Maruti Suzuki Baleno is the best-seller in its segment and still doing great numbers without a diesel engine. Since the BS6 norms came in, MSIL stopped selling diesel cars altogether and shifted to the petrol-only lineup. Today, we share the in-depth user review of the 2017 Maruti Suzuki Baleno diesel and it has clocked over 83,000 km on the ODO. So has it held itself well and are there any problems, we tell you everything in this user review of 2017 Maruti Suzuki Baleno.
The car is owned by Mr Atul Saraswat and being in the sales department of an MNC, inter-state commutes are done very frequently. Thanks to that, the car has clocked over 83,000 km in less than three years - that's much more than the standard distance indicated by the OEMs. Moreover, we all know that India doesn't have consistent roads and this car has been driven on every kind of terrain throughout the ownership.
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The engine of the car is still going strong and nothing can go wrong with the national engine of India if driven sanely! Till date, there are no parts or running mechanicals like the clutch plate or timing chain which got changed. The performance is intact and the car easily returns between 18-22 km/l depending on the road conditions and driving style. Surprisingly, even the tyres are changed near the 80,000 km mark and all the services are done at Nexa outlets only. Talking about service costs, the yearly service cost comes at an average of Rs 8,000-10,000.
Over time, the suspension has started to make some noises over sharp bumps and some rattles do sound evident over harsh road conditions. Rest of the car feels like new and the turbo lag is well contained too. Moreover, the popular turbo lag of the DDIS 1.3 is seemed to fade away by some margin over time. In-city drivability is good and both the gearshifts and clutch are smooth too.
The only problem with the Baleno diesel is the steering which is numb and lacks the centre-steer. The steering doesn't come to the centre position itself and the torque steer is very noticeable on the wheel too. Other than that, the car is going strong and churns km effortlessly. If you are getting a good deal on a pre-owned Baleno diesel, you must consider it given the amazing parts and service availability of the DDIS 1.3 engine and bulletproof reliability.
