Maruti will introduce the new Alto K10 next month, and has released the first set of images of the exterior and interior of the car.
Dealers of Maruti-Suzuki have started accepting bookings for the car. The booking amount is Rs 10,000, and one of the dealers Indian Autos Blog spoke to says he has received a lot of inquiries for the AMT variant of the K10.
The new K10 is based on the Alto 800, but gets its own design formula with new headlights, a chrome grille, new front and rear bumpers, Celerio-inspired taillights and a new rear windshield.
Inside, the dashboard of the new K10 looks nothing like the Alto 800 or even the older K10 for that matter.
Designers have given the city punter an attractive dual-tone black-and-beige interior with a piano-black finish for the centre console and a new 3-spoke steering wheel. The instrument cluster and switchgear are new and appear very modern.
The most significant update to the K10 is the addition of the AMT (automated manual transmission), which was first introduced on the Celerio.
The top-end variant of the car can be had with a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed AMT, both of which have an ARAI certified fuel efficiency of 24.07 kmpl.
Maruti has carried over the engine from the previous K10. The 1.0-litre three-cylinder K-Series engine outputs the same 68 PS (67.04 bhp) and 90 Nm of torque.
Petrol and CNG variants of the car will be offered. The CNG variant has an ARAI rated mileage of 32.26 km/kg.
Developing the new K10 cost Maruti-Suzuki Rs 200 crores, and development work took place in India and Japan. The K10 AMT is now in prime position to claim the title of the cheapest automatic car in the world.
Competitors: Hyundai Eon 1.0L, Datsun Go
Expected Price: Rs 320,000-400,000, ex-Showroom
Launch date: Next month
The new K10 uses the Alto 800’s body and gets newly designed headlights and a smaller chrome grille in comparison to the older K10. While the bumper is new, the overall design looks similar to the outgoing model.
Comparing the front-three-quarter view, the new K10 looks fresher (the older K10’s side profile is identical to the Alto which was launched 14 years ago).
Though Maruti haven’t released press images of the rear of the K10, spyshots have shown it to wear Celerio-inspired taillights, which is a marked design improvement over the outgoing model.
Maruti has done a commendable job inside the car as well. Gone is the sea of black, and the slightly outdated buttons and center console. The new K10’s dashboard with its dual-tone black-and-beige theme and a piano black center console certainly looks smarter.
Powered by 
IndianAutosBlog.com sizzles with spyshots, news, renderings and reviews of your favorite cars everyday. Are you updated?
