The Maruti Baleno (Suzuki Baleno in international markets) has attained three stars at recently conducted Euro NCAP crash test. It is more than a decent achievement considering the fact that the car kerb weight is around 900 kgs. The Euro NCAP said that it has tested two versions of Baleno one with standard feature and another with safety pack which managed to score 4 stars.
The safety pack includes autonomous radar braking but sadly it is not available in India though Baleno comes with dual front airbags, seat-belt pre-tensioners, ABS as standard. The two tested cars used had safety features like front-rear seat belts pre-tensioners with load limiters, dual front airbags, side head and chest airbags for front-rear occupants and ISOFIX child seat.
| Category | Score (in percent) |
| Adult Occupant | 85 |
| Child Occupant | 73 |
| Pedestrian | 65 |
| Safety | 43 |
Talking about the powertrains in India, Baleno is available in both petrol and diesel engines- the petrol version features with 1.2 litre VVT engine which belts out 83bhp power and 115Nm of torque while the diesel version sports tried and tested 1.3l DDis motor good for 74bhp and 190Nm of torque. Both the engines are paired to a 5-speed manual while petrol can be had in 5-speed CVT as well.
Maruti Suzuki will launch the performance version of the hatchback named Baleno RS in India during the upcoming festive season which will be getting 1.0 litre booster jet petrol mill.
