structure energy dispersing frame and a high rigidity body. The body is produced based on the Total Effective Control Technology (TECT) concept. It absorbs impact energy and disperses it away from the passengers.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with Anti Lock Braking System (ABS).
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD).

Performance:

• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has a turning radius of of 4.5 meters.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has a ground clearance of 170 mm.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star comes with all-round gas damped suspension.
• The Maruti Suzuki A-star has coil springs made of ultra high-grade steel. It provides high rigidity and agility.
• The front suspension frame of the Maruti Suzuki A-star increases its handling capacity.

Environment friendly: The Maruti Suzuki A-star is made according to the norms of European End-of-Life vehicle norms. Most of the parts of the car (85%) are recyclable and it does not contain any harmful materials like Lead, Cadmium, Mercury and Chromium. The Maru

Colors: The Maruti Suzuki A-star will be available in following colors:

Desert Brown, Supreme White, Bright Red, Paradise Blue, Sunlight Cooper, Midnight Black, Healing Green, Silky Silver and Azure Grey.

Price:

The three models of the Maruti Suzuki A-star would be available with a price range of Rs 3.5 lakh to Rs 4.16 lakhs.

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