Maruti Suzuki had shipped its first batch of the Baleno hatchbacks to Japan last month.
Maruti Suzuki had shipped its first batch of the Baleno hatchbacks to Japan last month. The lot has finally reached Japanese soil and as seen from the pics is being driven off the ship at the Toyohashi Port, Japan. This is also the first time that Maruti has exported its cars to Japan.
Being the second largest exporter of cars in India, Maruti ships cars to the UK and other markets in Europe. But for the first time Maruti has shipped its cars manufactured at the Manesar plant to its parent nation, Japan. The Baleno was launched in India last year in October and since then the company has started exporting the Baleno in full steam. The car is racking up strong sales for the company in India and the demand does not seem to slow down anytime in the near future.
The Maruti Baleno in India is powered by a 1.2-litre K-Series petrol that develops 83BHP and a 1.3-litre diesel that develops 75BHP. Both engines are mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox, but only the petrol can be had with a CVT automatic gearbox. For export markets like the UK, Maruti also manufactures a 1.0-litre 3-cylinder turbocharged petrol that develops 110PS of max power and 170Nm of max torque. Sadly, this engine is not offered in India, but you need not fret as the motor will be launched in India under the hood of the sporty Baleno RS
which was shown at the 2016 Delhi Auto Expo. The Baleno RS will compete with the Polo GT TSI, Ford Figo 1.5 DCT and the Fiat Abarth Punto.
The Maruti Baleno competes with the Hyundai Elite i20 and the Honda Jazz in India. Both are offered with petrol and diesel engines with a 5-speeder on the petrol and a 6-speeder on the diesel. The Hyundai is the king of the premium hatchback segment in India while the Honda is known for its unmatched practicality.