Alto tops in mileage

Maruti Alto, a product of domestic passenger car leader Maruti Suzuki Limited, has achieved a stunning mileage of 42.76 kilometers per litre (kmpl) in a fuel efficiency rally held in Bhubaneswar recently.

The top 10 participants in the rally achieved an average mileage of over 31.23 kmpl of petrol, company sources claimed.

The mileage rally in Bhubaneswar was the fifth in the series, as a part of company's nation-wide initiative to reinforce the supremacy of Alto as India's most fuel efficient car and also inculcate driving practices that enhance fuel efficiency.

In the inaugural rally held in New Delhi last month, Alto had achieved an average mileage of 26.24 kmpl.

104 customers had participated in the rally held in New Delhi with the winner of the rally clocking a mileage of 34.55 kmpl.

The rally in Bhubaneswar witnessed the participation of 67 car owners along with their families.

According to company sources, Maruti Suzuki would also conduct such rallies very soon in other locations of Orissa including Berhampur and Sambalpur.

"The excellent mileage achieved by the participants in the rallies have proved beyond doubt that the Alto is the mileage king amongst all the cars in India and the company plans to organise similar rallies in other cities across the country" said Rohit Kohli, the area manager of Maruti Suzuki in Orissa.

Since its launch in September 2000, the popularity of Alto touted as the 'hottest little car' has continued to grow, with the car clocking a sales volume of over one million units.

Customers are attracted to its unmatched combination of fuel efficiency coupled with contemporary design and features including electronic power steering and air-conditioning, Kohli added.

Alto recently breached the one million mark in terms of sales and the last 5 lakh units (half a million) being sold in a record 25 months, he claimed.

Besides its success in India, over 1,52,000 Altos have been sold worldwide.

While Netherlands has the highest numbers of Altos (over 22,000 units) plying on its roads, the car has recently made big inroads in Algeria and Chile, selling over 7,000 units in each of these countries in this fiscal.

Maruti Suzuki has already exported over 21,335 Altos in this fiscal, Kohli informed.