SUVs are the talk of the town, but hatchbacks undeniably own a big share of the Indian automobile market. In fact, the premium hatchback space remains one of the most celebrated ones. Heating this segment up are the offerings like the Maruti Suzuki Baleno, Hyundai i20, Tata Altroz and more, and it isn’t tough to understand that the Baleno rules the roost. It is even ready to receive a mid-cycle update soon. The facelifted Maruti Suzuki Baleno will officially go on sale on February 23, but a lot is already known about the car. Hence, here’s a comparison of the upcoming Maruti Suzuki Baleno facelift and the outgoing model.
Maruti Suzuki Baleno Exterior comparison: New vs old
The Maruti Suzuki Baleno went on sale in the Indian market in the year 2015. The premium hatchback sported the family design language with upswept headlamps, slim grille, floating-appeal for the roof, and chunky tail lamps. However, its silhouette was the sportiest of all. Now in 2022, it does look old and dated.
To give the Baleno a sense of fresh air, Maruti Suzuki designers have made it look sharp from all angles while using the same body shell. Although, changes to the sheet metal have also been made. As can be seen in the leaked images, the Baleno facelift gets a resculpted bonnet and tailgate to house new headlamp and taillamp units, respectively.
The nose also accommodates a redesigned radiator grille and bumper. Similarly, the tail section features a chunkier bumper this time, along with slimmer taillamps. Over to the sides, the only noticeable change is the addition of new alloy wheels.
In terms of dimensions, the outgoing model of the Baleno measures 3,995 mm in length, 1,745 mm in width, and 1,510 mm in height. As per recent reports, the updated model is said to be 5 mm shorter in length, and it will sit around 10 mm closer to the ground. The height and wheelbase measurements will remain unchanged.
Maruti Suzuki Baleno Interior comparison: New vs old
The outgoing avatar of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno has a spacious and practical cabin layout. It does feel a little too old in terms of looks. Hence, Maruti Suzuki has used a new dashboard layout on the updated model. It looks more premium in this rendition and helps in livening the overall ambience.
The layered dashboard uses silver inserts, along with a shade of dark blue for the lower half. The big change is the addition of a free-standing 9-inch SmartPlay Pro+ infotainment unit. The steering wheel on the Baleno facelift will also be a new unit borrowed from the Swift. On the Baleno, however, it gets cruise controls as well. The layout for climate controls is also changed, as can be seen in the images.
In comparison to the outgoing model, the Baleno facelift will come with some added features. The list will include over 40 connected car features, 6 airbags, ARKAMYS-powered surround sound system, head-up display, 360-degree parking camera, and cruise control.
More power?
The existing iteration of the Maruti Suzuki Baleno is on sale with two renditions of the 1.2L NA petrol motor, developing 82 bhp and 88 bhp. On the updated model, only the latter is likely to be offered with an ISG that will enable an auto-start-stop system to improve the overall fuel efficiency. Also, Maruti Suzuki will keep the 48V mild-hybrid system away from the Baleno facelift. The peak torque will remain unchanged at 113 Nm. Currently, there are two transmission choices on offer – 5-speed MT and CVT. The updated rendition of the Baleno is reported to come with the same 5-speed MT in the manual grades, whereas the automatic variants will feature a 5-speed AMT instead.
