Fuel Efficiency Champions – 5 Diesel Cars in India that deliver 25 Kmpl+ Mileage

Snapshot – Fuel efficiency is a big draw among Indian car buyers and car makers spend countless hours in their labs to squeeze out that extra kilometer from every liter of the dinosaur remains. At a time when the petrol-diesel price differential is at its lowest ever, diesel engined cars suddenly look expensive vis-a-vis a lower priced petrol powered model. Yet, diesel cars make a solid case for themselves, especially among buyers who tend to drive large monthly distances. Diesel cars continue to be inherently more fuel efficient than petrol powered cars, and if you drive a lot, diesels still make a lot of sense. CarToq lists out 5 cars that are the “Fuel Efficiency Champions” in India, and all cars in this list manage a minimum mileage of 25 Kmpl. Now that’s something, isn’t it?

Maruti Suzuki Ciaz – 26.2 Kmpl

Hail the new king among the Indian car market’s fuel efficiency champions, the Maruti Suzuki C-Segment sedan. With an ARAI certified 26.2 Kmpl mileage figure for the diesel engined Ciaz, Maruti Suzuki has snatched the Honda City Diesel’s glory and may even end up eating into the Honda sedan’s sales in a big way. The 26.2 Kmpl fuel efficiency figure on the Ciaz is no accident. The car is one of the lightest in its class, with the diesel powered model tipping scales at 1,105 kilograms. Will the Ciaz Diesel’s fuel efficiency propel it to the top of the C-Segment sedan market in India? The answer is just a few weeks away.

Honda City – 26 Kmpl

The Honda City Diesel, launched in India earlier this year, is the king of the C-Segment sedan class and this success has come largely due to the 1.5 liter, all-aluminium i-DTEC turbo diesel engine that powers it. The City Diesel ekes out a stupendous ARAI rated 26 Kmpl from this low friction motor and this figure made the City the most fuel efficient car in India until the arrival of the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz. Though the City Diesel is now the second best, and only marginally so, when it comes to the fuel efficiency stakes, the 1.5 liter diesel’s 98.6 Bhp-200 Nm output is slightly better than that of the Ciaz Diesel, whose own 1.3 liter motor outputs 89 Bhp-200 Nm.

Honda Amaze – 25. 8 Kmpl

Another Honda in the fuel efficiency champions list and one that was until recently the most fuel efficient car in the country, is the Amaze compact sedan. Like the Honda City, the Amaze uses a 1.5 liter-4 cylinder i-DTEC all-aluminium turbo diesel engine with the same power and torque outputs as the bigger City. However, the City’s0.2 Kmpl fuel efficiency advantage comes from the additional cog in the gearbox, even the Amaze makes do with 5 gears. Nevertheless, the 25.8 Kmpl ARAI certified fuel efficiency figure for the Amaze is nothing to be scoffed at. In fact, the Amaze Diesel has ridden the popularity wave with its ultra frugal diesel engine and is one of Honda’s biggest successes in India.

Chevrolet Beat – 25.4 Kmpl

Triple cylinder engines are known for their fuel efficiency, so much so that even a luxury car maker such as BMW has employed turbocharged three cylinder motors in its new range of affordable luxury cars. Add diesel power to a three cylinder equation and we’re definitely looking at fantastic fuel efficiency. This is what General Motors has done with the Chevrolet Beat Diesel, which features a 936 cc, triple cylinder turbo diesel motor that squeezes out an ARAI rated 25.4 Kmpl, making it the most fuel efficient hatchback in the country.

Ford Fiesta – 25.01 Kmpl

Aerodynamics play a huge part in a car’s development and Ford went the aerodynamic way to put the Fiesta sedan into the fuel efficiency champions list. The Fiesta Diesel Facelift, with a 25.01 Kmpl ARAI rated fuel efficiency figure betters its predecessor by about 6 %, and this improvement is enough to push the car over the hallowed 25 Kmpl mark. The Fiesta Diesel uses a 1.5 liter-4 cylinder TDCI turbo diesel engine that makes 91 Bhp-205 Nm. The car is one of the best handlers in its class and if you enjoy driving, the Fiesta Diesel Facelift is really what you should be looking at in the C-Segment sedan class.