New Delhi: The Baleno has been a huge seller for Maruti along with being the star of the Nexa retail sales channel. When first launched, the Baleno immediately skyrocketed to the top of the charts and since then has been there. It was the first premium hatchback from Maruti being placed above the Swift but many times sold more than that car! 


However, that was way back in 2015 and a new version was due for a long time. Finally, the new Baleno is here and Maruti is saying it is not a facelift but an all-new generation with new styling, new interiors, features, a new automatic gearbox, and even a new suspension. We spent a day with the AMT Baleno to see how good this new premium hatchback is.


Exterior Design


While the new Baleno continues to be based on the Heartect platform, there have been changes to its chassis along with adding high strength steel for better build quality plus performing better in crash tests. Hence, the new Baleno is heavier than the old one while also looking a lot different now. 


The new look is more aggressive and a lot has to do with the bigger grille and the new LED projector headlamps, which are much wider than the previous Baleno headlamps plus also having the new DRL lighting signature. 


Even the front bumper and bonnet has been changed. The side profile sees minor updates while there is a new design for the 16-inch alloy wheels while on the rear, there are new C-shaped tail-lamps with a larger chrome strip along with the reflector position being changed. 

There is a new rear bumper design too. Nothing has been spared and there are new 5 colours for the Baleno now with the signature Nexa blue shade being a bit darker along with having a higher quality paint finish.


Interior Design


More than the exteriors, the new interiors actually surprised us. A pleasant one at that considering what a change it is from the earlier Baleno. The interior has a nice dual-tone theme of blue/black with the dashboard covered in dark blue with a layer of silver accents. 


The dark blue upholstery is carried over to the doors and seats too. Then you see the new steering wheel taken from the Swift while the centre screen is now a new 9 inch one with the latest SmartPlay Pro+ infotainment system. 




It is a big leap from the current touchscreen seen on Maruti cars with a customizable home screen and a nicely designed interface. The touch response is a bit laggy though. Moving onto the centre console, the air vent design to the climate control switches all are new with a nice sense of quality.


Features


Features wise, the HUD has to be the biggest highlight of the new Baleno. It is something not seen on cars even priced higher than it and is a safety feature where you do not have to take your eyes off the road even for a second. The HUD can be customizable according to height and also the information with three settings.


It shows all relevant info like the speed/climate control/alerts to what gear you are in. There is a new Arkamys sound system as well which has a good sound quality and the other big feature is the addition of a 360-degree camera. 




The graphics/design is really nice but the actual display resolution of the camera image could have been better. As always with a 360-degree camera, you have multiple views to see.


The new infotainment system for the first time in a Maruti now has connected tech being given and not as an accessory along with Alexa built-in with voice commands. The connected tech feature meanwhile gives you alerts, remote features via the Suzuki connect app and more. 


The feature list also now includes rear AC vents plus climate control, cruise control, auto ORVMs, rear fast charging including type-C, 6 airbags, ESP with a hill-hold assist, tilt and telescopic steering etc.


In terms of space, the Baleno has always done well and the same is with the new one with loads of legroom and headroom at the rear. Fitting three passengers might be an issue at the rear due to the presence of a small central tunnel but for legroom/headroom it is amongst the best. That said, we did miss an armrest at the rear. The boot space or the practicality is also quite good.




Driving Experience


Let us now talk about the driving experience. The Baleno now has a single petrol engine option with a 1.2l engine with dual jet technology. This four-cylinder petrol motor makes 90 bhp and 113 Nm. 


While a 5-speed manual gearbox is standard, there is an AMT gearbox that is all new and replaces the CVT automatic of the previous Baleno. We drove the AMT and here, I must confess, that I am not a huge fan of them. However, the AMT of the new Baleno sure surprised me with its smoothness. 


This is surely one of the smoothest AMT gearboxes I have driven. At low speeds, it feels like a torque converter with no jerks or a huge amount of lag. The 90 bhp makes the Baleno quite quick since it is quite light despite the small weight gain. Hence, performance is strong and the AMT is pretty responsive at city speeds. 


The light steering and compact dimensions further make it a good car to drive in the city. It is only on the highway that when you put your foot down, there is some lag but honestly it is a very small amount and the car cruises well. 


AMTs used to have a pause and it was a headache to drive them at highway speeds or for sudden acceleration- not anymore as this AMT can now almost be a traditional automatic.



The suspension did a good job of handling some of the rougher roads and it is certainly more comfortable than the earlier Baleno in terms of ride quality. The all-new suspension does make the Baleno a better car to drive with less roll and we will say the Baleno has better high-speed stability now. 


The steering too felt better. With an idle start/stop system, the mileage of the Baleno AMT is frankly above any other AMT/automatic car with 17/19 kmpl being easily achieved. Careful driving will get you closer to its 22kmpl plus official figure.


Despite so many features, the top-end Baleno is still amongst the most affordable cars with the fully loaded AMT version as tested here being priced at Rs. 9.4 lakh (ex-showroom). Compared to the previous Baleno, the new one is hugely better in almost all areas. 


The styling is sharper, the all-new interiors represent a massive change with more quality/features while the driving experience is better too. The AMT is an interesting choice since its rivals give other kinds of automatic options but the new Baleno does get incredible efficiency as a result of using the AMT. 



Hence, as a fuel-efficient, feature-packed premium hatchback, the new Baleno scores highly and is the best Maruti product yet. So, if you want efficiency, features and the convenience of an automatic without paying for it in terms of low efficiency, then the Baleno AMT is for you.


What we like- Styling, features, space, AMT gearbox, efficiency, improved driving experience


What we do not- No turbo petrol, lacks some features like rear armrest/sunroof


Car loan Information:

Calculate Car Loan EMI