Speculation: Will the 1.05 Liter DICOR diesel engine find its way into the Tata Dolphin?

Downsizing is a phenomenon that is quite rampant amongst car makers across the world. The trend slowly seems to be catching on with Indian car makers as well. Tata Motors showcased a 1.05 Liter DICOR turbodiesel engine in the engine bay of the Tata Manza Hybrid. This 1.05 Liter engine is a downsized, three cylinder variant of the 1,405cc DICOR engine that is found in the likes of the Tata Vista and the Tata Indigo CS. Mahindra &Mahindra is also working on a 1.5 Liter mHawk turbo diesel engine, which is a three cylinder variant of the 2.2 Liter mHawk engine found on the Scorpio and the XUV500. Mahindra is expected to use this 1.5 Liter diesel engine in the upcoming Mini Xylo.

Tata 1.05 Liter DICOR Engine at the 2012 Auto Expo

Coming back to the 1.05 Liter Tata DICOR engine, this engine produces a peak power of 64 Bhp with peak torque coming in at 140 Nm. These figures, which seem much lesser than what the diesel engines of full sized hatchbacks output, might be more than enough for a car that is smaller than say the Tata Indica. Tata Motors is said to be working on the Tata Dolphin project, a car that could be positioned in between the Nano and the Vista. From our sources, we have learnt that the Dolphin is a be a tall boy design with the front end roughly similar to the Fabia and the rear to that of the Santro Xing.

Tata 1.05 Liter DICOR Engine at the 2012 Auto Expo

In a car like the Dolphin, the 1.05 Liter DICOR diesel engine might just be the right fit, both in terms of displacement as well as performance. Another application for this engine would be the production version of the Tata Pixel, which is currently in concept form. While this bit of news is speculation for now, if this turns out to be real in the coming years, you know where you read about it first. Incidentally, the Chevrolet Beat Diesel can be credited of starting the diesel engine downsizing trend in the Indian small car market. The Beat Diesel uses a three cylinder diesel engine, the only production 3 pot diesel in the Indian market, which is a downsized version of the Fiat Multijet or JTD engine, which was developed jointly by Fiat and General Motors.

Share and Enjoy: