It isn’t a secret that from April 1, 2020, carmakers will only be able to sell BSVI-compliant cars across India. To strike a perfect balance between cost-effectiveness and meeting stricter emission norms from the next fiscal onwards, all mass-market players are planning on how to revise their product portfolios. One of them is Tata Motors and the BSVI era commences, the homegrown automaker might axe small diesel engines.

Which engines specifically? The 1.05-litre motor that powers Tiago and Tigor, and the Fiat-sourced, 1.3-litre mill that does duty in soon-to-be-axed Zest and Bolt models. Both engines, just like the others, would require significant hardware and software upgrades to meet the stringent emission norms. Needless to say, that activity will involve costs. Tata Motors expects that the increased cost of the finished product would put diesel models, especially the smaller ones, out of reach of small car buyers. The other possibility of developing an all-new engine will also not qualify as a feasible business plan.

Other diesel engines that Tata Motors has includes the 1.5-litre engine that powers the Nexon, the FCA-sourced 2.0-litre mill that is offered with the Harrier and the 2.2-litre engine that does duty in the Hexa and the Safari Storme. To meet the BSVI-compliance standards, Tata Motors will upgrade the diesel engines for the Nexon and the Harrier. As for the 2.2-litre engine, it remains to be seen what Tata does with it. Upcoming Tata products, such as the Altroz and the H2X Concept, are likely to be introduced with BSVI-ready engines.

Last month, Maruti Suzuki cited the same reason and announced that from next fiscal onwards, it won’t sell any diesel-fed models. However, if the market wants, it will keep the 1.5-litre diesel mill which is currently on offer with the Ertiga and the Ciaz, on standby. Ford, on the other hand, has taken a different route and said that it will continue to offer diesel-fed models post BSVI implementation.

Source: PTI