[aseem]

Rahul, I am glad your Baleno is handling well on stock tyres. I was not relying on your experience or reading your thread to say that the handling of Baleno on stock tyres is risky. I am sure that you realize that you are not the only one who has driven a Baleno. I drove to shimla on Baleno with stock rubber, and found the cornering was risky. I dont see a logic where a C segment car, with tyres that barely fit a Santro, is being given kudos on handling on stock tyres. I think Maruti is taking cost cutting to the extent where they are playing with peoples lives. Its outright dangerous to have a car like Baleno, drive on the rubber that comes with Lxi. Whats the point in saving the money on stock tyres, and later giving discounts, to show that the car is cheap??? Its my opinion and I am entitled to it. I used to recommend Baleno, for its FE, Engine, and performance, which are still class leading, however the car is getting dated by the day. If I was to make a purchase decision NOW, I will not consider a Baleno. Thats the intent of creating this poll, which car will we buy NOW, not which car is better, caz thats a no brainer. However I see people are becoming emotional overcharged and we are missing the point. Just like Zen was a beautiful car, nothing was wrong with it, it had great FE, handling, and performance, but Maruti discontinued it, as compared to Santro, WagonR etc. the car was getting dated. Thats the point I want to bring home here, that Baleno is past its prime.

[jango]

BALENO Period. for me, i somehow hate the rear of he Fiesta.. Sad it looks

[amit]

Just wondering what the results would be if one of the cars was a Honda Fiesta.

[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by devarshi84

baleno is not as reliable as fiesta
baleno interiors are not as good as fiesta
baleno doesnt look as good as the fiesta
baleno doesnta handle as well as the fiesta
baleno doesnt ride as well as fiesta
baleno is too old while Fiesta has just been launched
both are equally powerful

Baleno is justa bit more fun to drive than fiesta(lost ikon character)
Baleno has maruti backing against the not so bad fiesta

Now these are my personal opinions and I dont find a reason I should vote for baleno.

Fiesta is smaller than Baleno
Fiesta is less fuel efficient than Baleno
Fiesta has a slower pickup than Baleno
Fiesta has lesser shoulder room compared to Baleno
Fiesta has got horrible front seats when compared to Baleno
Fiesta has a bumpier ride compared to Baleno
Fiesta is perceived to be more unreliable compared to Baleno
Ford has a bad service support compared to Maruti
Fiesta has no Climate Control which Baleno has (correct me if I am worng about Fiesta here)
Fiesta has no electrically adjustible mirrors that Baleno has even in Lxi.
Fieasa is more expensive than a comparable Baleno model
Ford might go into chapter 11 one day bt no such thing for suzuki who are reporting record profits..
Fiesta is sold by small B (afte of course charging a huge fee) while the current owners sell Baleno to others..you decide which opinion is worthwhile
f

tell me why should I buy the fiesta compared to Baleno... a Hyundai or a Honda would be a more valid question (and I chose the Baleno over these too too)...but compared to a Ford???? maybe not the right comparison!!!

PS : After talking so much...I must admit that I have always liked to drive Chevy Impalas and Ford Taurases over Toyoto Camries in the US cause of the "solid feel" they provide (after all..rental cars so who cares abt resale and mileage??)

[Buffetfan]

Originally Posted by aseem

Rahul, I am glad your Baleno is handling well on stock tyres. I was not relying on your experience or reading your thread to say that the handling of Baleno on stock tyres is risky. I am sure that you realize that you are not the only one who has driven a Baleno. I drove to shimla on Baleno with stock rubber, and found the cornering was risky. I dont see a logic where a C segment car, with tyres that barely fit a Santro, is being given kudos on handling on stock tyres. .

Aseem...we all know that the tyre upgrade is only about Rs 7k for an Lxi owner...so big deal there...I thot this poll was
1. Between Baleno Vxi and Ford 1.6 top > 185/65 R14 Tyres on Baleno better than the 175/65 R 14 on Ford
2.Between Baleno Lxi and ford 1.6 base...? 165/80 R 13 vs 175/65 R 14...ford is better but not buy a huge margin...

[sivadas]

Originally Posted by amit

Just wondering what the results would be if one of the cars was a Honda Fiesta.

Good one Amit. Many of these guys supporting Baleno would have been ridiculing it instead.

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by amit

Just wondering what the results would be if one of the cars was a Honda Fiesta.

then certainly the results would have been different. I would love to see what people decide.

My vote is still sticking to Fiesta.

[goldie_malhotra]

Originally Posted by amit

Just wondering what the results would be if one of the cars was a Honda Fiesta.

then it would definitely lose out in the pricing front ...

though, there have been several debates over here on the honda vtec vs the baleno as well ...

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by devarshi84

I am still logical my friend read the words that say its my personal opinion.

We are surely allowed to put down our personal opinion. But then along with that comes the responsibility of making sure that they are atleast to a certain extent in-sync with the facts. I am sorry, but I do not find it to be the case in that post of yours. More so, when we list/compare the attributes of two cars that we don't own/drive, we should be more careful, as some careless comment could send a wrong message to others. I was with you when you said it is ugly, I accepted when you said it is dated. But when you say, it is not reliable, I can see that you are talking through your hat.

Originally Posted by devarshi84

Baleno has always been known to be the most fragile car. you can check the various articles on this. I am not saying your car is bad in any ways. I am just saying this on the basis of all the articles and reviews.

Last year, before I bought the Baleno, I did a lot of search for Baleno-related articles on tbhp and I do not remember the word "fragile" being tagged to a Baleno. The words that frequently were used with the Baleno were "ugly", "dated", "great performance" etc. Would be helpful if you could point me to the link that says Baleno is fragile.

Originally Posted by devarshi84

well most have concurred its the worst looking car along with corolla and NHC. Fiesta certainly is not among the three.

"Most" have not agreed to this "3 ugly cars" theory. It was only Aditya who mentioned it. And BTW, while Baleno owners agree that the car could have been designed better looking, they do not really worry their heads out due to the bad rear - the road presence and stance more than compensate for the looks. And the Fiesta in any sense of the word cannot be called a ramp scorcher. If we really put all the cars available in India today to a strict and impartial good-looks test, I do not think more than 3-4 cars will qualify to be called good-looking.

Originally Posted by devarshi84

handlingwise take a test drive of the car at highspeeds. judge handling and cornering abilities of both the fiesta and baleno.

I have not driven a Fiesta. I think mclaren1885 has clarified this point beautifully. He has driven the Lxi with stock tyres on the track and finds it good. Ofcourse, a little more rubber might be welcome, but then at the same time, it is not like the current rubber leaves the car unstable.

Originally Posted by devarshi84

My opinions are based on that and what others majorly say.

Well, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. If the majority felt like you do about the Baleno, then we would not be seeing the kind of voting results that we see on this thread, with 56 people of 99 saying that "Today, given a choice of Baleno or Fiesta, they would go for a Baleno".

[yogi1771]

Originally Posted by Buffetfan

Fiesta is smaller than Baleno
Fiesta is less fuel efficient than Baleno
Fiesta has a slower pickup than Baleno
Fiesta has lesser shoulder room compared to Baleno
Fiesta has got horrible front seats when compared to Baleno
Fiesta has a bumpier ride compared to Baleno
Fiesta is perceived to be more unreliable compared to Baleno
Ford has a bad service support compared to Maruti
Fiesta has no Climate Control which Baleno has (correct me if I am worng about Fiesta here)
Fiesta has no electrically adjustible mirrors that Baleno has even in Lxi.
Fieasa is more expensive than a comparable Baleno model
Ford might go into chapter 11 one day bt no such thing for suzuki who are reporting record profits..
Fiesta is sold by small B (afte of course charging a huge fee) while the current owners sell Baleno to others..you decide which opinion is worthwhile
f

tell me why should I buy the fiesta compared to Baleno... a Hyundai or a Honda would be a more valid question (and I chose the Baleno over these too too)...but compared to a Ford???? maybe not the right comparison!!!

PS : After talking so much...I must admit that I have always liked to drive Chevy Impalas and Ford Taurases over Toyoto Camries in the US cause of the "solid feel" they provide (after all..rental cars so who cares abt resale and mileage??)

let me correct u over here baleno lxi doesnt have climate control i think so and fiesta does have electrically operated rear view mirrors

[prince85]

But atleast the baleno vxi has climate control. As far as i know none of the fiestas irrespective of the models have it(correct me if i am wrong). And with or without climate control, the balenos a/c is far far superior than that of a fiesta

[devarshi84]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

We are surely allowed to put down our personal opinion. But then along with that comes the responsibility of making sure that they are atleast to a certain extent in-sync with the facts. I am sorry, but I do not find it to be the case in that post of yours. More so, when we list/compare the attributes of two cars that we don't own/drive, we should be more careful, as some careless comment could send a wrong message to others. I was with you when you said it is ugly, I accepted when you said it is dated. But when you say, it is not reliable, I can see that you are talking through your hat.


Last year, before I bought the Baleno, I did a lot of search for Baleno-related articles on tbhp and I do not remember the word "fragile" being tagged to a Baleno. The words that frequently were used with the Baleno were "ugly", "dated", "great performance" etc. Would be helpful if you could point me to the link that says Baleno is fragile.


"Most" have not agreed to this "3 ugly cars" theory. It was only Aditya who mentioned it. And BTW, while Baleno owners agree that the car could have been designed better looking, they do not really worry their heads out due to the bad rear - the road presence and stance more than compensate for the looks. And the Fiesta in any sense of the word cannot be called a ramp scorcher. If we really put all the cars available in India today to a strict and impartial good-looks test, I do not think more than 3-4 cars will qualify to be called good-looking.


I have not driven a Fiesta. I think mclaren1885 has clarified this point beautifully. He has driven the Lxi with stock tyres on the track and finds it good. Ofcourse, a little more rubber might be welcome, but then at the same time, it is not like the current rubber leaves the car unstable.


Well, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. If the majority felt like you do about the Baleno, then we would not be seeing the kind of voting results that we see on this thread, with 56 people of 99 saying that "Today, given a choice of Baleno or Fiesta, they would go for a Baleno".

I suppose my usage of extreme words is the culprit. By fragile I never meant unrealible. It is reliable especially with maruti backing. By fragile I mean risky under crash tests.

again I agree the three car theory doesnt apply to all. Many like the NHC very much and hence its a subjective factor. and yes ford fiesta is not a ramp scorcher. but as I said its always the fight of margins.

same goes for handling. While cars are competing in the same segment only a margin differentiates the cars. Baleno's handling is by no means bad. What I mean here is that Fiesta's handling is good.

[Boom Shiva]

I think only the Fiesta top end variant has electric mirrors. I test drove the base model and got really put off by the manual mirrors. Thought it was pretty cheap of Ford. Agreed the Baleno is very crude and lacks class, but at least Maruti makes no bones about it being a VFM car and not a style statement.

Baleno LXi doesn't have climate control, but the A/C is seriously in a league far ahead of anything in its class. That was one of the things I really liked about the car.

Between the two, I found the Baleno sharper and more responsive. It has a lower CG, which is a pain on speedbreakers, but lovely around corners. Fiesta was more refined and overall much better to look at when you're sitting inside, but the lack of "josh" is apparent when you floor the throttle. What really clinched it for me was my girlfriend. She was sitting in the back when I was redlining the Fiesta 1.6, and she leans forward and asks, "So are you flooring it?" No such questions with the Baleno, though she did crib about the seats.

The Baleno is peppier and far more drivable in city traffic. The Fiesta's power only comes much later in the revband, which makes it a little painful when you're trying to pull away at a signal. Having to rev the car also means it consumes way more fuel to reach the same power levels as a Baleno. So even though the Baleno is much older, it is far more efficient.

About the looks...call me old fashioned or whatever, but I like a car to be long, low and muscular. These tall-boy designs really put me off. Which is why even though the Baleno isn't a great looker, I prefer its overall shape to the stubbiness of the Fiesta.

Devarshi, I don't know where you got the idea that Baleno is unreliable dude. It's a Maruti Suzuki, and it's been around for donkeys years. I'd probably pick it as the most reliable car in the segment in terms of spares, service, and overall maintenance. You can't go wrong with a Maruti (Except with the Gypsy King, the fools really gave me and my jeep a hard time).

No point saying Honda Fiesta and basing statements on that. Lots more people would be singing differently if it was a Honda Baleno also I'm sure. But that's just wishful thinking. The Fiesta is a Ford, and people are entitled to base their judgements on their perception of the company. If Ford is looked at in a bad light, they have no one to blame but themselves. I had a Ford Escort for 5 years and I found the *** pretty painful myself.

Damn I can type fast...

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by sivadas

Many of these guys supporting Baleno would have been ridiculing it instead.

Not really. From experience, I am a hardcore Suzuki fan. And by perception (never owned one), I admire Honda. However, while making a decision between two cars, we would definitely look at lot of attributes instead of just going for a brand name.
Since there is nothing called the Honda Fiesta, let's assume the poll was :
Which would you buy now ? : Baleno or NHC

It is not like all the guys who chose the Baleno over Fiesta, would just go for the NHC, just because it is a Honda. I am sure that almost all the guys who recently bought Baleno (atleast the Vxi buyers) would have had a look at the NHC also before deciding on the Baleno. I also had NHC in mind and the looks was what put me off - I did not mind the loss in power, because at 35, boy-racing no longer excites me and usage is more city than highways. The claimed high FE of NHC did interest me, but there were conflicting reports about it and finally decided that there was no point in paying 1.5L more for maybe 1-2kmpl more.

However, if there was an OHC Vtec available new today, quite a few Baleno fans would have plumped for it. Hell, even if a OHC1.5 were available new today, I would have taken it.

A little , but just so that it is clear where Baleno and the guys who go for it stand.

[mclaren1885]

Originally Posted by sivadas

Many of these guys supporting Baleno would have been ridiculing it instead.

Trust me i put my words where my mouth is !!!! I would still buy the baleno even if it was made by honda , hyundai , mitsu or fiat for that matter .. Or if the fiesta was indeed branded by honda or the others would still prefer the maruti baleno over it .. Its just a matter of time before u start loving a baleno wrt to its torque , revv happy engine and the looks tend to grow on u with time ..

I used to advocate other members to buy a baleno after driving v1p3r's , today i went up ahead and bought one just to clarify my suggestion .. How many here who advocate the fiesta might actually go onto buying one if the need does arises .. Trust me , when it comes to actually buying process things change by quite a lot ..

Boom , nice post ..