Today, Maruti Suzuki Baleno completed 5 years in the Indian market. This is an illustration of the premium hatchback’s appeal to the Indian buyer since it’s launch back in 2015. Locally manufactured in India, Baleno is also exported to international markets like Australia, Europe, Latin America, Africa, Middle-East and South-East Asia. The automaker has sold over 8 lakh units of hatchback making it one of the top-selling models in the premium hatchback segment. Maruti Baleno is sold through the Nexa retail channel, as it competes with the likes of Hyundai Elite i20, Honda Jazz, Volkswagen Polo and Toyota Glanza in its segment. In fact in just 1 year of its launch, the Baleno crossed 1 lakh sales figure and 5 lakh milestone by 2018. Currently, Baleno base variant is priced at Rs 5.63 lakh (ex-showroom), with the top-end Alpha automatic trim retailing at Rs 8.96 lakh (ex-showroom), Delhi.
Speaking on the occassation, Shashank Srivastava, Executive Director (Marketing & Sales), Maruti Suzuki India Limited said, “India’s most loved premium hatchback, Maruti Suzuki Baleno has a very special place in our portfolio. With its bold and premium design, cutting edge technology and feature-rich offering, Baleno has helped us cement our position in the premium hatchback segment. Baleno is also instrumental in giving recognition to our NEXA channel”
Another interesting point to note is that the Baleno is the first premium hatchback in the country to come equipped with Smart Hybrid technology. Thus there are 2 powertrains on offer. The first is a 1.2-litre Dualjet Dual VVT petrol engine that delivers a fuel efficiency of 23.7 kmpl. While the second one is a 1.2-litre VVT engine that is offered with two transmission options, a manual and a CVT. The former delivers 21.01 kmpl while the latter gives 19.56 kmpl of fuel efficiency. All figures mentioned here are ARAI Certified. It comes loaded with safety features like ABS + EBD, dual airbags, driver & co-driver seat belt reminder, reverse parking assist sensors, ISOFIX child anchorages among others. Talking about interior features, it comes loaded with coloured TFT with multi-information display, a 7-inch infotainment screen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, auto AC, remote keyless entry among others. Maruti Baleno is currency retailed through 377 Nexa outlets across 200 cities in the country.