The second generation of the Suzuki Alto has also long been symbolic of “cheap transport” in the Netherlands, perhaps along with the Fiat Panda. The car was facelifted in the late 80s, but it got its original nose back in the 90s. A unique story about a modest car!
The second Alto appeared in 1984 and was one of the first truly successful Suzukis in Europe. Its predecessor was also available here from 1982 and was undeniably a charming sight in retrospect, but it was the second Alto to launch the compact but spacious shape that many families would appreciate in the – often – second car of the household . The car was narrow but relatively high, which in combination with a short, sloping nose still provided an acceptable amount of interior space for the miniscule Japanese.
Fronte
By the way, that name “Alto” is something special going on, because in Japan, the compact car was called “Fronte”. Alto was the name of an almost identical commercial vehicle version on the outside, so a car that had to do without a back seat. Both the Japanese Fronte and the export Alto were fitted with a new nose from 1986. The square, somewhat recessed headlamps made way for neatly fitting units with a less universal shape. In addition, they were joined by a set of city lights that ran just around the corner in the front screen. The units in the bumper were thus able to fully focus on their task as turn signals, where they initially had to divide their attention between both turn signals and city lighting. Nothing changed at the rear, although the car was tackled under the skin.
In Japan, Alto and Fronte were given the facelifted form, followed by a much more modern-looking model that, thanks to Polish visitors, can also be found sporadically in the Netherlands as Daewoo Tico. In Europe, the Alto followed a different path, and the successor was only ready in 1994. That was not actually Alto, but the European version of the Japanese Suzuki Cervo Mode.
Maruti
The gap between the arrival of that car and the disappearance of the old Fronte was filled by none other than Maruti Suzuki, the Indian branch of the Japanese brand. Maruti would continue to build the second generation of the Alto under the name Maruti 800 until 2014. The car was regularly modernized, but Maruti apparently did not feel the need to follow the murderous tempo of his Japanese parent company. It could happen that the facelift that was already carried out in Japan in 1986, did not appear in the folders for Maruti until 1998.
This was not without consequences for the European Alto. In 1990, the Dutch brochure available on this site proudly mentions the more modern front: “Smooth built-in headlights Grille and headlights now form even more an aerodynamic unit with the smoothly lined body.” Four years later, however, that sentence has been wisely deleted and the folder shows an Alto that is hardly distinguishable from the 1985 model. Back to square one, a state of affairs that we rarely encounter in car land.
Brochure 1985:
Brochure 1990:
Brochure 1994:
Spirit
When the new Alto is released in 1994, Suzuki’s European division does not consider it necessary to delete the old model from the price list. As Alto Spirit, the modest Japanese can go on for a while, as a real price packer who is even considered to be quite minimal even in the mid-90s. In addition, there is actually a small facelift around the corner. With the bigger headlights? No, the Alto gets a new grille, which looks just as fresher than the original with its two-piece layout.
Brochure 1996:
