Honda may launch 1 litre petrol engine in new small car by 2017

With an aim to challenge leading small-car makers in India, Honda Cars India Limited (HCIL) is currently working on a new 1 litre petrol engine. Being known for its engineering prowess for petrol engines, Honda plans to launch this new car by 2017 and make its way into the small-car segment, according to reports.

Currently the No. 1 and No. 2 small passenger car manufacturers in India are Maruti and Hyundai, respectively. Honda is not too far behind anymore, as it has doubled its market share to 7 per cent in the last two years, due to successes of the City and Amaze models. At present, the Japanese auto manufacturer has Brio in the compact segment and the premium Jazz is expected to launch in 2015.

The new motor in question will be available in two versions, naturally aspirated and turbocharged. The turbocharged version will be an addition to the Tata Revotron, Volkswagen TSI and Ford EcoBoost engines, which are already present in the market. Its naturally aspirated version is understood to be a three-cylinder derivative of the Brio's 1.2 litre iVTEC unit and will be similar to the Maruti K-Series family.

Reports indicate that Honda will be using their third plant, which will come up at Vithalpur-Manpur area in Gujarat, for the production of this engine. The company's Greater Noida plant in Uttar Pradesh and Tapukara Plant in Rajasthan have already been earmarked for the Mobilio (Greater Noida), Amaze (Tapukara) and City (Tapukara from September 2014), as well as the upcoming Jazz.