The is a subcompact car produced by the Japanese manufacturer Suzuki in India since September 2015 with a hatchback body style.
Prior to this, the "Baleno" nameplate had been applied to the Cultus Crescent in numerous markets and also for sedan version of Aerio and SX4 in Indonesia. Unlike the previous generations of Baleno when it was offered as a sedan, wagon, or a 3-door hatchback, the model sold since 2015 is exclusively offered as a 5-door hatchback.
Since June 2019, it is also marketed at Toyota dealerships in India as the Toyota Glanza, and since September 2020 in several African countries as the Toyota Starlet.
The word "baleno" means "lightning" in Italian.
First generation (WB; 2015)
The car was officially unveiled first to the public at the 66th IAA Frankfurt Motor Show on 15 September 2015. It was previewed by the iK-2 concept car that was first shown at the 85th Geneva Motor Show in March 2015.
The Baleno is built on the new lightweight HEARTECT platform, shared with the smaller Swift and Ignis hatchbacks. Baleno is the first vehicle from Maruti Suzuki to be underpinned with the newly developed platform. It has a luggage volume of 320–355 litres (with or without spare tyre), which can be expanded to 756 litres when the rear seats folded. The total interior volume is 1085 litres (VDA method). The "Liquid Flow" design has drag coefficient of , making Baleno the most streamlined production Suzuki to date. The car has ground clearance between 120 and 170 mm depending on the market to suit the road conditions.
It is built on a powertrain range of K-series petrol engines: a new three-cylinder 1.0-litre Boosterjet turbocharged direct injection engine, a four-cylinder 1.25-litre Dualjet dual injector engine, which is also available with mild hybrid SHVS (Smart Hybrid Vehicle by Suzuki) technology. There is also 1.2-litre conventional petrol and mild hybrid engines mainly offered for Indian market and a 1.4-litre engine equipped for most regions outside Europe and India. A 1.25-litre Fiat-sourced turbo-diesel engine is also available exclusively for Indian market.
Facelift
The facelifted Baleno was launched first in India on 28 January 2019. Suzuki redesigned the Baleno's exterior with remodeled front bumper with new grille design and new 16-inch alloy wheels design with dual-tone colour. The interior also upgraded with a dual-tone black-and-blue colour scheme. The interior noise and ride comfort are also improved.
The facelifted model is not available in Europe, Japan and several other countries after Suzuki decided to not continue selling the Baleno in those markets in 2020 and focused on the more popular Swift.
Markets
Europe
The Baleno was announced first in Italy in December 2015, but the sales was postponed until April 2016. European market Baleno is powered by 1.0-litre three-cylinder direct injection turbocharged K10C Boosterjet petrol engine, generating and a 1.25-litre four-cylinder dual injectors K12C Dualjet petrol engine, generating . Mild hybrid variant is also available for the 1.25-litre engine. Due to low sales, the Baleno was discontinued in Europe in 2020.
United Kingdom
The Baleno was launched in the UK in June 2016 with two trim levels; SZ-T and SZ5. The cheaper SZ3 trim was added in April 2017. It was discontinued in August 2019 alongside the Celerio city car.
Asia
India
The Baleno was introduced in India on 26 October 2015. Slots above the Swift, the hatchback was built to maximize interior space while retaining Indian GST structure benefit for vehicles with length dimension under 4 meters and powered by either 1200 cc petrol or 1500 cc diesel engine. The Baleno is exclusively sold through Maruti Suzuki's premium NEXA outlets across India. The car is available in four trim levels - Sigma, Delta, Zeta and Alpha.
There are three engine options for the Indian model: a four-cylinder 1.2-litre K12M petrol engine that generates of power and of torque, a four-cylinder 1.25-litre Multijet/DDiS 190 diesel engine that generates of power and of torque, and a three-cylinder turbocharged 1.0-litre K10C Boosterjet engine which is the same engine that is found in the European market Baleno. All the engines get a 5-speed manual as standard, while the K12M engine is offered with a CVT option (initially only available for Delta trim, followed by Zeta in April 2016 and Alpha in August 2017). All variants are equipped with dual airbags, ABS and EBD as standard.