Buying a Japan Alto, how to check the grade

madusha94 · August 12, 2018

Hi,

I went to see a Japanese Alto. I'm sure it isn't an X grade(no back seat head rest). But I want to know if it's lower grade than L.

How do I know the grade of a Japanese alto by looking at the car and it's features?

Thanks

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iRage · August 12, 2018

There are two model lines for the standard Alto the passenger line and the business line.

The passenger line’s model is HA36S. The grades for this line up are X,S, L and F (F is the lowest ?). If I am not mistaken the X,S and L come only with a CVT gear box and the F comes in MT and 5AGS.

The way to figure out the grade is, on the ID plate there will be a code in the model/frame code with the following format

AB(grade letter X/S/L/F)(another letter) - (optional letters for packages)

So a CVT, 2WD L grade will have the code ABLE, CVT, 2WD S will have the code ABSE

The L and F grades don’t have rear head rest and the difference between a L and F is quite minimal.

The business line model is HA36V. The V is for “Van” because in Japan these are known as vans. In that the grade code will be AGP(some letter depicting the transmission/axle). The van has a really poor rear seat. The rear seat has been brought forward to the max so that there is maximum cargo space. As a result an average adult will find it very difficult to sit in the back for more than a few minutes and also getting in and out is also difficult and the back support of the seat is like a cardboard that has been covered with some “stuff”

Business car's rear seat :

L grade passenger vehicle rear seat

Note how in passenger line of cars the rear seat is positioned back and the support is behind the rear door edge. In the business car line the rear seat is a bit more forward and thin (its a little adjustable but doesn't make much of a difference

Edited August 12, 2018 by iRage

madusha94 · August 13, 2018

Thanks iRage for the valuable information. Can't find any information on google.

On 8/12/2018 at 11:33 AM, iRage said:

F comes in MT and 5AGS

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Any risk with getting a 5AGS gear box? (Spare parts availability etc.) What's the difference between 5AGS and CVT?

iRage · August 13, 2018

On 8/13/2018 at 9:17 AM, madusha94 said:

Thanks iRage for the valuable information. Can't find any information on google.

Any risk with getting a 5AGS gear box? (Spare parts availability etc.) What's the difference between 5AGS and CVT?

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You won't find the information on Google..because I got the information out of the Japanese catalogs If you go through the Japanese Suzuki site you can get what I have entered

Well the Automatic Gear Shift first came out in the Celerio but has been considerably updated for the Alto. the think of the AGS as a manual transmission that automatically shifts the gear for you (that was a very lay-man's view of putting it..maybe someone more techie can explain it better). Personally i find it a little bit more fun than a CVT gear box (which is why the Alto Turbo RS and the WORKS both come with the 5AGS transmission). If you go and break your transmission within the next few days you won't be able to find a replacement part; however, neither the 5AGS nor CVT will break that easily (unless you buy a meter tampered, accident fixed piece of junk of course). So I don't think you need to worry about finding parts for your gearbox just yet. Considering the amount of Altos coming in to the country and the fact that quite a few of the Suzuki cars have the same or similar family of transissions I am sure at some point there will be sufficient parts.

So rather than focusing on a solution to a problem that is not yet there...focus your energy on finding a decent car. Get it thoroughly checked *by agents and/or by third party places).

madusha94 · August 13, 2018

On 8/13/2018 at 10:26 AM, iRage said:

You won't find the information on Google..because I got the information out of the Japanese catalogs If you go through the Japanese Suzuki site you can get what I have entered

Well the Automatic Gear Shift first came out in the Celerio but has been considerably updated for the Alto. the think of the AGS as a manual transmission that automatically shifts the gear for you (that was a very lay-man's view of putting it..maybe someone more techie can explain it better). Personally i find it a little bit more fun than a CVT gear box (which is why the Alto Turbo RS and the WORKS both come with the 5AGS transmission). If you go and break your transmission within the next few days you won't be able to find a replacement part; however, neither the 5AGS nor CVT will break that easily (unless you buy a meter tampered, accident fixed piece of junk of course). So I don't think you need to worry about finding parts for your gearbox just yet. Considering the amount of Altos coming in to the country and the fact that quite a few of the Suzuki cars have the same or similar family of transissions I am sure at some point there will be sufficient parts.

So rather than focusing on a solution to a problem that is not yet there...focus your energy on finding a decent car. Get it thoroughly checked *by agents and/or by third party places).

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Thanks for the info. Very helpful for newbies.. ?

madusha94 · August 18, 2018

On 8/13/2018 at 10:26 AM, iRage said:
You won't find the information on Google..because I got the information out of the Japanese catalogs [emoji4] If you go through the Japanese Suzuki site you can get what I have entered [emoji3]
Well the Automatic Gear Shift first came out in the Celerio but has been considerably updated for the Alto. the think of the AGS as a manual transmission that automatically shifts the gear for you [emoji3] (that was a very lay-man's view of putting it..maybe someone more techie can explain it better). Personally i find it a little bit more fun than a CVT gear box (which is why the Alto Turbo RS and the WORKS both come with the 5AGS transmission). If you go and break your transmission within the next few days you won't be able to find a replacement part; however, neither the 5AGS nor CVT will break that easily (unless you buy a meter tampered, accident fixed piece of junk of course). So I don't think you need to worry about finding parts for your gearbox just yet. Considering the amount of Altos coming in to the country and the fact that quite a few of the Suzuki cars have the same or similar family of transissions I am sure at some point there will be sufficient parts.
So rather than focusing on a solution to a problem that is not yet there...focus your energy on finding a decent car. Get it thoroughly checked *by agents and/or by third party places).

Hi,
Another question about 5AGS,
5AGS vs CVT, what's the difference in fuel economy? Friend of mine told that fuel economy is low in 5AGS when compared to CVT. Any major difference in fuel economy?

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iRage · August 18, 2018

In test environments Suzuki has rated the CVT as 37kmpl and the 5AGS as 30kmpl in a JC08 cycle.

In real-life that would mean you would get about 70% of that...which is what ? 25.9kmpl vs. 21kmpl roughly ? So you have a difference of about 5kmpl between the two in real-life in best case scenarios.

When you consider the fact that you are not going to be driving 50% on highway and 50% in the city (low traffic) like in a JC08 test, you will probably get even lesser actual fuel consumption. As the actual gets lesser the difference in fuel consumption would even be less. So yeah....(pressuming you are not going for an Alto WORKS or Turbo RS) the 5AGS is cheaper and the CVT grades are more expensive...so roughly, what you pay in price difference is pretty much equaled out by the savings in fuel cost.

its sad that people in SL only look at fuel cost rather than total cost or other important factors.

madusha94 · August 24, 2018

On 8/18/2018 at 9:23 PM, iRage said:
In test environments Suzuki has rated the CVT as 37kmpl and the 5AGS as 30kmpl in a JC08 cycle.
In real-life that would mean you would get about 70% of that...which is what ? 25.9kmpl vs. 21kmpl roughly ? So you have a difference of about 5kmpl between the two in real-life in best case scenarios.
When you consider the fact that you are not going to be driving 50% on highway and 50% in the city (low traffic) like in a JC08 test, you will probably get even lesser actual fuel consumption. As the actual gets lesser the difference in fuel consumption would even be less. So yeah....(pressuming you are not going for an Alto WORKS or Turbo RS) the 5AGS is cheaper and the CVT grades are more expensive...so roughly, what you pay in price difference is pretty much equaled out by the savings in fuel cost.
its sad that people in SL only look at fuel cost rather than total cost or other important factors.

Hi,
Can you give me a link to the information you mentioned?

I found two alto f grade cars, one with only front power shutters, other with both back and front power shutters. If they are of the same grade, how come this be?

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iRage · August 25, 2018

On 8/24/2018 at 11:49 AM, madusha94 said:

Hi,
Can you give me a link to the information you mentioned?

I found two alto f grade cars, one with only front power shutters, other with both back and front power shutters. If they are of the same grade, how come this be?

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Why can't it be ? A specific grade is just an indication of a trim level and for that trim level it has as set of standard accessories and some that are optional. So why do you think power shutters for a F grade has to be for all doors ?

Go to the Suzuki Japan website.