[vishy76]

Maruti Dzire

What you'll like:

• A great looking Dzire…and an all-rounder too
• Smart packaging! Spacious, stylish & practical cabin. Boot has grown to 378 litres
• Sweet petrol & efficient diesel. AMT available with both engines for just 47k extra
• Suspension offers a compliant ride & neutral on-road behaviour
• Impressively equipped (LED headlamps + DRLs, reversing camera, Apple & Android touchscreen ICE…)
• Dual airbags, ABS & ISOFIX child seat mounts are standard across all variants
• Maruti's widespread service network, excellent after-sales support & fuss-free ownership experiences

What you won't:

• “Z” trims are pricey. The top-end diesels & automatics cost a million bucks!
• Old 1.3L diesel is nowhere as competent as the Ford & VW 1.5L diesels
• AMT, although improved, can’t match conventional ATs on smoothness & speed. Still gets jerky
• You can buy proper ATs (e.g. torque-converter or DCT) for the same $$$ as the Dzire AMT
• 163 mm of ground clearance & small 37-liter fuel tank do raise concerns
• Some misses (auto-dimming IRVM, skinny 165 mm tyres on L & V variants, smaller spare tyre on the Z trims...)
• Waiting periods have already begun. They currently stretch up to 3 months

Maruti Baleno

What you'll like:

• A well-priced, smart looking hatchback
• User-friendly cabin with loads of space! Can easily seat 5 tall adults
• Accommodating 339 liter boot. The 2nd biggest among hatchbacks (after the Jazz)
• Peppy petrol, efficient diesel & smooth automatic - take your pick
• Comfortable ride quality matched to neutral handling
• Dual Airbags & ABS with EBD are standard across all variants!
• Maruti's excellent after-sales service & fuss-free ownership experience
• Loaded with features such as UV-cut glass, projector headlamps + DRLs, reversing camera, Apple CarPlay, navigation, electrically-foldable ORVMs and more

What you won't:

• Ordinary interior quality is Swift-like. Several budget grade parts in here
• Rear seat headroom & under-thigh support are limited for tall passengers
• Light build quality (weighs merely 865 kilos). Lacks the solidity of its rivals
• CVT suffers from rubber-band effect on the highway
• More substantial & premium Elite i20 is priced only Rs. 17,000 - 37,000 above
• Waiting period running over 4 months for some variants / cities
• Sold exclusively through Nexa outlets. Limits the reach of the car

Personal Take

If given the choice, I would definitely pick the Dzire. Simple reasons for the same would be:

- Availability of an automatic on the fully loaded Z trims

- The 2017 Dzire looks much better than its predecessor. This is the most prominent factor for me, although it is a subjective topic

- AMT+Diesel combo is available. Not there on the Baleno

- Both cars are more or less on par when it comes to features as well now, unlike it was before

Do chip in with your comments and why you chose what you did.

Regards,
Vishy

[Added_flavor]

I'd choose the Baleno over Dzire for the below reasons.

1. Baleno is about 10mm wider than the Dzire. That gives the 3rd adult in the rear bench that extra bit of comfort.

2. Dzire has about 40 litres of extra boot space over Baleno, but the rear seats can't be folded. That gives more cargo flexibility on the Baleno.

3. The Baleno is a little more fun for those occasional enthusiastic sprints due to lighter weight and broader tyres (195).

4. The 7mm lesser GC on the Dzire is a small concern, although real world reports might prove otherwise.

5. Personally, I prefer the all black interiors to beige. Feels more classy.

6. Again, personally, I prefer the classy, decisive, premium hatch design to the wanna-be sedan design. No offense to (potential) owners.

[AkMar]

I vote for the Baleno. I would consider petrol cars only, hence my views are from that point of view.

1. Black interiors look much better than Dzire
2. Better automatic box CVT vs AMT.
3. Flexibility of cargo space - folding seats + hatchbacks always have an advantage due to height, which is a limiting factor in Sedans.
4. Baleno looks more premium from outside
5. Variant to variant, I feel Baleno is more VFM (rear wash/wipe, ACC in Delta, UV cut glasses in Zeta and Alpha)
6. Lower variants also get better tyres.
7. Instrument cluster is better in the Baleno. In Dzire the speedo dial is poorly designed. Realistic speeds (0-100) take up very little space which I didn't like. Also, Baleno has better MID + analog fuel and temperature gauges.

Personally I don't mind unavailability of AT in alpha. Zeta will be more than sufficient for me

[kvish]

I prefer the Baleno anyday.

1. AMT!: I cannot see why anyone would buy an AMT for close to 10L. I just hate the jerkiness. Its fine if you are in the 5L bracket. But for close to a million bucks, the drive better be smooth. AMT makes you feel like a bad driver AMT experience also gets worse over time.
2. Maintainable black interiors. Almost all media drive cars looked so dirty with the beige carpets.
3. Interiors look more suttle on the Baleno.

[ani_meher]

i hope people who vote would have driven both cars and not just base their opinions on desk. I drove both, with slight bias to Baleno, and surprisingly ended up taking Dzire's side. Here's my impressions in case anyone is interested.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...ml#post4223506

[aryayush]

Originally Posted by ani_meher

I drove both, with slight bias to Baleno, and surprisingly ended up taking Dzire's side.

I had the exact same experience as you, except that I went in with a slight bias in favour of DZire because of the much better looks (IMHO) and the presence of a fully loaded automatic trim.

The AMT gearbox is far more involving and responsive than the CVT, and I would happily trade the slightly more refined nature of the latter for the more drivable characteristic of the former. In fact, if you drive the AMT equipped DZire in manual mode, you get all the advantages of both automatic and manual gearboxes with none of the negatives of either. I don't understand why people automatically assume that CVT gearboxes are better; I would happily pay more for cars with AMT.

Plus, you can get a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, navigation and voice commands (that actually work offline), automatic LED projector headlamps (with lead-me-to-vehicle and follow-me-home functions) and DRLs, reverse parking cam and better alloy wheels with the better automatic gearbox on the DZire, which you cannot on the Baleno.

For all of these reasons, I prefer the DZire over the Baleno, and the '+' variant of the DZire over the ZXi/ZDi variants. I think the ₹1 lac premium is easily justified by the touchscreen itself, leave aside all the other significantly useful additions.

[deetjohn]

Between the two, its Baleno all the way! A no brainer for me.

The main ones:

1) Baleno looks great in person. Dzire though much improved with this new generation is still not a good design when you get up close. It got all the quirks of a compact sedan and doesn't look as modern or complete as the Baleno.
2) Baleno is more spacious inside the cabin - got more width and wheelbase. And when I pay for a car, I absolutely prefer more space for my family than for the luggage. Pack a little light, but be more comfortable inside the car.
3) Black interiors, UV cut glass, steering wheel with both reach and rake adjust, height adjustable front seat belts, raised dead pedal etc. makes Baleno a better car to be in.

[findviru]

I voted for Baleno.
1.It looks better than Dzire in my view and comes as fresh design. Though looks is subjective topic.
2. I can compromise for boot space but not cabin space. Baleno offers more space in the rear seat.
3. Baleno offers CVT for automatic transmission as compared to AMT in Dzire.

[DCEite]

Non-availability of CVT in top trip of Baleno is a deal breaker for me. So DZire ZXi+ AMT it is!

[extreme_torque]

Baleno for me. Size wise they are the same but the hatch is a hell lot more proportionate even though Dzire has taken the game forward in terms of style.

[SoumenD]

For me Baleno hands down when compared to Dzire for following reasons:

1. Personally I still can't digest the fact that this segment exists. I would anyday prefer bigger hatches like Elite i20/Baleno/Jazz which look proportionate than boot-jobs given to smaller hatches like swift/grand-i10 which end up looking funny. On top of that the chrome overdose at the front and the faux wooden touches look too wannabe

2. Even if its about the extra boot-space Baleno isnt too far from Dzire plus it has 60:40 split rear seat for those occasional requirements.

3. Baleno has better space inside (longer wheelbase and is wider).


P.S: For automatic variant CVT availability in Baleno automatically makes it more desirable , though I would no get too judgmental here as reviews from fellow BHPians are pretty positive on the Dzire AMT as well. A test drive is definitely on cards.

PPS: No offence meant to owners/prospective-owners. These are just my personal view.

[aryayush]

Originally Posted by SoumenD

3. Baleno has better space inside (longer wheelbase and is wider).

It is wider by a centimetre, which is less than half an inch, and I see at least two people who count it as a positive. It does not count as being wider.

Originally Posted by SoumenD

PPS: No offence meant to owners/prospective-owners. These are just my personal view.

Sorry for veering slightly off-topic but I see this line appear quite a lot on Team-BHP. Are we such a bunch of sissies that we constantly need the reassurance that strangers on the Internet do not intend to offend us about our choice of cars? I mean, of course it is your opinion—what else would it be? This phrase should be retired, methinks.

Let us get back to our regularly scheduled programming now. I’m firmly on team DZire. I don’t even like the Swift-esque appearance of the Baleno from the front, though it is a handsome looking thing from the back.

[amvj]

I voted for the Baleno.

Even though the looks are improved in the new Dzire. I still find it ugly. Thick chrome plate in the radiator grill appears like a fish with lipstick. Also I find all sub 4 meter sedans looks bit odd that includes the Tigor as well.

This does not mean the Baleno is a very beautiful one. Compared to the Dzire, Baleno is much better. I think both these cars will age very quickly.

Also when you are buying a sub 4 meter sedan what you are indirectly telling the world is, "I cannot afford a proper sedan and hence bought this half baked ones".

[SoumenD]

Originally Posted by aryayush

It is wider by a centimetre, which is less than half an inch, and I see at least two people who count it as a positive. It does not count as being wider.

And you missed the 70mm more wheelbase? Anyways its not just the on paper number that matters. Space utilization on the inside does as well. Honda jazz is a good 51mm lesser wide than baleno but is it felt inside? Get the drift?

Though am yet to sit in the new Dzire, Baleno was good enough for 3 at rear. Coincidentally Aditya reviewed both the cars and hence quoting him here.

Dzire official review:

Originally Posted by Aditya

Just like at the front, the rear seat is wider than the outgoing car's. Still, its not a sedan in which you can have 3 healthy adults on the back seat. The seatbase is raised in the middle where the third passenger sits. This means he has lesser headroom than the side occupants:

And this from Baleno Review:

Originally Posted by Aditya

Rear bench is wide enough for 3 occupants. Big headrests are adjustable. No center armrest provided however. Seat is flat with no contours to speak of:

Originally Posted by aryayush

Sorry for veering slightly off-topic but I see this line appear quite a lot on Team-BHP. Are we such a bunch of sissies that we constantly need the reassurance that strangers on the Internet do not intend to offend us about our choice of cars? I mean, of course it is your opinion—what else would it be? This phrase should be retired, methinks.

Well, lately the country's atmosphere is such that taking offence at anything and everything has become fashion. Hence the disclaimer.

Originally Posted by aryayush

...I’m firmly on team DZire.I don’t even like the Swift-esque appearance of the Baleno from the front
...

And where did this team-dzire, team-baleno come from? This is exactly what I wanted to avoid. I am on Team-BHP only. Peace & Cheers!!!

[hiren.mistry]

This is such a relevant thread for me. I am looking to get a car within the 10L OTR and both of these are in in my radar. I've test driven the Baleno CVT and was blown away by the space management.
I am yet to see the new Dzire but I am leaning towards the Baleno, but in the RS guise.

Cheers