10 interesting things about the upcoming Maruti Suzuki Baleno

Unveiled globally at the Frankfurt Motor Show of this year, the Maruti Suzuki Baleno will soon be launched in India. Amid the din and clamour surrounding this car, which is one of Maruti Suzuki’s very important offerings for India and the world, here are 10 interesting things about the Baleno you could have missed.

1. Maruti Suzuki’s newly established premium car dealership line, Hexa, will sell the Baleno, which will also be the second car after the S-Cross to be sold thus. However, all Maruti dealerships will accept bookings for the car, which they will transfer to the nearest Hexa, where the car will be on display.

2. The Baleno badge is making a comeback into India after 8 years. The badge arrived into India in 1999 as a sedan, and a year later, the Altura station wagon was also launched. Both cars didn’t do very well. So, with the launch of the hatchback, the Baleno badge will aim for more success.

3. Maruti Suzuki will offer the Baleno with a petrol engine with a CVT automatic transmission option. This is the first time in the automaker’s history in India that an CVT automatic gearbox is being offered. With this gearbox in tow, the Baleno will aim squarely for the Honda Jazz CVT.

4. The new car is based on an all-new platform, with a focus on reducing weight (by about 10 %) and increasing torsional rigidity (by about 10 %). This very platform will be used for more cars, such as the next-generation Swift hatchback and the Dzire compact sedan.

5. Maruti Suzuki’s Manesar factory will be a major export hub for the new B+ segment hatchback. The cars that were showcased at Frankfurt were built in India. In the coming months, more production of this hatchback will reach foreign shores.

6. India will be the first car market in the world to get the new Baleno B+ segment hatchback. Even Japan and Europe will be served later, which goes on to show how important India has become as a market for Maruti Suzuki.

7. To be priced and positioned above the Swift, as a Jazz-i20 Elite rival, the Baleno will project space as one of its major selling points. If the class leading 355 liter boot is anything to go by, we might finally have a Maruti car that actually beats rivals when it comes to space offered on the inside.

8. Being future ready is another aspect that Maruti wants to underscore with the Baleno, which will feature the Apple CarPlay infotainment interface. Notably, the new hatchback will be the first car in India to feature the Apple CarPlay system.

9. The diesel variant of the car, which will use the tried and tested 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet motor in 89 Bhp-200 Nm state of tune, could also get Suzuki’s Smart Hybrid Vehicle System (SHVS) technology, thus becoming the first diesel-hybrid hatchback in the country.

10. For India, the 1.2 liter, naturally aspirated K-Series petrol engine will be standard fare right from the outset. Eventually, Maruti could also offer the Baleno with a new, 1 liter-3 cylinder BoosterJet turbo petrol engine with 110 Bhp-170 Nm.