Baleno in Belfast

When Suzuki was casting around for a launch venue for its new Baleno supermini, (it goes on sale today in the UK, June 1), the company came up with the refreshingly left field choice of Belfast.

Now, I know as a motoring journalist you’re not supposed to be influenced one way or another about the choice of launch venue. But I must say Belfast in Northern Ireland was something of an eyebrow raiser for me.

How so? Well, Belfast was somewhere I’d never been to before. The home of the ill-fated RMS Titanic, where DeLoreans were once built and a place long associated with the Irish Troubles. My GP, a cheerful Irishman from Cork, told me these days Belfast is a fascinating place. With all that in mind, I was more than a little intrigued as we deplaned at the George Best city airport in Belfast.

Suzuki, as it turned out, was staging the launch out of a big hotel called the Culloden Estate (“shouldn’t we be in Scotland?” quipped one of our party). I’m told rock/jazz legend Van Morrison is frequently to be seen in the Culloden although our paths were not destined to cross on this occasion, alas.

On to the Baleno which lines up as a new B-sector hatchback and a bridge of sorts between Suzuki’s Swift and Vitara SUV.

While the Swift is a small, fun-to-drive hatch, Suzuki has set the Baleno up to be more of a rational mainsteam choice, offering more cabin/boot space than the Swift but in a 3.99 metre package that’s quite some way shorter than the Vitara.

There are two engines: a new 1.0-litre three cylinder Boosterjet turbo, plus a 1.2-litre four cylinder Mild Hybrid. On price, there’s not much difference. The 1.0 Boosterjet starts at £12,999 OTR. The Hybrid is a marginally more onerous £13,499.

On eco numbers, of course the Hybrid’s well ahead: 70.6 mpg and 94/g.km for CO2 versus the 1.0-litre’s 62.7 mpg and 105 g/km.

But on the road, it was the 1.0 Boosterjet that won the popular vote. It has the edge on power (111 ps) and torque (125 Nm) and will officially dispatch 0-62 mph 11.4 secs.

Yet it feels brisker than that. It’s also a very tidy, fluent handler with a compliant ride. Attribute much of that to the Baleno’s new lightweight platform with local UK chassis tuning also factored in. It works. Though offering more technically, the Baleno 1.2 Hybrid is somehow a less distinctive car.

The Baleno interior is simple and nicely done, for its class, with some stylish dash graphics also included. I found my left elbow snagging the small storage box between the seats every time I changed gear, though, so a point back for that.

But taken as a whole, the Baleno is a nicely rounded good-to-drive package with decent kit levels. However the SZ5 edition presented was actually £14,429 on the road, with options, so perhaps not quite the bargain it might first have seemed.

In a busy year for Suzuki GB, this Baleno has now arrived for duty. In October, an all-new S-Cross SUV debuts. Then in early 2017, the productionsed version of Suzuki’s IM-4 concept (which may resurrect the Ignis name) is due. Such a car is already on sale in Japan, as above.

Suzuki is also working on a tiny A-segment 4WD crossover billed as being the first of its type. Again, in Japan, Suzuki has presented several interpretations on this with the fabulously named Hustler being one such candidate.

So, for Suzuki GB, plenty to play for and the Baleno will undoubtedly play its part in boosting the sales action, maybe up to a record 40,000 units for the company this year.

As for Belfast, the fascination is still there. Must go back.