Maruti Baleno RS hot hatch launched at Rs 8.69 lakh

Maruti Suzuki is the most successful hatchback seller in India right from the times of the 800. While it has always made nippy hatchbacks, there was never a specific performance variant. That changes now with the Baleno RS.

The Baleno RS takes on the Polo GT TSI in the hot hatch segment and you could argue that it splits the Figo 1.5 and the Abarth Punto with its performance figures. Powering the Baleno RS is a 1-litre 3-cylinder Boosterjet engine making 100.5bhp of power and 150Nm of torque. The Boosterjet engine is a new turbo-petrol engine that is short on one cylinder to the regular Baleno, but courtesy the variable geometry turbocharger, makes 17.bhp and 35Nm more than it.

In addition to the more powerful engine is better stopping power with disc brakes for the rear wheels as well. To make the RS stand out, it gets revised front and rear bumpers with black plastic cladding, a different mesh grille and blackened A-pillars. The black theme continues with the alloy wheels and going by the amount of changes that have been made on the outside, you’d expect something similar inside the car as well. Unfortunately, that is not the case as the interiors are identical to the regular Baleno. The heartening fact however is the presence of a 5-speed manual gearbox in the Baleno and not a automatic, immediately upping its value as a driver’s car. Besides the RS, only the Abarth Punto comes with a manual gearbox, and if it is anything like the regular Baleno, the RS should be an involving car to drive.

We will be driving the car tomorrow at the BIC so stay tuned for a detailed review.