Maruti has been working on 800cc diesel engine for its Eeco which is to be launched in next year. The Eeco diesel will be used for commercial applications. Currently, Maruti Eeco is available with two engine options: Petrol and CNG engine. The company plans to launch diesel version of Eeco in order to increase the sales. It will compete with the low cost commercial vehicles from the manufacturers like Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra.
Maruti-Suzuki spokesperson said, “Maruti is working to adapt the 800cc diesel engine, its first self-developed engine, for the Eeco van. The engine will first be launched in the new Maruti LCV (codeY9T) and the Celerio this fiscal. Today, the share of rural markets in total volumes stands at around 32%, from about 28% two years back and low single digits in 2008”.
V G Ramakrishnan, MD at Frost & Sullivan, South Asia, said, “Till now Maruti has not been able to enter several segments, and this will help plug one of those gaps. The only way to logically expand the Eeco range was to add a diesel, especially when the economics of CNG is not working out anymore with rising prices”.