Another Flop Show By Maruti: Made In India Baleno Gets Zero Star In This Crash Test; Will Maruti Do Something Now?

The Suzuki Baleno, which has been made in India, has received a zero rating from the Latin NCAP.

The car is a premium hatchback, and was crash-tested by the New Car Assessment Programme for Latin America or the Latin NCAP.

This is not the first car to receive such disappointing rates. Maruti Suzuki’s Swift has been awarded a big fat zero by the Latin New Car Assessment Programme or Latin NCAP. The car was crash-tested by the automobile safety assessment programme.

Latin NCAP Awards Suzuki Baleno Zero Rating 

The Suzuki Baleno has been manufactured at Suzuki Motor Gujarat manufacturing facility, in Ahmedabad.

The Suzuki Baleno comes with two airbags as standard but has scored 20.03 per cent for adult occupant protection and 17.06 per cent for child occupant safety. Also, the car has scored a good 64.06 per cent for pedestrian protection and vulnerable road users. The car’s scores have declines in safety assist features, where it scored 6.98 per cent.

As per Alejandro Furas, Secretary General of Latin NCAP, “Baleno’s zero-star is part of an ongoing disappointment, after the Swift’s zero-star rating some weeks ago. With specially poor safety performance in adult and child occupant protection on offer from Suzuki as standard to Latin American consumers.”

As per reports, the Baleno was tested for frontal impact and side-impact, whiplash and pedestrian protection. The car showed stable structure performance during the Frontal impact test. The side impact shows high intrusion in the door with poor protection to the chest of the adult occupant.

Tests Conducted On Suzuki Baleno By Latin NCAP

A Whiplash test was also conducted, which showed marginal neck protection, but the main reason for the zero safety rating was because of poor side impact protection, and marginal whiplash protection. 

As per Latin NCAP, there is no standard side body and head protection airbags, lack of standard Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and the decision of Suzuki to not recommend Child Restraint Systems (CRS) were the reasons why the car’s performance is so poor.

He also said, “Basic vehicle safety, which is taken for granted in mature markets, is a right that Latin American consumers should claim without having to pay extra for them.”

The Baleno sold in Europe comes with 6 airbags and ESC as standard, whereas the model in Latin America does not.