The 7th Generation is known in India as the Maruti Suzuki A-Star, but is also known as the Suzuki Celerio or Nissan Pixo in other places worldwide. It was launched in December 2008 by the Indo-Japanese auto maker Maruti Suzuki. It is the next generation Suzuki Alto and is exported worldwide. It is available in European markets as Nissan Pixo. The car was rolled out to the Indian customers in December 2008 and exports began in April 2009. A-Star means Alto-Star.
It comes in three variants - LXi, VXi and ZXi.
The initial expected prices in the Indian market are INR345,000 (ex-showroom Delhi) for the LXI, INR372,000 for the VXI and INR406,000 for the ZXI. With this price tag, the car is targeted at customers with budgets somewhere between the Zen Estilo and the Swift.
With a totally new body and engine, Maruti hopes to bring freshness to the Indian car market, of which it already holds a major share. Initial reviews have been positive. It has a fresh new dashboard, with a unique protruding tachometer besides the usual meter cowl (only in the ZXi trim). It is the fourth model after Swift, SX4 and Grand Vitara which has helped Maruti to make stylish cars, something which it was unknown for during older models.
Though the drive is comfortable for the front row, rear seating is a little small for taller passengers. The interiors have been reported to be a bit cramped as compared to the Hyundai i10, its closest competitor. It has the new K10B series engine, which Suzuki says is technically highly developed and gives a balance of fuel efficiency and power. The ZXi is the fully loaded version with all the expected features like power windows, central lock, ABS, rear wiper, fog lamps, CD player, airbags etc.
It is claimed to be the only car which will be available in 200 variants. It has won Best Small car award 2009 from AutocarIndia and Topgear. Technology of the Year from Overdrive.
On 23rd February,2010 Maruti Suzuki announced a recall of about 100,000 cars due to a fault discovered in the fuel pump of the car.