[WRXXX]

Originally Posted by SRK

Wonderful pricing by Maruti on the Baleno.

I was wondering if one can opt for the Zeta right now and later add the projector headlamps as an accessory when available?
Also, about the SmartPlay system, would that be available as an accessory too from Nexa at a later date?

By going for the Zeta version against the Alpha one can save close to 80K. If one sets aside 40K for the Projector headlamp setup with DRL, would the other 40K provide a nice touchscreen infotainment system with GPS and reverse camera? Is such an after market solution available at that price point?

Spending same amount of money outside makes sense if you are getting superior alloys and HU outside. Otherwise drilling cutting retro-fitting etc, not a great idea IMHO.

Originally Posted by SRK

By the way, it seems while the top-end models get wheel size of 195/55 R16 their spare wheel is 185/65 R15. Wouldn't that size affect the driving dynamics even if its for a small distance.

Both have the same RR(Rolling Radius) and it wouldn't matter.
Anyways with wheels of this mix and match you wouldn't want to do any gymnastics with the driving as handling would differ. But technically there is no problem

[drmohitg]

Originally Posted by nurni76

Amazing Pricing! As a consumer I like this, but not sure as an investor though. Has Maruti left money on the table especially considering the premium positioning, more than competition features by variants and limited reach of Nexa to play the volume game? Guess their intention was to also drive more footfalls to Nexa to help Scross. A brave move though not sure if it is a prudent one.

A very interesting observation. This might explain why they almost risked sabotaging their own bread and butter Swift . One to garner more footfalls and allow the Nexa dealers to be able to sustain there business and also encourage new dealerships to open. Secondly it might help make more people take a look at the Scross.

Nevertheless great pricing. I am tempted to flirt with the idea of adding one to the garage.

[SoumenD]

Phew!!! That's a lot of pages of discussion post the pricing declaration.

Good to see Maruti learnt the lesson pretty quick after the S-Cross pricing fiasco. In our market, afterall pricing of the product ultimately matters more than anything else & now the NEXA experience will be cherry on the cake for customers. This will change the general perception of NEXA altogether and would increase the number of foot-falls(& bookings) many times over.

As for the product, lets be rest assured this will be pulling in a LOT of petrol customers atleast from both JAZZ & i20. We barely had any decent offering in petrol variants till now in the premium hatch segment. Going by the reviews BALENO will break that JINX.
I would prefer a Petrol Zeta and hope the DRLs are made available as an accessory in near future.

Its pretty obvious that MARUTI has kept the prices this low to grab eyeballs right from the start and once the product is established will increase the prices(eventually margins) just like what Ford did with ECOSPORT.

OT :
As enthusiasts we would be hoping the 1.0 boosterjet comes in near future but then I wonder how many of us would actually be booking one. Case in point : S-Cross 1.6/Abarth. Lots being discussed. Will await some ownership threads on the same first

[chaudharysaab]

Great Pricing but i don't know why people are pointing out that Swift will take hit because of that. Maruti's NEXA is always going to be limited to large cities and by the time small town people start considering Baleno over Swift, they will be taken aback by long waiting period. And by the time maximum number NEXA showrooms will get operational, Maruti will have new generation swift ready.
If Hyundai can sell Grand i10 and i20 side by side, leave alone market champion Swift, Dzire and Baleno

In big cities, people will go for swift, end up buying Baleno. Going for baleno in NEXA showroom will also benefit SCross.

[drive2eternity]

Yesterday, I got a news flash about the pricing of the Baleno. This was my expression
Unfortunately I was unable to logon to TBhp and did so only today morning, to see the discussion. And, guess what, I had 9 pages to go through. This is the amount of interest and excitement the Baleno has created.
Yes the pricing is killer and yes the brand MSIL is big. Two factors together means sleepless nights to all the competitors.
Firstly, I would like to applaud MSIL for putting Safety First. It is indeed a good sign for the Indian Auto Sector. As the undisputed market leader, MSIL could have introduced the base version with a single airbag and no ABS. It would still sell. But MSIL chose not to. Deserves to be appreciated.
Coming to the Baleno, yes it will cannibalize its siblings, but as long as the coffers of MSIL are filled, it shouldn't be a concern.
Elites and Jazzes of the market should rethink what they offer. Aspires should aspire for the better now.
Baleno Petrol should easily eat up the competition. The diesel is under-powered; but it is a Maruti. If it doesn't sell on the credential of the National diesel, it still will on the brand's reputation.

PS: Maybe MSIL should adopt the approach where, until a Nexa outlet is opened in a city (say Agra), the SCross and Baleno can be bought from normal showrooms. Also, move the Ciaz to Nexa.

[PrideRed]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Sure, their engines may be lacklustre and power an entire range of cars stretching from 4 lakhs to 12 lakhs, but hey? Isn't that what Honda is doing as well? When their Japanese counterpart tasted big success by following this same formula with the 100 PS/200 Nm i-DTEC, why shouldn't Maruti-Suzuki follow it too?


Forget that the competition offers bigger engine sizes with better power/torque/performance figures. The mass market is still swayed by features galore, huge in-cabin space, a big boot and badge pull - 4 crucial factors which Maruti-Suzuki possesses in dollops.

The friendly neighbourhood Nexa salesman will definitely open all four doors to show how big the cabin is, he will open the boot to show how big the boot is ("close to 340 liters, ma'am!"), but what he won't do is pop open the bonnet to show what engine powers the car under the hood. And quite frankly, for the general public, engine specs are still not a big deal, as long as the car pulls decently enough inside the citys and on the highways.


Yes, the petrol option is quite a match for it's segment competition, but comparing the 75 PS diesel to similar offerings of it's segment is almost like a travesty. We have cars which are powered by bigger, more powerful engines churning out either 100+ PS of power or 200+ Nm of torque at similar or slightly lower price points, but now most of them will either feel the heat or become redundant.

Well you are missing a point here. Baleno weighs mere 985 Kilo's which is the best among competition. If I remember correctly, one of the review also mentioned it is peppier than the swift diesel. 1.3L with 75PS might sound puny, but power to weight ratio isn't that bad when compared with competition.

[MetalBuff]

I happened to check out the Baleno albeit for a brief moment(3minutes flat as, i had to rush for office) a while ago. Rear doors were incredibly light but, the front doors were a bit better. The hatch door seemed quite solid though. Even after trying to close the driver side door a couple of times, I could not get it to shut properly. Hoping this is not a perennial problem as in the XUV5OO.

The boot space is pretty good for a hatch and the car looks decent from up close. Didnt find the looks too appealing when looked on at from a distance but, that's me.

The steering felt great to hold and the overall plastics felt decent too. The SA though a very good and well informed chap mentioned about soft touch interiors which clearly wasnt the case. As i had very limited time at hand, didnt correct him.

As per him, TD vehicles would be available on the 1st as, they've been sent for registration. As, i am considering the Baleno for a purchase and am in talks with the SAs from the only 2NEXA dealerships here in Mumbai, ill try updating all of us here with any relevant information that's shared with me.

Cheerio,
Shivang Gandotra

[safari_lover]

The best thing about the Baleno is that it marks the dawning of an era where ABS and Airbags are prioritized over power windows and remote locking. Excellent.

Superb pricing too. The Delta variant will be the new benchmark for VFM in the segment, IMO.

[modisan]

Seems pricing discussion may continue for another few days so let me add too - "Great pricing Suzuki". Only way to salvage S-Cross 320 and Swift is to offer the latter free with former and dispatch remaining stocks!

Yes, I was pleasantly surprised with the prices till the time I saw premium of AT over MT in Delta. I was excited about having AT in a lower (or rather very lower) variant. This brings it close to Jazz's lower AT variant -just 27k difference although with lot more goodies (need to make my own chart, some posts earlier will definitely help. Have thanked most of them if not all). Goodies aside, I believe, Honda brand still is more aspirational as well as reliable than Nexa/Suzuki and so Delta AT just might continue to get tough competition from Jazz, coupled with long waiting period at Nexa for at least next 6 months if not forever. Would need help in understanding space dynamics offered by the two cars even though Jazz AT perhaps doesn't offer something called "Magic Seats". Can one look forward to discounts on Jazz (I hope they don't read my positives mentioned here)

My problem is worsened though. Own a Punto (4 yrs) and a Spark (6 yrs) with both me and wife using them in tandem, coupled with the longer Delhi Metro. Was looking at retiring Spark to buy a new one and have looked at everything from a Honda City to Baleno now including Ecosport, Rapid DSG, TUV, Jazz, Creta, S-Cross with Automatic as a must and openness to used car. Added Baleno too now and am too confused. Seems, I will take another 3 months and will have another 4 models to confuse me. However, giving money some serious respect and deciding to choose between Baleno and Jazz, with a last look at Rapid DSG too.

[hybridpetrol]

Since now S-Cross and Baleno will be sold together in Nexa, I was just checking what could be the prospects of converting the Baleno sales to S-Cross.
I took the Zeta 1.3 Diesel version for comparison of both products, and my observations as as below:
a) Feature wise most of the features are equal
b) Baleno seems to have added a little bit of premium for interiors, in the name of Leather wrapped Steering wheel & Gear knob, Driver arm rest with Storage, chrome door handles, and 60:40 split. Additionally it has LED tail lamps, and on safety front, it provides Brake Assist feature extra.
c) S-Cross comes with Cruise control, and a GPS Navigation system, while Baleno doesn't provide this. Also, S-Cross has 6 speakers, while Baleno has 4.

Leaving features aside, some websites mention Baleno's manufacturer warrenty as 1 year/40K km. If so, this is too less in my opinion. S-Cross provides standard 2 year/40K km like other cars.

Both vehicles use the same 1.3L Diesel engine, however S-Cross is in a better state of tune. Apart from this, S-Cross has a roomy interior due to its bigger dimensions. GC is not very much different - 180mm for S-Cross, Baleno 170mm. Both should be almost equal in road conditions due to the smaller wheelbase of Baleno in comparison to S-Cross. Turning radius obviously in favour of Baleno.

Pricing: S-Cross - 9.99L, Baleno - 7.41L, which converts to an on road difference of about 3L.

A normal office goer, with occasional highway trips can do very well with Baleno & no need to be upsold for S-Cross.
However, on seeing both vehicles side by side, the bigger size and the roominess / comfort of S-Cross surely has its own attraction to spend that extra 3L (or more for the Alpha) and get that "Above the ordinary" car!

[drive2eternity]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

c) S-Cross comes with Cruise control, and a GPS Navigation system, while Baleno doesn't provide this. Also, S-Cross has 6 speakers, while Baleno has 4.

Correction, the Baleno too provides a GPS Navigation in the Topend version.

[i74js]

Originally Posted by nurni76

Amazing Pricing! As a consumer I like this, but not sure as an investor though. Has Maruti left money on the table especially considering the premium positioning, more than competition features by variants and limited reach of Nexa to play the volume game?

Being an investor in MSIL, I would say its a smart move. There is considerable money on stake with NEXA and entry into premium segment is a must for the brand recall of NEXA when a customer wants to have something premium manufactured by MSIL.

1. The S-Cross could not provide them the much needed footfall. Baleno will provide the necessary shot in the arm for the NEXA brand.

2. On face of it, one finds that MSIL has undercut the prices, but if you look at the engine specification, the undercut gets adjusted immediately against competition. Both K12 and DDIS 190/200 are regular mass motors produced by MSIL and thus they could manage a good pricing, anything above or even par with Hyundai / Honda would have resulted in people moving away from NEXA which MSIL would not want at this point.

3. MSIL had internal target (I may be wrong but this is what I am aware of) of 10 cars per day from each NEXA outlet in the first year. S-Cross will not do it, while new cars / fresh products are away atleast by a year for NEXA. Baleno's correct pricing will help achieve this target. Mounting pressure from dealers was also a major reason. Please note that NEXA outlet is owned by existing dealers of MSIL, just that these are separate sales outlet made as per specific standards and sales experience for premium customers.

4. An investor is concerned with the dividend at the end of the year and it doesn't matter if it is based on larger volumes with smaller margins or smaller volumes with larger margins.

I am happy and so would be other investors from the company, including their principals (Suzuki) as they get considerable royalty which is close to INR 20,000 per car sold by MSIL in India. Do the math !

[BoneCollector]

I had been following this thread for quite some time now but was waiting for the pricing, to jump into the discussion. A very good move by MSIL and not only about the pricing but also the safety features.

I request people with better knowhow if they can provide me with power to weight ratios of Ritz vs Baleno, both in Petrol as well as Diesel avatars.

Anyone here who has done a TD of the car? I'm eagerly waiting for the official review.

[vibbs]

Originally Posted by i74js

Being an investor in MSIL, I would say its a smart move. There is considerable money on stake with NEXA and entry into premium segment is a must for the brand recall of NEXA when a customer wants to have something premium manufactured by MSIL.

I agree.

Also Premium necessarily does not mean high price. Customers need to accept that Maruti can give them comparable quality as other so called premium cars. Baleno is a step in right direction that way. The enthusiast in me would like better engines, but from a business point of view, Baleno will bring the much needed footfalls to the Nexa outlets.

It might also lead to these people (coming in for Baleno) taking note of S Cross. If not direct purchase, there will atleast be some word of mouth publicity for the car.

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by SchumiFan

One starts at 4.99L and the other one at 9.95L. For the price of Punto, you an have two Balenos, almost

They both aren't even in the same category for them to be compared.

I am well aware of the price and segment differentiation, my friend. You obviously didn't catch the irony of that line which I posted.

Originally Posted by PrideRed

Well you are missing a point here. Baleno weighs mere 985 Kilo's which is the best among competition

Notice the "high tensile" part of my post? Again, the irony and sarcasm is missed.


The Baleno will sell - not because it's petrol option is good enough to take on the competition, but because the competition itself has no solid contenders to take it on in the engine specs department.

If the Jazz had come with the 1.5L i-VTEC and we had an Elite i20 powered by the 1.4L Gamma, the Baleno petrol would have had a real tough fight, since it shares it's petrol heart with the Swift. As things stand, both in-segment competitors are heavy cars and don't have engines to match. Naturally, with a "high tensile" and "ultra light, rigid" body, the Baleno will have better power to weight ratios, resulting in better pep, better FE numbers, etc.

An opportunity missed by Honda & Hyundai, and now we have a Maruti offering which can put up a fight to both of their premium hatchback offerings with an equal, if not lesser, engine spec.

But we are talking about the diesel here. If someone test drives the Figo twins and then drives the Baleno diesel, the difference will be very evident. Hence I said that if the Baleno diesel sells more than in-segment offerings which offer better power/torque figures, it will be a travesty. But, knowing the common man and his requirements in a car these days, I won't be surprised if this travesty actually happens in the days to come.

I foresee a decline in Figo/Jazz/i20 sales, and the Baleno with a "get-the-job-done" set of engines surging forward in the monthly sales charts.