1996-2007 Maruti Baleno Altura Wagon

Another wagon that didn't make it in India.

Jimmy ends up choosing his Esteem over a Mercedes C240.

Maruti is a subsidiary of Suzuki in India that was created in 1981. We got this car in the States in sedan form, badged as the Suzuki Esteem. Lately, it's reached cult status by being featured as the star's chosen wheels in the hit show Better Call Saul. But in India (and other places, of course), there was a neat little cheapo compact wagon available. I suppose eleven years on the market is no failure, but once again the station wagon version would seem an easy sell in India but wasn't.

Badged the Maruti Baleno Altura, it was based on the Suzuki Cultus Crescent, which was the successor to the relatively successful econo car, the Swift, and eventually replaced with the car we know as the Aerio. It came with the 1.6 inline four, which produced 113 hp and could be had with AWD.

That's a lot of cheap plastic.

As usual with the cars sold in India, I couldn't find a tremendous amount of information or video reviews. But we can extrapolate from what sold as a Suzuki and Chevrolet in other parts of the world. I did find this glowing review on another site, supposedly written by an actual owner. I think it gives a good flavor of the car.

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The Altura was one of my personal favourite cars which sadly got discontinued far before I had the dough to buy one. Though a competent car in every aspect, the car didn't become so much of a commercial success. It was far ahead of its time considering the mindset of Indian car buyers then.

In July 2001, Autocar India carried out a comparison test between 3 estate cars sold in India - The Baleno Altura, the Fiat Siena Weekend (remember it, anyone?) and the Opel Corsa Swing. Since most of the members who'll view this thread have not seen an Altura in detail, let alone drive it, I thought giving them some excerpts from that test about the Altura will help set a stage for what you're about to review.

Please feel free to delete this post if you feel applicable.

1. Styling - The Altura is the Estate version of the Baleno and it looks better than the car it is based on. The wraparound flush mounted rear wind-screen gives it an expensive and upmarket look. If the Weekend is chunky and the Swing cute, the Altura looks classy. The well shaped tail lamps and the very attractive front end help make it the best looking estate car here. The independent strut front and four link suspension have been specifically tuned by Maruti engineers for Indian roads. The springs are taller and the ride more pliant as a result. Japanese designers always try and keep the kerb weight of a car as low as possible for reasons of performance, and this is clearly demonstrated when a comparison of kerb weight is made. Despite easily being the largest car here, the Altura is also the lightest by a fair margin.

2. Interiors - The Altura is typically Japanese, comfortable but understated. Dials are clear and stalks and buttons function efficiently, but their functioning is not as well damped as those on the Opel. And though the sliding control look ancient, the airflow is directed by electrically operated push buttons, a nice touch. What lets the Altura down are the plastics and the trim quality, which just don't feel worthy of a car in this price bracket. Also missing is a parcel tray or any sort of cover for the luggage area, which Maruti should have provided as standard fitment.

Dimensionally, the Altura is the most generous with the rear bench being the widest in the upper midsize segment. The seat is wide, nicely raked and supportive in the right places. In addition you have decent legroom available, and this, along with the pliant nature of the suspension, means the Altura is a good contender for chauffeur driven transportation. While the loading bay is amongst the largest here, the strut towers of the suspension reduce the usable space considerably.

Engine - Generous amounts of torque is something the Altura's long stroke motor also has in abundance. In fact the lighter weight and the 13 kgm of torque available all the way up from 2500rpm means the Suzuki is no slouch. The healthy torque means you rarely need all the rpm, unless you're in a real hurry. Whilst the motor is extremely smooth at idle, extend the engine past 4500 and the note harshens considerably, a buzzy resonance present till you shift a gear and drop the rpm of the engine. But don't get us wrong - like all Suzuki motors this one revels in being pushed hard. And thats the great part about this motor - it will perform just as well at low or high rpm. As a result, load hauling is also no sweat, the loaded Altura pulling like its got much more than 1590cc at its disposal. Driving an unloaded Altura in the city is a breeze. Just select third gear once you're past 20Ks, and drive in semi automatic mode all the way to 100ks. Who need an auto anyway?

Ride & Handling - The Altura's ride is superb as well, the handiwork of Maruti's engineers who have fine tuned the suspension. Except for a jiggly low speed ride on poor surfaces, the Altura's ability to cope with bad roads is equally impressive. What lets the show down are the wimpy 165/80 R13 tyres, too tall and too narrow to give the Altura the true dynamic capabilities it deserves.

An estate car the size of an Altura, we believe, needs a wider footprint, especially with all the weight hanging over the rear wheels when fully loaded. Ground clearance is a problem with both the Weekend and Altura when fully loaded and scraping the underbody on a large speedbreaker is all too easy.

Fuel Efficiency - The Altura wins here easily beating its rivals in both our city and highway cycles. We achieved an impressive figure of 10.3 kmpl in the city and 12.7 kmpl in the highway, with just 2 passengers on board and no luggage.

The Altura's superb efficiency is offset by high purchase cost, and if you're looking for low running costs, it makes sense to consider the more frugal Swing 1.4 or the diesel Siena Weekend.

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