The Baleno, premium hatch from Maruti has been one of the blockbuster cars which compete with Honda Jazz and Hyundai Elite i20. Response was such that Maruti has received over 1 lakh bookings within six months of its launch. The Indian auto giant had also showcased Baleno RS concept at 2016 Auto Expo which is now all set to make its official debut in India on 3rd March 2017.
Baleno RS will be sportier and more premium avatar of standard Baleno and will be priced more than regular variants. It will be sold alongside Baleno via NEXA dealership range and will be taking on Abarth Punto and Volkswagen Polo GT TSI.
The Performance Oriented comes with a 1.0l boosterjet petrol engine that makes 100bhp of max power@5000rpm and 150Nm of torque between 1700-450rpm, 16bhp and 36Nm more than the standard variant. This engine will be paired to a 5-speed manual gearbox with no automatic option as of now. It is likely to deliver more mileage than standard petrol version.
The UK spec model uses the same engine but develops 111PS power and 170Nm of torque. The car will also be heavier with Kerb weight of 950 kgs as compared to 935kgs of regular petrol model. As for the exterior, it largely remain identical albeit subtle changes like new V-shaped mesh front grille, bi-xenon headlamps with LED DRLs, sportier bumper with wide air intake. It also gets sporty alloy wheels, new exclusive color, roof spoiler and new rear bumper.
Interiors remain same as it gets 7 inch Smartplay touchscreen infotainment system with navigation, automatic climate control, reverse parking camera, parking sensors, power windows, keyless entry, start/stop button and steering mounted controls. For safety, dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, tyre pressure monitoring system will be available as standard. It also gets disc brakes on all four wheels for better stopping power.
