Maruti Suzuki Alto gets optional airbag

Maruti Suzuki, the country's largest car-maker, which recently added safety features like ABS and dual airbags in its models like Ciaz, Eritga, DZire, WagonR and Celerio, has now announced that the its bestselling model Alto will also come with an optional airbag. The newly added safety feature — driver side airbag — will be available as an option in all variants of the Alto 800 and Alto K10, including the base model.

Apart from the drive airbag, Maruti has also made available the left outside rearview mirror (ORVM) across all variants of Alto.

R S Kalsi, Executive Director, Marketing & Sales, Maruti Suzuki, said: "With driver airbag being offered from the base variant upward as an option for the Alto, a very large number of car customers in India will feel reassured. We have offered enhanced safety features, from the base variants, across our model range, ahead of regulations."

Maruti Alto has been the car-maker's bestselling model for 10 years in a row, and sold over 29 lakh units cumulatively in India. In FY 2014-15, Maruti sold an average of over 22,000 units of Alto per month.

Reports suggest airbags and other safety features will soon become mandatory in India. Announcing the start of the Road Safety Week with a "Walkathon" from India Gate on 12 January, Union minister Nitin Gadkari had indicated that safety features like airbags will soon be mandatory in cars sold in the country. Other car-makers like Toyota and Volkswagen have also rolled out features like airbags as standard for their models in the country.

Prices of Alto (ex-showroom New Delhi):