The Maruti Suzuki Baleno was introduced in October 2015 and has been a turnaround product for the Indian automaker in the premium segment. Sold via the Nexa chain of dealerships, the hatchback exceeded sales far better than expected and has managed to set a new milestone. The Baleno recently crossed the 200,000 sales milestone in just 20 months from its launch, which only goes on to show the popularity of the car.
The Baleno was one of the first cars in India to get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
The Maruti Suzuki Baleno started life as the iK2 concept making its global debut at the Geneva Motor Show in 2015. The car made its way to India as the all-new Baleno in the same year. With a competitive price tag, the premium hatchback was a success right from the start, despite the limited number of Nexa dealerships at the time. The Baleno clocked its 1 lakh sales milestone in October 2016, exactly a year after its launch, while the sales figures have only increased ever since.
Despite production in full swing, the Maruti Suzuki Baleno's demand extended six to eight months at the time. Given that the hatchback is exported from India to the European markets, production was shifted to Maruti's new facility in Sanand, Gujarat from the Manesar plant in Haryana in February this year. The move has seen a dramatic reduction in waiting periods for the Baleno.
The Baleno registered the 1 lakh sales milestone in October 2016
What's interesting is that the demand for the Baleno petrol is higher in India at about 75 per cent, as opposed to diesel variants. Both versions of the premium hatchback get the tried and tested engines with the 1.2-litre K-Series petrol and 1.3-litre DDiS diesel serving purpose.
The Baleno RS is a sportier and more powerful version of the standard Baleno petrol
More recently, Maruti Suzuki also introduced the sportier and more powerful Baleno RS in the Indian market that uses the compact and turbocharged 1.0-litre BoosterJet petrol engine that makes 101 bhp of power and 150 Nm of peak torque.
At present, the Maruti Suzuki Baleno is the bestselling model in the premium hatchback segment with the equally popular Hyundai i20 giving it tough competition. The Honda Jazz and Volkswagen Polo, on the other hand, are distant rivals, as far as sales are concerned.
