Maruti Suzuki recently launched the Vitara Brezza in India which is only powered by a diesel engine. The company will bring in a petrol version later this year, it will use the 1.0-litre BoosterJet motor.
The launch of the Maruti Vitara Brezza made Ford reduce the price of its EcoSport to the tune of Rs. 1.12 lakhs. But the American compact SUV still has an advantage, that of being available with petrol engines. When Maruti Suzuki was developing the Vitara Brezza, this segment was skewed towards diesel but with the reduction in price gap between the two popular fuels, demand for petrol cars has started to soar again.
At the recent media drive event of the Vitara Brezza, Maruti Suzuki confirmed their plans of launching a petrol engined Vitara Brezza later this year. However, the current 1.2-litre, K-Series engine which outputs 84 PS of power isn’t apt for the job as SUVs need torque and with 115 Nm, the naturally aspirated unit doesn’t have the punch.
Using the 1.4-litre petrol unit from the Ertiga/Ciaz doesn’t make sense either as the Vitara Brezza is a sub 4-metre compact SUV which will miss out on excise duty benefits. Thus, Maruti Suzuki will plonk in the 1.0-litre BoosterJet engine in the Vitara Brezza, the said unit will soon power the Baleno RS which was showcased at the 2016 Auto Expo.
India is the global hub of production for the Baleno and Maruti Suzuki already imports the BoosterJet engine for use in the Baleno which is then exported. Thus logistics for the powertrain isn’t an issue and the turbo mill has high torque which is just what a compact SUV like the Brezza needs.
The 996cc, 3-cylinder, 12-valve powertrain belts out 110 BHP of power and 170 Nm of torque. It’s an apt engine for the Vitara Brezza as the Ford EcoSport also gets a 1.0-litre, 3-pot, turbo-petrol EcoBoost engine. The new BoosterJet engine will also power the next generation Swift and is completely imported. Local production isn’t planned till volumes justify the investment.
Maruti Vitara Brezza Petrol Engine
– The Vitara Brezza will get a petrol engine later this year
– It won’t be the 1.2-litre K-Series engine that powers other sub 4-metre Maruti cars
– Maruti Suzuki will power the Vitara Brezza with the 1.0-litre BoosterJet engine
– The Vitara Brezza will share its powertrain with the upcoming Baleno RS
Source – AutocarIndia.com