Suzuki Baleno voted as Irish 'Small Car of the Year' for 2017

The Suzuki Baleno was announced as a category winner following an intensive test programme whereby 33 of Ireland's leading motoring writers assembled to vote for the best new cars on the market. The voting jurors spent the last 12 months evaluating a total of 42 new models and voted in a number of different categories.

Each juror has 25 points to allocate in each category, with no car receiving more than 15 points. The votes were then collated and the car with the maximum points was deemed a category winner. The jurors also then re-evaluated all cars last week as a reminder prior to final voting.

The Baleno is available with Suzuki's highly acclaimed 1.0-litre three-cylinder Boosterjet turbocharged engine offering CO₂ emissions of 105g/km and consumes just 22km/L on the EC combined fuel consumption cycle. It was also Suzuki's first car to be available with Smart Hybrid Vehicle technology by Suzuki and is equipped with a lithium-ion battery and Integrated Start Generator to enable CO₂ emissions of just 94g/km.