Rumour: Demand for outgoing Ertiga CNG shoots up

Thanks to the Team-BHP fan (he prefers to remain anonymous) who has sent this information in. Heartfelt gratitude for sharing it with other enthusiasts via this page!

Maruti is gearing up to launch the new Ertiga later in the month. The new Ertiga will be available with petrol and diesel engine options. However, a CNG variant will not be offered. This has resulted in an increase in the demand for the CNG variants of the outgoing model.

CNG offers lower running costs as well as lower emissions. The Ertiga is the only 7-seater MPV in India to be offered with a factory fitted CNG option. With increasing fuel costs, potential Ertiga owners in cities with a large number of CNG pumps like Mumbai, Delhi and Pune prefer the greener fuel over the petrol or diesel counterparts. It has also been reported that dealers with an inventory of the CNG variant are charging a premium for the same.

One of the reasons for the discontinuation of the CNG variant could be the incompatibility of the fuel system with the SHVS (hybrid) technology. The K15 engine is paired with a regular battery as well as a Lithium-ion battery and a gets features like idle start-stop, brake energy regeneration and torque assist to improve fuel economy.