Maruti Suzuki Baleno still has a waiting period of up to 8 months

Maruti Suzuki's premium hatchback continues to grab bookings in the country and the unprecedented success of the model has led to a prolonged waiting period. The Baleno, which was launched in the country in October last year, is giving a tough time to its dealers across the country.

The waiting period of the Baleno, the second model to be offered through Maruti's premium dealership Nexa, currently runs up to 33 weeks, MoneyControl reported. Maruti Suzuki has been trying to bring down the waiting period of the premium hatchback by increasing the production of the model. However, the ramp-up in the production does not appear to have made any major changes in the long waiting period of the Baleno.

Maruti Suzuki Baleno has touched sales of nearly 1 lakh in less than a year and the company still has a huge backlog for the premium hatchback. The company hopes to reduce the waiting period once its new plant in Gujarat becomes operational in early 2017.

Maruti is also expected to launch the new powerful variant of the Baleno, called the Baleno RS, in the Indian market during the festive season this year. The Baleno RS, which made its debut at the Auto Expo 2016, is the first car in India to be powered by the Boosterjet of Suzuki.

The current Baleno rivals Hyundai Elite i20 and Honda Jazz, and is offered in four trims and seven body shades. Under the hood, Maruti Baleno includes a 1.2-litre K-Series petrol engine and a 1.3-litre DDiS diesel engine. While the petrol engine is tuned to develop 83bhp and 115Nm of torque, the diesel mill churns out 74bhp and 190Nm of torque.