New Delhi: Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) has ruled out coming back to the diesel segment as it believes sales of such vehicles will further decline with the introduction of the next phase of emission norms in 2023, according to a senior company official.
The country’s largest carmaker believes that the next phase of emission norms will push up the cost of diesel vehicles, further impacting their sales in the market, which has seen a gradual shift towards petrol cars over the past few years. has gone.
“We are not going into the diesel sector. We had earlier indicated that we will study it and if there is a demand from the customers, we can go back. But going forward, we will not be participating in the diesel sector,” said MSI Chief Technical Officer CV Raman said in a conversation with PTI-Bhasha.
He cited the upcoming stricter emission norms as the primary reason to avoid diesel-powered cars.
“There will be a new phase of emission norms in 2023 which is likely to increase the cost. So we believe that the diesel percentage may come down further. We are not aware of the competition but we as MSI have any intention to participate in it. No. Diesel space,” Raman said.
According to industry estimates, diesel vehicles currently account for less than 17 per cent of total passenger vehicle (PV) sales. This is a sharp decrease compared to 2013-14 when diesel cars accounted for 60 per cent of the total sales.
With the introduction of BS-VI emission regime from April 1, 2020, already several automakers in the country have canceled the diesel trims of their respective portfolios.
MSI had discontinued the diesel model from its portfolio with a tough start BS-VI emission norms,
The company’s entire model range is currently powered by BS-VI compliant 1L, 1.2L and 1.5L gasoline engines. It also offers CNG trim in seven of its models.
Raman said the company will focus on improving its existing petrol powertrains in terms of fuel efficiency and may also look at a new family of engines to strengthen its product portfolio going forward.
“We have said that we will improve on our existing powertrain which is already happening. The new K10-C engine in the Celerio is an improvement. Similarly, there has been some change in the 1.2 liter engine. So from the fuel efficiency point of view, we Will improve its internal combustion engine technology,” he said.
According to the company, the all-new variant of the recently introduced Celerio delivers a fuel efficiency of 26.68 kmpl, which it claims is the highest for any petrol-powered car in India.
Raman said the company will also enhance the electrification aspects like start-stop technology in its cars.
“We already have mild hybrid technology at the high end. Also, we are promoting more CNG due to lower running cost. Seven out of 15 models already have CNG trim. In future, more brands Technology will come along,” he added.
Raman added that there will be hybrid technology and electric vehicles (EVs) ahead, so there is going to be a lot of change from the powertrain perspective.
Commenting on other alternative fuels, he said that the company is already ethanol 10 per cent (E10) compliant and as per the availability of the fuel, E20 will be made available after 2023.
“So we will make all our vehicles E20 compliant from 2023. In terms of flex fuel, yes we will study, but there are issues in terms of fuel availability.
Raman said, “We are not sure about when it will be available and also its price. But we will obviously study it. Such engines require a certain amount of time for development and customer acceptance is also a factor. ”
He said that the company is aware of the changes taking place in the industry in terms of technologies and facilities.
“Whatever the customer needs in terms of design, in terms of performance, in terms of comfort, convenience, features and technology, we will also be there to serve them,” he added.
When asked about MSI’s upcoming products, he declined to share details but said that the company has a strong product plan.
On the safety aspects of MSI cars, many of its models do not perform well Global NCAP Crash Testing, Raman said a lot of internal testing is done on its cars during the product development phase.
“The vehicles are tested with a variety of impacts, not just sideways but offsets as well. The internal testing norms are very stringent. Obviously, we meet all the mandatory safety norms of India,” he added.
He said industry body SIAM has written to the government to have India NCAP, so that there is uniformity and standardized protocols for all in the industry.
The country’s largest carmaker believes that the next phase of emission norms will push up the cost of diesel vehicles, further impacting their sales in the market, which has seen a gradual shift towards petrol cars over the past few years. has gone.
“We are not going into the diesel sector. We had earlier indicated that we will study it and if there is a demand from the customers, we can go back. But going forward, we will not be participating in the diesel sector,” said MSI Chief Technical Officer CV Raman said in a conversation with PTI-Bhasha.
He cited the upcoming stricter emission norms as the primary reason to avoid diesel-powered cars.
“There will be a new phase of emission norms in 2023 which is likely to increase the cost. So we believe that the diesel percentage may come down further. We are not aware of the competition but we as MSI have any intention to participate in it. No. Diesel space,” Raman said.
According to industry estimates, diesel vehicles currently account for less than 17 per cent of total passenger vehicle (PV) sales. This is a sharp decrease compared to 2013-14 when diesel cars accounted for 60 per cent of the total sales.
With the introduction of BS-VI emission regime from April 1, 2020, already several automakers in the country have canceled the diesel trims of their respective portfolios.
MSI had discontinued the diesel model from its portfolio with a tough start BS-VI emission norms,
The company’s entire model range is currently powered by BS-VI compliant 1L, 1.2L and 1.5L gasoline engines. It also offers CNG trim in seven of its models.
Raman said the company will focus on improving its existing petrol powertrains in terms of fuel efficiency and may also look at a new family of engines to strengthen its product portfolio going forward.
“We have said that we will improve on our existing powertrain which is already happening. The new K10-C engine in the Celerio is an improvement. Similarly, there has been some change in the 1.2 liter engine. So from the fuel efficiency point of view, we Will improve its internal combustion engine technology,” he said.
According to the company, the all-new variant of the recently introduced Celerio delivers a fuel efficiency of 26.68 kmpl, which it claims is the highest for any petrol-powered car in India.
Raman said the company will also enhance the electrification aspects like start-stop technology in its cars.
“We already have mild hybrid technology at the high end. Also, we are promoting more CNG due to lower running cost. Seven out of 15 models already have CNG trim. In future, more brands Technology will come along,” he added.
Raman added that there will be hybrid technology and electric vehicles (EVs) ahead, so there is going to be a lot of change from the powertrain perspective.
Commenting on other alternative fuels, he said that the company is already ethanol 10 per cent (E10) compliant and as per the availability of the fuel, E20 will be made available after 2023.
“So we will make all our vehicles E20 compliant from 2023. In terms of flex fuel, yes we will study, but there are issues in terms of fuel availability.
Raman said, “We are not sure about when it will be available and also its price. But we will obviously study it. Such engines require a certain amount of time for development and customer acceptance is also a factor. ”
He said that the company is aware of the changes taking place in the industry in terms of technologies and facilities.
“Whatever the customer needs in terms of design, in terms of performance, in terms of comfort, convenience, features and technology, we will also be there to serve them,” he added.
When asked about MSI’s upcoming products, he declined to share details but said that the company has a strong product plan.
On the safety aspects of MSI cars, many of its models do not perform well Global NCAP Crash Testing, Raman said a lot of internal testing is done on its cars during the product development phase.
“The vehicles are tested with a variety of impacts, not just sideways but offsets as well. The internal testing norms are very stringent. Obviously, we meet all the mandatory safety norms of India,” he added.
He said industry body SIAM has written to the government to have India NCAP, so that there is uniformity and standardized protocols for all in the industry.
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