Maruti Suzuki's first diesel engine to power the Y9T pick up

Suzuki's engineers in Japan are developing diesel engines with capacities ranging between 1.2 liters and 1.4 liters. These turbo diesel motors will be used in Suzuki's future range of small cars, thereby reducing the Japanese automaker's dependence on Italian car maker Fiat's Multijet range of diesel engines. Simultaneously, Maruti Suzuki's engineers are developing an 800 cc twin cylinder turbo diesel engine. 

Note: Image of the previous-generation Suzuki Carry mini pick up truck used for illustrative purposes. 

According to a report on AutoCarIndia, this homegrown diesel engine will be first used on Maruti Suzuki's mini pick up truck code-named the Y9T. This decision is at odds with the previous reports, which quoted Maruti Chairman Mr R.C. Bhargava, noting that the automaker would be adapting the 1.3 liter Fiat Multijet diesel engine for use on its mini pick up truck. The latest report quotes Maruti Suzuki's MD, Mr Kenichi Ayukawa, stating that the Fiat Multijet in unsuitable for use in the mini pick up truck owing to its size and that a new diesel engine has to be developed to workaround this issue.  

The pick up truck is scheduled to make its debut in the Indian market during 2015. The Maruti Y9T pick up truck will take on the likes of the Tata Ace and the Mahindra Maxximo, in the high growth mini pick up truck segment of India. Things get interesting from here on. While previous reports also indicated that Maruti Suzuki would begin outfitting the 800 cc homegrown twin cylinder turbo diesel engine into the likes of the next-generation A-Star/Estilo replacement (global Alto/YL7) and the WagonR in 2014, the latest report suggests that the 800 cc engine will not make an appearance in any Maruti car at least until 2015.

In light of this, the next-gen global Alto, code-named the YL7 and likely to be called the A-Star here, might be initially launched only with a petrol engine. The YL7 is likely to make its debut at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo, less than 6 months from now. On a similar note, the WagonR's diesel variant might have to wait for a couple of more years before seeing the light of the day. As small car buyers in India are used to highly frugal yet refined petrol engines, the twin cylinder diesel engine being developed by Maruti Suzuki for use in the Y9T pick up truck might not fit the bill in its current state. 

Therefore, Maruti Suzuki engineers are also said to be developing a more-refined version of this engine, one that matches the high refinement levels demanded by the small car buyer in India. In emerging car markets, twin cylinder turbo diesel engines are likely to lead the sales growth curve of the future. Tata Motors is readying up one such unit for use in the diesel variant of the Nano. Volkswagen showcased the twin cylinder, 800 cc TDI motor on the XL1, which it plans to use on the Up! and the Taigun. With Maruti all set to join this brigade in 2015 and beyond, expect a slew of entry-level budget hatchbacks to adopt diesel power in a big way.