Maruti has launched the new Baleno in India with a price range between ₹ 6.35 Lakh and ₹ 9.49 Lakh (ex-showroom, India). The new Baleno will also be offered with Maruti Suzuki’s subscription plan, with monthly charges starting from ₹ 13,999 (including registration, maintenance, insurance and roadside assistance).
The new vehicle has been given a significant styling update over the old model. Up front, there’s a wider, honeycomb-patterned grille with new wraparound headlights, a flatter bonnet, a re-profiled bumper and new fog light housings. The projector headlights are also wider and get a new three-element LED daytime running lamp signature.
On the side, there are new 16-inch alloy wheels, a sharper shoulder line and a longer chrome strip at the base of the window line that now extends to the rear quarter glass. The rear gets new bumpers and C-shaped LED tail-lights that extend over the tailgate.
Inside, the Baleno gets a brand new, three-layered design for the dashboard which, in the top-spec model, gets a black top, a full-width silver accent in the middle and a dark blue finish at the bottom. This dark blue theme is carried over to the door cards and seat upholstery.
The updated Baleno also gets a new steering wheel, new front seats, new switchgear for climate control and a new design for the instrument cluster design.
Fully loaded Baleno Alpha 9.0-inch SmartPlay Pro+ free-standing touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto, Apple CarPlay and Amazon Alexa support, ‘Suzuki Connect’ connected car tech, a heads-up display (HUD), 360-degree comes with. Camera, tilt and telescopic steering adjustments and much more. However, Maruti Suzuki has dropped the sunroof offering.
Powering the new Baleno is a single 90hp, 1.2-litre, four-cylinder DualJet K12N petrol engine, mated to a 5-speed manual or a 5-speed AMT automatic gearbox (replacing the older model’s CVT unit). The ARAI-claimed fuel economy of the new engine with manual gearbox is 22.35kpl, while the new AMT returns 22.94kpl.
Like the outgoing model, the new Maruti Suzuki Baleno goes up against premium hatchbacks like the Hyundai i20, Tata Altroz, Honda Jazz, VW Polo and the soon-to-be-updated Toyota Glanza.
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