Suzuki Alto Dresses Like a Fish for International Green Week Fair in Berlin

Being the only car manufacturer that will participate at the forthcoming International Green Week in Berlin, Suzuki wants to make a splash at the fair with a custom made Alto. The Japanese automaker covered its mini car in a vinyl wrap (or at least it looks like a wrap) with a design that imitates fish scales and to top it off, they also added a... tail fin. Billed as the world's largest fair for food, agriculture and horticulture, the International Green Week runs from January 15 to 24 in Berlin.

Tokyo '09: New Suzuki Alto Concept Points to Production Model

Strangely enough, and even though the latest generation Suzuki Alto, which is also marketed in some regions including Europe as the Nissan Pixo with a different nose job, was introduced only last year at the 2008 Paris show, the Japanese firm has announced that it will display a near-production concept model of the next generation Alto at the forthcoming Tokyo Motor Show in late October.

The only reasonable explanation (since Suzuki did not bother to clear things up for us in its press release...) is that the production model of the "concept Alto" is destined for markets other than the ones that the current Alto is offered including of course Japan.

Euro NCAP: Q5, Jazz, i20, Soul and 3008 Achieve 5-Star Rating, Suzuki Alto gets only 3-Stars

European car safety testing body Euro-NCAP has announced its latest batch of results for six new cars. Five of these models, the Audi Q5, Honda Jazz, Hyundai i20, Kia Soul and Peugeot 3008 received Euro NCAP's maximum five star award while Suzuki's made-in-India Alto scored only three stars, its rating limited by its performance in adult occupant protection, child protection and safety assistance technologies. Euro NCAP made a special note on the Honda Jazz and the Hyundai i20 as both cars managed to achieve a high score in pedestrian safety.

"We would like to commend the Honda Jazz and the Hyundai i20 for their impressive pedestrian scores that not only meet current requirements, but also meet Euro NCAP's future requirements," Euro NCAP said in a statement.

All six vehicles were tested with Euro NCAP's new overall rating scheme that was introduced in 2009 and covers Adult Occupant Protection, Child Occupant Protection, Pedestrian Protection and a new area of assessment, Safety Assist. Under the new testing regime, vehicles are awarded a single overall score from one to five stars with the overall rating being based on the car's performance in each of the four main areas and the scores are weighted with respect to each other.

Suzuki Alto Priced from £6,795 in the UK

On the 1st of March, Suzuki's all-new Alto mini will go on sale in the UK with an on the road price starting at £6,795. The five-door Alto hatchback is powered by a three-cylinder 67HP 1.0-litre engine and has a combined fuel consumption of 64.2 mpg UK with CO2 emissions of just 103 g/km. Not that buyers will care, but the Alto is the first European-specification model to be exported in three years from the firm's Maruti Suzuki plant in Delhi, India, which is celebrating its 25 year anniversary this year.

Video: 2009 Suzuki Alto Mini

Suzuki performed the global debut of its all-new Alto mini car at the Paris show. If you were expecting to see a production version of the A-Star Concept that made a splash at last year’s Tokyo Show, then you’d definitely be disappointed with the outcome. At any rate, measuring just 3.5 meters in length the 2009 Alto is powered by the same three-cylinder 1.0-litre petrol engine that’s already in the Splash delivering an average fuel economy of 4.5 lt /100km or 52.2 mpg US. Watch the video after the jump. -Continued

2009 Suzuki Alto fully Revealed

Revealed for the first time at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, the 2009 Alto is the fifth and smallest member of Suzuki’s European lineup. The all-new Alto has an overall length of 3,500mm, width of 1,600mm, height of 1,470mm and a wheelbase of 2,360mm, so it’s roughly the same size as the Fiat 500. Suzuki’s new mini car is powered by a three cylinder 1.0-litre petrol engine with an output of 68 PS that was initially launched on the Splash. Fuel consumption is low at 4.5 lt /100km or 52.2 mpg US / 62.7 mpg UK on the combined cycle while CO2 emissions are 103g/km. -Continued

When the new Alto goes on sale in Europe during the first quarter of 2009 it will be offered with a standard five-speed manual transmission and optionally with a four-speed automatic transmission. According to the Japanese automaker's officials, Suzuki aims to achieve annual sales of 60,000 units of its Indian-built minicar in Europe.

Nissan Pixo: New Affordable Mini Car Made in India to Debut in Paris

Along with the revised 2009 Note mini MPV –see photos and details here- Nissan will also stage the global debut of its all-new mini car, the Pixo at this year’s Paris Motor Show. Built in collaboration with Suzuki Motor Corporation in Delhi, India, the Pixo is essentially a rebadged and restyled version of the new Suzuki Alto. Although hasn’t released pricing yet, the Japanese carmaker supports that when the Pixo goes on sale in Europe in spring 2009, it will be offered at ‘an extremely accessible price’. -Continued

Measuring 3,565 mm long, 1,470 mm tall and 1,600 mm wide with a wheelbase of 2,360 mm, Nissan’s Pixo is roughly the same size as Fiat’s Panda mini car. According to Nissan, five-door hatchback can accommodate four passengers with comfort. he Pixo will be offered with an efficient three cylinder 1.0-litre engine matted to a standard 5-speed manual gearbox while buyers can also opt for a full four-speed automatic.

2009 Suzuki Alto to Make Paris Show Debut – First Official Image

At the International Paris Motor Show that runs from October 2 to 19, Suzuki will present the all-new 2009 Alto city car based on the A-Star Concept -see here- that premiered at the New Delhi Auto Show in India earlier this year. Compared to the prototype, the production version of the A-Star features a much less dramatic design which is quite a let down as we liked the concept’s original styling.

According to CarScoop’s sources, the 2009 Alto will be offered with a newly developed 1.0-liter engine with low CO2 emissions of just 109g/km. The Alto will be built at Suzuki’s Indian plant in Manesar with European sales set to start in December 2008. Since Suzuki only released one image of the Alto we decided to fool around with photoshop painting the Japanese city car in various colours. Follow the jump to check out our gallery. –Continued

Pictures edited by CarScoop