The Baleno (Italian for “flash of light”) is back, sans a separate boot but with a whole new premium look and a lot of features. Can it rule the premium hatchback segment and be a case of “third time lucky” for Maruti? Read on to find out
Story: Gaurav Nagpal
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
The Indian car market kicked into high gear way back in 1983, when Maruti launched the Maruti 800. The car was a major departure from the Premier Padminis and Ambassadors that had ruled the roost till then, and, boy, did it become a success! Fast forward to 2005 and MSIL brought the Swift to India, and that kicked off the premium hatchback segment.
The market has been abuzz for a while with spy pics, leaked details and undisguised images of a premium Swift, later confirmed to be the new Baleno. How good is it? We drove the car in Jaipur recently to find out.
The Baleno launched in 1999 was a sedan; the 2015 Baleno is a hatchback. The “Liquid Flow” design is said to be a synergy of Harmony, Elegance and Energy Wave elements. What this translates into is possibly the best-looking hatchback in India. The headlamps do it no favour as they are a near-direct lift from the Swift (though they get projector lamps and LED daytime running lights on top-end variants), but the rest of the design is all-new, including the V-shaped grille. Viewed side-on, the chrome door-handles look classy and the large glass area adds to the feeling of size and space. As in the S-Cross, the wing mirrors are mounted on the doors rather than the A-pillars. Sixteen-inch alloy wheels look the right size for this car, though their design could be more attractive. The rear is a neat affair, embellished with LED combination lamps and a chrome garnish. The overall impression is of a classy, sporty look.
The interior is reminiscent of other Marutis in many ways and different in others. Parts such as the steering wheel, power window buttons, and control stalks have come from the Maruti parts bin. The quality of plastics could be a lot better, especially on the dashboard and the door pads — the soft-touch, premium feel is missing. A dual-tone interior would have been more appealing than all-black, and the seat fabric is nothing to write home about.
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