The eagerly awaited Maruti Baleno has made its global sales debut in India at a starting price of INR 4.99 lakhs (ex-showroom, New Delhi). The car is positioned above the Swift and will be available exclusively through Nexa premium dealerships.
Developed with an investment of INR 1,060 crores, the Baleno will be manufactured exclusively in India and will be exported to over 100 international markets including Japan and Europe. The hatchback is based on a new compact car platform which is claimed to be lighter by nearly 100 kg and 10% stronger than the existing comparable platforms in the industry.
Maruti Baleno Prices
Petrol
- Sigma – INR 4.99 lakhs
- Delta – INR 5.71 lakhs
- Zeta – INR 6.31 lakhs
- CVT – INR 6.76 lakhs
- Alpha – INR 7.01 lakhs
Diesel
- Sigma – INR 6.16 lakhs
- Delta – INR 6.81 lakhs
- Zeta – INR 7.41 lakhs
- Alpha – INR 8.11 lakhs
[Note: All prices are introductory figures ex-showroom, New Delhi.]
Design
Previewed by the Suzuki iK-2 concept, the global hatchback adopts a conservative style that is inspired by flowing liquid. The body style is an amalgamation of a compact hatchback and a station wagon.
The front fascia is composed of familiar Suzuki elements such as the honeycomb meshed grille with ‘S’ badge and swept back headlamps. The chrome underlining for the grille neatly blends into the headlamp detailing. A rectangular secondary air dam and small circular foglights round off the front end design.
The sub-4 metre premium hatchback has a slight hint of a station wagon in profile.The profile doesn’t offer much in terms of sheet metal contours but blacked-out pillars, near-flat roof, tapering c-pillar, a raising waistline and multi-spoke alloy wheels make for a good stance. The rear fascia gets simple LED infused combination lamps, a chrome underlining for the windshield and a muscular bumper.
Dimensions
The Maruti Baleno measures 3,995 mm in length, 1,745 mm in width, 1,500 in height and has a wheelbase of 2,520 mm. Ground clearance and boot capacity stands at 170 mm and 339 litres respectively.
Interior
The interior adopts fresh design and offers spacious rear bench.The latest Maruti sports a fresh interior design. The all-black dashboard features a familiar steering wheel, a new instrument binnacle with an MID and a butterfly shaped silver centre console with a touchscreen display. The overall design is neat and uncluttered.
Engine and Gearbox
The Maruti Baleno for the Indian market is offered with the 1.2-litre K-Series petrol and 1.3-litre DDiS 190 diesel engines. The former produces 84 PS and 115 Nm of torque when mated either to a CVT automatic or a 5-speed manual transmission while the latter is capable of 75 PS and 190 Nm of torque, and is available only with a 5-speed manual gearbox.
Mileage
The petrol motor is capable of delivering an ARAI certified mileage of 21.4 kmpl while the diesel motor is good enough for an impressive fuel efficiency of 27.39 kmpl.
Features
Maruti Baleno is the first car in India to present a touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay.The equipment list the strongest selling point of the Baleno, for it includes dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, seat belt with load limiters and pre-tensioners as standard fitments even on base Sigma variants. The fully loaded Alpha comes packed with projector headlights, foglights, alloy wheels, roof-mounted rear spoiler, LED daytime running lights, SmartPlay touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay (first car in India to offer this feature), navigation, reverse parking camera with sensors, automatic climate control, electrically adjustable and foldable wing mirrors, keyless entry and go, leather wrapped steering wheel and gear knob, and so on.
Colors
The Maruti Baleno is available in seven exterior color options namely Solid fire red, Premium urban blue, Premium urban blue, Autumn orange, Ray blue, Pearl arctic white, and Granite grey.
Also read – Maruti Baleno vs Hyundai Elite i20 vs Honda Jazz vs VW Polo
