‘Made in India’ Maruti Baleno to ply on international roads soon

Maruti Suzuki is going to turn India into its global manufacturing hub for its upcoming premium compact car ‘Baleno’, which will debut in India on October 26.

Suzuki, which has 56% stake in Maruti, will start exporting its upcoming ‘Baleno’ to over 100 countries, including Italy, France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, etc.

This is Maruti Suzuki's first attempt in the premium compact segment and will make a. Baleno was unveiled at Frankfurt Motor Show in September and will compete with Hyundai's Elite i20 and Honda's Jazz, among others.

Baleno will have a 1.2litre petrol engine (manual and automatic variants) and 1.3-litre diesel engine.

"Baleno has been developed for the global markets and India will be the exclusive manufacturing hub for the car," R S Kalsi, executive director (marketing and sales) at Maruti Suzuki, told TOI here.

This will be a big achievement for the company and workers at Manesar factory said that it was a proud moment for them as a vehicle made at Indian facility will be sold in Japan.

After S-Cross, Baleno will be the second car to be sold through Maruti's premium retail network 'Nexa'.

(Image: Indiatimes)