Indian Autos blog

In today’s Bumper To Bumper comeback video I’m discussing the features and expectations from the Tata Nano diesel that we’ve spied this morning at a fuel bunk.

[Can't see the video above? Head over to the Youtube page to see the video.]

What do you think will be the contribution of the diesel variant to the Tata Nano sales?

Many of our viewers have constantly supplied us with spyshots of camouflaged mules and we are MIGHTY thankful to each and every one of them. But our eagle eyed reader Rohan has unraveled a feat that is nothing less than a story from the Sherlock Holmes’ novel. Deductive reasoning is what they call it!

High resolution image of the image that gives its identity away! [Opens in a new window]

Look at the picture above; seems like a mundane stop at the petrol pump right? But now looks carefully. There is a Tata Nano on temporary registration plates preceded by an Indigo (again on temp plates).

So? You ask. They could be just two dealer vehicles fueling up and heading to the stockyard before the final delivery.

Tata Motors’ hotly discussed Nano diesel is coming to the India by the end of 2011 with a fuel economy figure of 40kmpl, BS Motoring reports. IndianCarsBikes.in had already discussed this possibility on their site and we also deduced a version based on their information.

IndianCarsBikes.in in the story filed on the 30th of January mentioned in the article “the Nano’s direct injection turbodiesel engine will deliver a fuel efficiency close 40 KMPL.”

Coming back to details on BSMotoring’s story, the Nano diesel engine will be a twin cylinder displacing 700cc. It will dethrone sibling Indica eV2 as the most fuel efficient car in India. Market experts have told Business Standard that the diesel variant will be 15-20 percent more expensive.

Will people buying the Nano petrol variant be tempted to go for the slightly more expensive Nano that offers fascinating fuel economy, comparable to that of a 180cc motorcycle?

Even the cheapest car in the world (referring to the Tata Nano) can afford turbo.

David Paja, Vice President of Honeywell Turbo Technologies told Shanghai Daily recently. The Tata Nano diesel is expected to debut by the end of 2011 in India with a turbocharged CRDI diesel engine. The turbocharger unit is assumed to be the smallest on a mass-produced automobile.

With speculations rife about a Diesel Nano that will give 40kmpl, the Tata Motors team certainly have their work cut out for them. Now our friends at Motorbeam have spotted this miracle machine being tested at old Mumbai-Pune highway in full swing. There is no solid proof that this is the diesel avatar as there is nothing unusual other than a tape running across the hatch. The silencer chamber/catalytic converter  [ Read More ]

The dream child of Ratan Tata, envisioned to shift masses away from bikes and upgrade to cars, hasn’t yet ‘clicked’ the way all of us expected. People are still buying bikes and they are buying them in plenty. Obviously, the Tatas aren’t giving up so early. They are planning to complete with the two-wheelers on a critical factor that influences an Indian consumer the most, whether it is 4-wheeler, two-wheeler  [ Read More ]

According to Times Of India’s report, Tata Motors will roll out the Tata Nano diesel by September 2011. The engine is expected to displace 600-700cc. It will be a compact 2-cylinder engine with a turbocharger and common rail system. The turbocharger is expected to be the smallest, while this diesel engine, the smallest CRDI engine in mass production when it comes out of the Sanand plant. According to the same  [ Read More ]

BS Motoring has posted what it claims is the first visuals of the Tata Nano diesel that’s scheduled to voyage into the Indian market in the coming months.

BS Motoring has written that a heavier engine has been placed at the rear which sits lower than the petrol Nano. The bottom half of the Nano diesel’s rear is design differently.

Tata has made it public at the Auto Expo 2010 that Bosch is working with Tata Motors to develop this diesel engine. It will probably be a 1-cylinder direct injection 650cc motor that can produce about 30 bhp of power. The gearbox isn’t expected to change, the gear ratios however will to accommodate the extra torque. The engine is termed CRS 1.1 (CRS stands for Common Rail System) and could have a single plunger in its fuel pump. The Tata Nano diesel should be slightly noisier, and we expect the company to take counter measures by supplementing sound deadening material.

Ratan Tata has said to the media in the past that the Nano diesel will be available “sooner than expected” and BS Motoring has gone a step ahead by stating it’ll hit showrooms before the end of 2010!

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