The Fiat sourced 1.3 liter Multijet engine, used by Maruti Suzuki across its popular model range in fixed and variable geometry turbine variants has been doing a fantastic job for the company in India. The leading carmaker in India, however, is working hard on building its own diesel engines. The plan is not to replace the 1.3 litre unit completely, but to complement it with engines both above and below its range.
While an 800cc three-pot diesel unit has already been developed by Maruti Suzuki, and will soon be seen in the company’s small cars including the Celerio and the Alto, a bigger, 1.5 liter diesel engine is what the company is looking at for the longer term. For the European market, this engine will have a 1.6 liter variant. This makes sense as diesel engines below 1.5 liter enjoy an excise duty cut in India. For European markets, a bigger engine will offer better performance.
New engines from Honda and Nissan-Renault are creating new benchmarks in the segment
The new engine will most likely be offered with the new generation Ertiga, as well as the facelifted version of the Ciaz, few yearsdown the line. Even the upcoming compact SUV from Maruti Suzuki is expected to be powered by this new engine.
While the prices of diesel in India have been going up consistently for the past year, and are now only marginally short of coming at par with petrol, the demand for diesel vehicles is expected to stay strong. While the petrol powered cars are cheaper to own, diesel variants deliver better fuel efficiency and offer an advantage to those who clock a high mileage.
Also, the fuel efficiency and power figures delivered by the 1.3 litre Multijet engines are not the benchmarks for the class anymore. New diesel engines from Nissan-Renault, Hyundai and Honda have outclassed the 1.3 liter engine in almost all the areas. It’s important that Maruti Suzuki develops a new engine that meets or surpasses the new benchmarks.
With the grasp of the international carmakers getting increasingly tighter on the mainstream Indian car segments, it’s becoming more and more difficult for Maruti Suzuki to retain its lead. In such a scenario, it’s important for the carmaker to come up with models powered by its own diesel engines, offering more variety while also being more cost effective.
We’ll keep you posted as more news about the new Maruti Suzuki diesel engines filters in. Stay tuned, and do let us know your thoughts and opinions about the subject in the meantime.