The upcoming Maruti Celerio diesel will become the most fuel efficient car in the country with ARAI figures indicating a mileage of 27.62kpl. According to our sources, the Celerio diesel will be launched sometime in the first week of June.
Maruti’s first home-grown diesel engine will displace 793cc and churn out 47bhp at 3500rpm and 12.7kgm of torque at 2000rpm. It will be available with a five-speed manual gearbox, but an AMT gearbox won't be offered anytime soon. As stated in our previous report, the Celerio diesel’s DDiS125 badge indicates the torque output of this new engine with 12.7kgm translating to 125Nm of torque.
Despite our source mentioning that it won't feel underpowered, we still have our apprehensions about its performance as its closest rivals, the Chevy Beat and the Hyundai Grand i10, have larger three-pot motors that make about 15.29kgm and 16.31kgm respectively. But, what could work in its favour is the stupendous fuel efficiency figure of 27.62kpl and the Maruti badge. If Maruti manages to give the option of an AMT with this engine, it will be the most inexpensive diesel automatic car in the country.