Petrol Stop - Suzuki recalls over 10,000 Altos in Europe, India unaffected

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Suzuki recalls over 10,000 Altos in Europe, India unaffected

Saturday, 15 May 2010

14 May 2010;hindustantimes.com:New Delhi:Within six months of recalling one lakh units of compact car 'A-Star', Japanese carmaker Suzuki Motor Corp is recalling over 10,000 units of the automatic transmission version of its 'Alto' car in Europe. The car, which is manufactured only in India by Suzuki's subsidiary Maruti Suzuki, is sold under the brand 'Alto' in Europe, while it is sold as the 'A-Star' here. The recall, however, will not have any impact on the Indian market, as Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) does not sell the automatic transmission version here. The latest recall is to rectify a faulty stop lamp switch in over 10,000 units of the automatic transmission version of the model which were sold in Europe last year, according to reports from Europe. Earlier, in February, MSI had made public a global recall of one lakh A-Star cars to rectify faulty fuel pump gaskets, a process which started in December, 2009. Suzuki Motor Corp officials did not respond to an e-mail query. As per estimates, the automatic transmission version accounts for about 10 per cent of the total of over one lakh units of 'Alto' (A-Star) that Suzuki sold in Europe last year. The 'A-Star' is MSI's flagship export model and sales of the car in Europe started in January, 2009. 'A-Star' is currently exported to over 70 countries,including South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Some of the other major markets are Chile, Angola, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Algeria and the UAE, where it is sold as 'Suzuki Celerio'. Japanese car major Nissan also sells the 'A-Star' in the European market through a contract manufacturing agreement with MSI's parent, Suzuki. Nissan sells the model as 'Pixo'. Past recalls by MSI include the hatchback 'Swift' in 2005, to change bolts to reduce the front suspension noise in the 'Swift' petrol, and to set right electronic control units in the 'Swift' diesel in 2007. It had also replaced speedometers in its 'M800' car and 'Omni' van in 2008. Meanwhile, MSI's stock fell by 1.29 per cent and closed at Rs 1,257.95 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.