The Maruti Celerio now features the country’s smallest diesel engine to power a passenger vehicle that has been developed by Suzuki and comes with several upgrades over a conventional diesel unit.
Taking a giant leap with an all-new engine, Maruti Suzuki has finally launched the 2015 Celerio DDiS 125 in the country with prices starting from Rs. 4.65 lakhs (ex-showroom, Delhi), aiming to break the competition. With no cosmetic upgrades over the petrol version, the Celerio diesel sports the ‘DDiS125’ badging on the exteriors that reveals the presence of a new diesel powerplant under the hood which holds several segment firsts. This new twin-cylinder diesel mill has been completely developed in-house by Suzuki and will be finding several applications globally, starting with the Celerio in India. Here is what Maruti’s newest offering has to offer.
Engine – Starting with the biggest change of all, the 2015 Maruti Celerio uses a 793cc twin-cylinder, 4-valve per cylinder diesel engine under the hood that is tuned to churn out 47 PS of power at 3500 RPM and 125 Nm of peak torque at 2000 RPM, paired to a 5-speed manual gearbox. The diesel unit weighs a light 89 kgs and has a torque output of 0.16 Nm/cc, which is more than that found on the Swift’s 1.3-litre diesel motor. This engine was under development for over four years now and has been extensively developed at Suzuki’s headquarters in Japan.
Instead of using a common-rail diesel injection, the 0.8-litre two-cylinder motor uses an ‘engine management system’ developed by Bosch which has a high-pressure fuel block with a high pressure fuel pump and fuel control unit to regulate the fuel to the twin cylinders. In addition to the innovations, Suzuki has also made several upgrades over the petrol unit with the diesel spec Celerio getting a hydraulic clutch with optimised engine load on the clutch pedal and a clutch release system. The diesel powered hatch also gets optimised gear ratios to support smoother shifts.
Features – The 2015 Maruti Celerio diesel carries over most features from its petrol counterpart including the integrated audio system with Bluetooth connectivity, steering with mounted audio controls with tilt function, electrically adjustable ORVMs with turn indicators, keyless entry, MID display with distance to empty and fuel consumption indicators. The range-topping variant also gets alloy wheels, security system, front fog lamps and height adjustable driver’s seat as part of standard kit. The Celerio DDiS125 is being offered in 6 colours.
Safety 0 In terms of safety, the Maruti Celerio diesel comes loaded with dual front airbags, ABS and EBD offered as standard, but only on the top-of-the-line ZDi (O) trim. The new diesel engine also meets BS IV regulations.
Fuel Efficiency – The Maruti Celerio diesel is now the country’s most fuel-efficient vehicle returning an ARAI certified figure of 27.62 km/l, beating Maruti’s DZire and Ciaz to the title.
The Maruti Celerio diesel rivals the Chevrolet Beat, Tata Indica as well as the Hyundai Grand i10 diesel models and certainly comes with an edge, courtesy of the impressive fuel efficiency figure. Moreover, the small engine promises lower maintenance costs for owners that will see more buyers opting for the oil burner, which has been avoided in the smaller car segments. Maruti states that 38% buyers want a diesel car in the lower hatchback segment. Currently available only with a manual transmission, Maruti could introduce an AMT unit later that will make the Celerio diesel India’s most affordable diesel automatic.
2015 Maruti Celerio Diesel Prices (ex-showroom, Delhi) –
* Celerio LDi – Rs. 4,65,393/-
* Celerio VDi – Rs. 4,95,414/-
* Celerio ZDi – Rs. 5,25,442/-
* Celerio ZDi (O) – Rs. 5,71,484/-
