At today’s HORIZONEXT event, Tata Motors showcased the CNG powered Nano. The company was widely expected to launch the Nano CNG today but the vehicle will only go on sale in September. The Nano CNG is called the Nano emax and is expected to be priced at a Rs. 40,000/- premium. Tata Motors offers a 5 kg cylinder on the Nano emax which returns a mileage of 36 km/kg. The Nano emax is a dual fuel vehicle and can run on petrol as well. The petrol fuel tank has a capacity of 15-litres.
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Top – Standard variant of the Nano; Below – Nano emax which has the CNG cylinder placed below the driver’s seat. Notice the fire extinguisher below the centre console.
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In petrol mode, the Nano CNG produces 38 PS of power at 5500 RPM and 51 Nm of torque at 4000 RPM. In CNG model, the Nano emax produces 33 PS of power at 5500 RPM and 45 Nm of torque at 3500 RPM. Other than the CNG kit, there are no changes in the Nano CNG, which carries the same level of equipment and looks the same as the regular Nano. However there is a emax badge on the boot which differentiates the vehicle from the petrol only model.
The Tata Nano CNG is an excellent alternative for cost conscious first time car buyers as the runnings costs are very low. Not all states in India have CNG readily available with them, therefore the Nano CNG won’t be the solution to boost sales in all cities. Instead Tata Motors needs to get the diesel-powered Nano, which is only expected next year. The CNG Nano is stop gap measure till the frugal diesel Nano arrives to start an all new segment.
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