Time waits for no man, or so they say. It feels like just yesterday that the Suzuki Baleno broke ground locally and was offered to the South African public. That launch actually took place over 4 years ago. Since then, the Baleno has carved a niche for itself in the local motoring landscape and cemented itself as a trustworthy and friendly motoring companion.
Suzuki elected to facelift the Baleno with the updated model hitting showrooms in October 2019. This update brought with it several cosmetic and feature enhancements, making the Baleno even more likeable.
Related: All-new Suzuki Baleno arrives!
Here are the differences between a new Suzuki Baleno and a used, pre-facelift model. The list below highlights the changes to the new Suzuki Baleno.
Exterior
1. Enhanced chrome detailing
The updated Baleno gets a larger, three-dimensional chrome trimming that surrounds the grille and flows upwards into the headlights.
2. New Grille
The grille on the 2020 Baleno has a new design that incorporates trapezoidal leaves, rather than individual bars. The grille shape also features a deeper V-shape, taking up a larger percentage of the frontal area.
3. New bumper
The from bumper has been redesigned to include the new grille design and the lower air dam sees the removal of the fog lamps. The fog lamps now rest in the outer crevices of the bumper, in new, black plastic housings.
4. Headlights
The headlights of the range-topping GLX model have been changed from HID projector units to LED items, improving longevity and light emission.
5. Wheels
While no one would blame the first Baleno for having boring wheels, the updated GLX model gets a new set of wheels with a fresh new design and a diamond-cut finish.
6. Colours
The Baleno colour palette consists of six colours. New for the 2020 model year is a striking Magma Grey Metallic finish that is sure to be a hit.
Interior
7. Interior trim
The interior of the Baleno remains largely unchanged in terms of physical design but there is a new two-tone colour scheme that has been applied. Both the seats and door cards receive an energetic blue insert to liven up the cabin.
8. Infotainment
One of the attractions of the Suzuki Baleno when it launched, was the inclusion of a touchscreen infotainment system in the GX models. When the time rolled around to update the Baleno, there was no other option but to fit the latest SLDA 7-inch touchscreen that includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
Aftersales
The Suzuki Baleno is sold with a 5-year / 200 000 km warranty and a 4-year / 60 000 km service plan. As the vehicle was launched in 2016, there will still be manufacturer cover for at least one more year. Some models will have exceeded their service plan coverage and those with higher mileage will also be out of service plan, but still covered by at least one year's warranty (as of July 2020)
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