New Chevrolet Tavera spy photos revealed

Chevrolet will likely launch a facelifted Tavera MPV with a new, BS-IV compatible diesel engine by the end of 2011. The prices of the new Tavera could be slightly higher than those of the present model. Let us take a look at the recently revealed spy photos of the new Tavera.

Refreshed Front

The front of the new Tavera has the typical bow-tie grille of Chevrolet as seen in the Cruze and the Beat – this is a new addition, the car had a pretty unremarkable front-end so far. However, the styling is conservative and gel well with the overall design of the Tavera. The headlamp clusters get clear lens treatment and integrated with side-swept turn indicators. The front bumper has also been redesigned featuring round fog lamps as against rectangular fog lamps in the existing model.

Unaltered Side profile and Rear

The side profile of the new Tavera have no changes and will likely feature black door handles in base variants while the top-end variants may come with chrome coated door handles. The rear of the upcoming Tavera has no visible changes when compared with the existing model except clear lens treatment for the tail lamps cluster.

New Engine

The facelifted Tavera will come with a BS-IV compatible diesel engine sourced from ICML (International Cars & Motors Ltd). The 2.0 litre turbocharged intercooled direct injection diesel engine produces 99 Bhp of peak power and 240 Nm of peak torque in the ICML Rhino MPV and we expect the Tavera’s engine too to have similar power and torque specifications.

In the facelifted Chevrolet Tavera, the diesel engine will most likely be re-badged as TCDi. At present, the Tavera is powered by a BS-III compatible, 2.5 litre direct injection turbo diesel that makes 80 bhp of max power and 186 Nm of max torque.

Tavera vs Xylo vs Innova

The C hevrolet Tavera is one of the most popular vehicles among fleet operators who look for 7-8 seater MPVs, along with the Toyota Innova and Mahindra Xylo. With regard to performance, the Xylo’s engine makes 112 bhp of power and 260 Nm of torque while the Innova’s powerplant puts out 101 bhp of power and 200 Nm of torque. The upcoming Tavera is also expected to offer a similar power & torque output and hence, will be at par with the competition in terms of acceleration and performance.

The Xylo BS IV is priced in the range of Rs. 7.30 – 9.42 lakh while the Innova BS IV diesel is priced in the range of Rs. 9.79 – 12.80 lakh. We expect the Tavera to be priced competitively in the Rs. 8 – 11 lakh range as well. At present, the BS-III Tavera diesel is priced in the range of Rs. 7.91 – 10.11 lakh.

Sales of the Tavera had dropped as the company stopped selling the vehicle in 13 cities including metros where BS-IV emission norms were implemented April 2010 onwards. But now, with a BS-IV compatible engine and a minor facelift, the refreshed Tavera, if priced competitively could be a hit!

(Source: MotorBeam)