Maruti Suzuki has introduced a more fuel-efficient petrol engine with the 2026 Baleno facelift. The earlier 1.2-litre 4-cylinder naturally aspirated mill (K12N) has been replaced by the brand’s 1.2-litre 3-cylinder (Z12E) unit, which also does duty in the Swift and Dzire.
New Maruti Baleno fuel efficiency figures
The Baleno petrol-manual version now returns 1.45kpl more, while the AMT delivers 1.83kpl more. The Baleno CNG sees the biggest improvement, with an increase of 3km/kg.
What’s interesting is that Maruti has achieved these efficiency gains despite the facelift being heavier. The new Baleno petrol-MT’s maximum kerb weight is 985kg, up 30kg from the older petrol-MT. Similarly, the petrol-AMT is now 30kg heavier at 990kg. Meanwhile, the new Baleno CNG-MT, at 1,055kg, weighs 20kg more now.
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New Maruti Baleno powertrain specs
While the K12N engine had four cylinders, the new Z12E mill used in the facelifted hatchback has one cylinder less. It has been tuned to deliver better fuel efficiency, as reflected in the claimed figures. The Z12E engine is also relatively down on peak outputs. Power is lower by 7hp in petrol mode and by 7.5hp in CNG mode. Torque is 1Nm less in petrol mode, but in CNG mode, it has risen by 3.5Nm. Transmission options remain the same.
The new Maruti Baleno is priced from Rs 6.10 lakh, ex-showroom. The carmaker has not announced the full variant-wise pricing at the time of writing.
Dipan Sur
Viraaj Bhatnagar
