It is not just flipping off the coin and let Head or Tail to decide for buying Petrol or Diesel car. There are several factors to consider before you make a move. As in current market scenario most of the Cars / SUVs available in their petrol and Diesel versions to serve different kind of buyers to suffice their needs and Taste.
Here I would share the difference between the Deisel and Petrol cars from technical and Cost point of view.
Max Power / Max Torque:
Most often the similar size of Petrol engine and Diesel engine have same Power but Diesel engine has almost 1.5 times of Torque.
Lets take an example of Swift Diesel and Swift petrol version. Look at the comparison below
| … | Engine Capacity | Power @ rpm | Torque @ rpm | Efficiency |
| Swift Diesel | 1248 cc | 75 PS @ 4500 | 190 Nm @ 2000 | 18 Kmpl |
| Swift Petrol | 1197 cc | 85 PS @ 6000 | 113 Nm @ 4500 | 14 Kmpl |
As you see the Power of Diesel engine is slightly less than Petrol Engine, but Torque is significantly high. Torque is high in Deisel engine because of their high compression ratio.
The question here is what is the difference Power and Torque?
Physics defines Power as a the rate of work done, hence it is directly related to the speed/maximum speed. Torque is the amount of force applied to rotate something, means amount of force applied to achieve the same speed.
Somebody explained it with the act of reading, basically Power is how much you read and Torque is how you feel about it. Driving fun of Diesel cars are substantially higher than petrol one, specially on highways.
That is the reason why most of heavy transport vehicles (Trucks, SUVs etc) are fueled by Diesel to carry heavy weight easily with good amount of torque and small city cars are preferred for Petrol fuel to be more cost effective and cleaner.
Reliability:
Both types of engines are reliable, but Diesel engines are more robust in different atmospheric condition.
Maintenance:
Maintenance cost of Diesel engines are almost 20-30% higher than of Petrol engines.
Performance (Fuel Efficiency):
Diesel’s high octane value is the reason behind better fuel efficiency than petrol, but at the same time Diesel is less environ friendly.
Engine noise:
Diesel engines are more noisier than petrol one and generate more vibrations too, though there has been a lot technological advancements. The reason is same again higher compression ratio. In higher speed noise difference is negligible.
Diesel vs Petrol car economics:
If you are a die hard Deisel car lover then definitely you should not look at this part of comparison. But from money point of view you should look at the calculation below. In India Diesel is subsidized hence drive the operating cost of car.
- Generally Diesel cars are around 15-20% costlier than their petrol Counter part. For example Swift LDi (Diesel) is around Rs. 90k expensive than Swift lxi (Petrol)
- In normal conditions the expense of a hatchback diesel car is around 2 Rs/km and 3.5 Rs/km for petrol car. So after driving more than 50,000 kms you will be able to fill the GAP of cost of car, keeping the 90k extra investment in mind.
- One more factor which should be considered is the resale value of car. But that should be considered on the type of car, usage and future plans.
- But keep in mind the investment of 1L extra, because you can at-least get 7-9 % interest in this amount even in Fixed deposit without doing any thing
. And if you are taking a loan for car, it works in reversible manner.
Summary
- If on average you drive lesser than 15K in a year (average 40 km a day), then make sense to buy Petrol car.
- If your drive is around 15k – 20kms in a year ( around 50 kms a day) then you can choose either.
- If your average travel is more than 25K in a year (70 kms in a day) then Diesel cars makes sense.
- If you want to toss your vehicle in off roads or hills more often, then Diesel is better choice.
- Buying SUVs in Diesel engine is better choice, due to high torque is required for Big size vehicle.
- Ab
October 27th, 2010 at 2:15 pm
Nice comparision and information rich. thanks to the writer. please update
April 6th, 2011 at 9:42 pm
Good article. My new Swift petrol car is not so good in pick up (especially when it is full). After reading this article, I understand it is so because of less torque. Let me know if my understanding is wrong.
April 7th, 2011 at 10:58 pm
@Ramesh Thanks for the comment. There will be reduction in pick-up as the number of passenger increase and yes you are right it is because of torque the you feel lesser difference in pick-up in diesel model than petrol.
April 13th, 2011 at 8:45 pm
Pls advise between sx4 petrol, cng or diesel, drive approx 50km n Delhi. presently hav cng fit wagonR since 2004 n pretty satisfied. I wil keep my new car for min 8-10 yrs, so pls guide me keeping n mind long engine life. Thnks!
April 14th, 2011 at 3:32 am
As per your usage CNG or Diesel are better options over Petrol, though Diesel is few thousands more expensive than CNG. Over all CNG will more cost effective including running cost than Diesel but again compromise is the driving experience, Diesel is more fun
.. If driving mostly within city I’d prefer CNG.
June 29th, 2011 at 5:01 pm
PETROL OR DIESEL CAR
It’s been a long debate over which car to buy a diesel or petrol. Almost all of us go through this when buying a new car. With lot of cars coming in both hatchback and sedan segment the question is becoming tough to answer. Diesel being cheap in costing is the very first reason to buy a diesel car but does it really suits you because the initial cost of a diesel car is way high then of its petrol version .let’s take a look on a few issues while choosing a petrol version or a diesel version. To simplify the difference lets study with some examples……
petrol v/s diesel – On road price (ex-showroom+reg+insurance)
1. Ford fiesta lxi v/s ldi – on road price
Lxi – Rs 6,30,642
Ldi – Rs 7,63,059
Difference in initial costing – Rs 1,32,417
2. Maruti swift dzire vxi v/s vdi – on road price
Vxi – Rs 6,15,425
Vdi – Rs 7,35,503
Difference in initial costing – Rs 1,20,078
3.Hyundai i20 magna petrol v/s magna diesel – on road price
Magna petrol – Rs 5,57,723
Magna diesel – Rs 7,12,759
Difference in initial costing – Rs 1,55,036
So we can easily deduce that on an average the difference between a petrol version and its diesel version ranges to 1,20,000to 1,50,000 and let’s take the average i.e. Rs 1,35,000 for further calculations.
Petrol cost – Rs 63.37/ltr *
Diesel cost – Rs 41.12/ltr *
Petrol car mileage – city – 14/ltr , highway – 18/ltr , average – 15/ltr
Diesel car mileage – city – 16/ltr , highway – 20/ltr , average – 17/ltr
*price in Delhi as on June 29, 2011
Case I – monthly run of 1000 kms or less (yearly – 12000)
• Consumption of petrol car in ltr – 12000/15=800 ltr (total kms/km per ltr).
Total amount spent on petrol = 800 ltr * 63.37 Rs/ltr = Rs 50,696.
• Consumption of diesel car in ltr – 12000/17=706 ltr(total kms/km per ltr).
Total amount spent on diesel = 706 ltr * 41.12 Rs/ltr = Rs 29,030.
So the difference in amount spent on diesel and petrol is Rs 21,666 per year.
In comparison to the amount you paid earlier for a diesel car is Rs 1,35,000 more.
Further if u took loan then you paid an extra interest on Rs 1,35,000 to bank for say a fiveyear loan i.e. @ 11.5%per annum so the extra interest u paid is 1,36,533. So a total of Rs 2,71,533.
Taking the saving per year and the extra cost I paid it will take 2,71,533/21,666 = approx 12.5 yrs.
Case II – monthly run of 1500 kms or less (yearly – 18000)
• Consumption of petrol car in ltr – 18000/15=1200 ltr (total kms/km per ltr).
Total amount spent on petrol = 1200 ltr * 63.37 Rs/ltr = Rs 76,044.
• Consumption of diesel car in ltr – 18000/17=1059 ltr(total kms/km per ltr).
Total amount spent on diesel = 1059 ltr * 41.12 Rs/ltr = Rs 43,539.
So the difference in amount spent on diesel and petrol is Rs 32,500 per year.
In comparison to the amount you paid earlier for a diesel car is Rs 1,35,000 more.
Further if u took loan then you paid an extra interest on Rs 1,35,000 to bank for say a fiveyear loan i.e. @ 11.5%per annum so the extra interest u paid is 1,36,533. So a total of Rs 2,71,533.
Taking the saving per year and the extra cost I paid it will take 2,71,533/32,500 = approx 8.5 yrs.
Case III – monthly run of 2000 kms (yearly -24000kms)
• Consumption of petrol car in ltr – 24000/15=1600 ltr (total kms/km per ltr).
Total amount spent on petrol = 1600 ltr * 63.37 Rs/ltr = Rs 1,01,392.
• Consumption of diesel car in ltr – 24000/17=1412 ltr(total kms/km per ltr).
Total amount spent on diesel = 1412 ltr * 41.12 Rs/ltr = Rs 58,060.
So the difference in amount spent on diesel and petrol is Rs 43,332 per year.
In comparison to the amount you paid earlier for a diesel car is Rs 1,35,000 more.
Further if u took loan then you paid an extra interest on Rs 1,35,000 to bank for say a fiveyear loan i.e. @ 11.5%per annum so the extra interest u paid is 1,36,533. So a total of Rs 2,71,533.
Taking the saving per year and the extra cost I paid it will take 2,71,533/43,332 = approx 6.25 yrs.
Case IV – In case your car has a run of more than 3000 kms per month (yearly 36000 kms or a daily of 100 kms)
Diesel car is the one you should pick.
? Few other points also to be taken into consideration:-
1. The diesel car has a very high maintenance in comparison to a petrol car almost 1.5 times of that a petrol car and that keep on increasing after first three- four years.
2. The engine parts of diesel car is almost twice d cost of a petrol one e.g. a petrol car’s piston will long for bout say 15-16 yrs or say 2,00,000 kms or even more practically never and a diesel car’s piston has to be changed say every 6-7 years or every 80,000-1,00,000 kms.
3. The diesel engine no matter how high tech it may be is always noisy u can hear its irritating sound.
4. The subsidiary cost on petrol is at present Rs 4.00 and that on diesel is Rs 16.00 so in future chances of diesel price rise increases as now the companies are independent without the govt control.
5. The amount of pollution diesel car generates is also a lot higher in comparison to petrol car.
6. The second hand sale value of a diesel car is a lot less in comparison to petrol car even a diesel car almost zero’s its value after 90,000 kms or 7 yrs.
7. The lpg or cng gas kit are not compatible with diesel engines however they run very well on a petrol engine.
So wisely evaluate your needs before buying a new car a petrol or a diesel don’t go on what others are buying it’s your hard earned money invest smartly.
The writer is an expert on car and automobiles .
Note :- the on road price of cars may vary from state to state however the difference will almost remain the same.
June 30th, 2011 at 1:16 pm
Great analysis, should help a lot! Thanks…
July 1st, 2011 at 12:49 pm
Thanks Sahil!!! you rocks…..
July 4th, 2011 at 8:33 pm
Hi sahil
great work, can you pls advise on below
my drive is about 2k per month and have shortlisted skoda fabia ambiente diesel and chevrolet aveo cng, both are almost same price after discount on aveo.pls advise which one should i choose.
July 5th, 2011 at 11:06 pm
Thanks Sahil for your comment and very valuable and well articulated thoughts.
July 5th, 2011 at 11:46 pm
@Saleem, If i understand your needs correctly, I would recommend Aveo, a good stylish, spacious, sedan family car with a suitable price tag. In general Skoda maintenance & spares are expensive & Fabia is no exception plus additional cost of Diesel engine maintenace, but definitely Skoda is ahead in terms of safety features and build quality. And As I mentioned in my post driving diesel is different experience because of high torque but it seems you are not keen about that. I guess CNG is better option, only disadvantage of occupying some boot space in your car. The money factors are very well described by Sahil.
@ Sahil, What’s ur opinion?
July 24th, 2011 at 3:12 am
Ur information gives clear view to buy cars.., thanks friend
August 3rd, 2011 at 2:31 pm
Awesome comparsion and explanation. Examples are really helpful to decide Petrol vs Diesel …i have been searching for this kind of comparison since long time…… Thank you so much
August 12th, 2011 at 12:05 am
good analysis!!! made me really think what to buy? I want an entry level sedan… like swift dzire….. i do approx 12000 – 15000 a year. currently have a m800. seriously thinking of diesel… my other option are new swift,ritz etc.. sticking to maruti as i stay in a small town..pls reply..
August 12th, 2011 at 4:37 pm
@ Sarbajit, As per your travel requirement petrol seems to be suitable. Why are you willing to choose Diesel? Good you want to stick with Maruti Suzuki, but you can have a look at Toyota Etios if you like it and service center is available in your town, Toyota service is hassle free. Ritz and existing Swift both share almost same cars internally and except exteriors. New Swift is definitely better in many aspect, Its in Europe already. Price point for Indian version of new swift is yet to see.
August 23rd, 2011 at 12:54 pm
Nice comparision and information rich. Lot of thanks.
October 21st, 2011 at 4:41 pm
My travel is approximately 15000 km/yr city limit. Planning to buy a Swift or Chevy Beat. Please suggest which one would be a better option in terms of cost of running & maintenance. Do let me know if you suggest any other car.
October 27th, 2011 at 4:12 pm
@ Dipesh, for your need there are plenty of cars to choose in the Petrol hatchback segment. Swift and Beat are good choice, but Beat is Cheaper on the road, though its smaller than swift. New Swift is Stylish, bigger with some smart features. Have a look at Ford Figo For a balanced car with good space and seating comfort and cost as well. Toyota Etios Liva is a good buy, if looks are Ok with you.
October 31st, 2011 at 12:53 pm
@Sahil…excellent analysis…i have been looking fo rone such breakup analysis….My monthly usage is < 1000KMs….i am confused to pick a petrol / diesel vehicle….everyone is advising me to go for Diesel.
But i know i woul dnot be driving so much and hence iam skeptical….
can u pls advise…by the way i am interested in SX4-ZXI…
thanks for ur response
November 12th, 2011 at 3:52 am
@Sahil really excellent analysis i planning to buy skoda rapid or fluidic varna petrol version for a monthly distace of about 1000 km. I request to suggest which one should perchase on the basis of servicing, cost of spare parts, emeragency service, features etc.
thanks for ur response
December 20th, 2011 at 8:06 pm
very nice comparison and useful to me.
December 21st, 2011 at 4:06 pm
Now .. petrol cost 76 & deisel costs 46 per liter. (after petrol price decontrol)
Also heard that there is going to be a surcharge added for diesel cars near future. ( means … u might get a better resale value for deisel cars)
So.. in this new situation, any change in calculations ?
My yearly use would be less than 10K KM.
But I m planning to keep the vehcile for 1 Lakh KM. (my current 2001 VagonR reads odometer 110000 KM.)
So.. should I go for petrol or deisel ( panning to take Ritz) ?
I feel that..once I complete 30K KM, I will be beneficial.
Rest 70K KM I am going to have better smile.
December 24th, 2011 at 12:06 am
Johnsons, even though petrol prices are soaring, for your need petrol cars are more suitable. you yearly run is just 10K lesser than 1k per month, as per new calculation you will still be in profit with petrol car covering 10K per annum for 10 years, which is a long time to change the market dynamics with arrival of electric vehicle in flood. As said not only cost difference but maintenance and wear&tear in diesel engine is higher specially in shorter runs. Additionally put your extra 1.2L in FD to gain high interest of more then 9% in current market.
February 6th, 2012 at 4:04 pm
I hate to drive car in city limits not because of fuel consumption but hate the bikers coming in between.. I like to drive long distances but don’t drive often like say once in two months 1000-1500kms covering near by destinations.. my office is around 15kms so considering as 30-35kms per day.. I don’t have plans to keep any car more than 5-6 years.. for now want a hatchback (for 5 years) and later planning for Sedan.. so is it good for going for Swift Petrol engine car or Diesel car?? I heard new swift petrol engine mileage is good on highway..
February 9th, 2012 at 12:07 pm
Hi Anantha, Swift petrol is good choice for your needs. Swift is still, one of the best option to pick, which makes is most desirable hence lead to long waiting period and very common too.
February 9th, 2012 at 5:13 pm
Confused between new swift ZXI vs VDI. Booked VDI already . VDI on road 7.19lacs where as ZXI 6.80 lacs. Monthly usage not more than 900kms. city driving. ZXI is fully loaded with safety features and all but FE also matters.
pls advice.
February 12th, 2012 at 12:22 am
Hi Sreenath, as per your need petrol car is viable option. But Swift ZXi and VDi is an odd comparison, Comparison could be in Between VDi and Vxi and definitely Vxi makes more sense in your case. Zxi is more of feature and safety oriented option to give more luxury.
March 22nd, 2012 at 5:48 pm
As per my study:
1 Average Mileage in Km Fuel Cost Per Year
No. of Km day City Highway Fuel Cost Per Km Per Day Per Month Per Year Diff b/w Petrol car vs Diesel car
Petrol Car 50 14 18 73.07 5.2 261.0 7828.9 ? 93,947.14 ? 43,232.14
Diesel Car 50 16 16 45.08 2.8 140.9 4226.3 ? 50,715.00
With Petrol car With Diesel car
Petrol Byke 50 58 60 73.07 1.3 63.0 1889.7 ? 22,676.90 ? 71,270.25 ? 28,038.10
2 Average Mileage in Km Fuel Cost Per Year
No. of Km day City Highway Fuel Cost Per Km Per Day Per Month Per Year Diff b/w Petrol car vs Diesel car
Petrol Car 50 14 18 75 5.4 267.9 8035.7 ? 96,428.57 ? 44,116.07
Diesel Car 50 16 16 46.5 2.9 145.3 4359.4 ? 52,312.50
With Petrol car With Diesel car
Petrol Byke 50 58 60 75 1.3 64.7 1939.7 ? 23,275.86 ? 73,152.71 ? 29,036.64
3 Average Mileage in Km Fuel Cost Per Year
No. of Km day City Highway Fuel Cost Per Km Per Day Per Month Per Year Diff b/w Petrol car vs Diesel car
Petrol Car 50 14 18 80 5.7 285.7 8571.4 ? 1,02,857.14 ? 48,857.14
Diesel Car 50 16 16 48 3.0 150.0 4500.0 ? 54,000.00
With Petrol car With Diesel car
Petrol Byke 50 58 60 80 1.4 69.0 2069.0 ? 24,827.59 ? 78,029.56 ? 29,172.41
4 Average Mileage in Km Fuel Cost Per Year
No. of Km day City Highway Fuel Cost Per Km Per Day Per Month Per Year Diff b/w Petrol car vs Diesel car
Petrol Car 50 14 18 90 6.4 321.4 9642.9 ? 1,15,714.29 ? 59,464.29
Diesel Car 50 16 16 50 3.1 156.3 4687.5 ? 56,250.00
With Petrol car With Diesel car
Petrol Byke 50 58 60 90 1.6 77.6 2327.6 ? 27,931.03 ? 87,783.25 ? 28,318.97
5 Average Mileage in Km Fuel Cost Per Year
No. of Km day City Highway Fuel Cost Per Km Per Day Per Month Per Year Diff b/w Petrol car vs Diesel car
Petrol Car 50 14 18 100 7.1 357.1 10714.3 ? 1,28,571.43 ? 66,696.43
Diesel Car 50 16 16 55 3.4 171.9 5156.3 ? 61,875.00
With Petrol car With Diesel car
Petrol Byke 50 58 60 100 1.7 86.2 2586.2 ? 31,034.48 ? 97,536.95 ? 30,840.52
March 31st, 2012 at 11:49 pm
hello i recently booked new swift dzire vxi. its my family first car and i still not get the delivery of the car but im very confused becoz my friends suggested me to gofor the diesel. my daly run not more than 40 to 45 km per day or may be lesser. so which version i select vxi or vdi? plz help me!!!!!
April 2nd, 2012 at 11:26 am
@ Swapnil: As per your usage you made a right choice. If you see calculation it will take around 4 yrs gap to just cover the price different of the cars for your car usage. Apart from that Extra maintenance cost and hassle, Engine noise, hassle and carbon emission comes along with the diesel cars. I would recommend diesel cars only if usage is higher than 2000km per month or buying an SUV.
April 6th, 2012 at 12:39 pm
Booked swift VDI,bt now confused between new gen i20 era crdi and swift.Both are same price. Lookig for power, comfort and FE and mostely concerned with maintanance cost. Feel i20 is having appealing exterier and interier, more power, leg room, boot space like a family car for comfort and luxury feeling bt want to know the maintaince cost comparing to swift. whereas swift is good in handling,lack of leg and boot space, cramped back seat and feel value of money is much less comparing to i20.
keeping the car for long and not worried with resale. city driving.
pls suggest to pick the right one
April 10th, 2012 at 11:12 pm
@Sreenath, you must have taken the test drive of both of the vehicle. After driving i20 1.4 feels more powerful and torqueie .. also space and good interior are the advantage in i20, but on the other side Swift is more FE, and comfortable, though the space seems to be lesser but ergonomically its better (Take a longer ride of both). Maintenance cost difference is not so much also the service network is pretty good for both, and the reliability is proven. Its a tough choice to make If you liked i20 go for it, for sure you would love the driving on it.
April 17th, 2012 at 11:53 pm
My usage is 12000km/year. Should I go for Vxi or Vdi of New Swift Dzire?
Cost difference is Rs 1,22,264. This is how my perception — should I invest this in FD with @ 9% rate? or should I invest on Diesel car?
Investing in FD – return is Rs 11,004 / year.
Investing on Diesel – will save Rs 22,957 / Year. See below for fuel cost and mileage assumed. Even assuming Rs 2000 more on diesel maintenance in year – saving is still 20,957…..which is way above than investing in FD.
Petrol @75/lit and mileage of 16.3/lit – will cost Rs 55,215
Diesel @50/lit and mileage of 18.6/lit – will cost Rs 32,258
Am I going in right direction and choose Diesel car? Please note, I have no plans to sell this car in future, as I feel not worth due to depreciation loss and cost of buying new car.
We might argue the investment made on car will be depreciated (but not the case with FD). But this matters ONLY if you want to sell the car.
Any comments? where you still suggest me to go for petrol (Only in financial terms), exclude all like driving fun and noise etc..
Or any anticipated financial factors, that might force me to sell the car..
April 18th, 2012 at 4:48 pm
@ Mohan In my opinion for your need still the petrol cars better
First Reason- As per your calculation it will take five years to fill the gap between these two vehicle without considering income from FD. If you consider FD interest it will take more than 8 yrs.
Second Reason- wear and tear is more in Diesel engines and engine life is lesser. No matter how good you drive after 5 yrs there will be huge difference in total maintenance cost.
Third Reason- The way diesel vehicles are increasing nobody knows what steps govt. takes the subsidy of diesel but yes if think positive then yes bio diesel could be possible substitute. In other countries petrol and diesel cost same. I suggest to just take five years from now in account and calculate your expense.
April 18th, 2012 at 10:44 pm
Thank you Abhishek. Your reasoning of 8 years makes perfect sense…With your experience/research can you elaborate how the regular servicing or maintenance cost differs between petrol and diesel cars of same car variant (let us use Swift Dzire)? Please help telling in absolute rupees rather % difference.
Just give some rough idea in practical numbers before 8 year and after 8 years.
Am I asking too much
…
April 21st, 2012 at 2:07 pm
hello abhishek sir im getting delivery of my swift dzire vxi on 1 may 2012 so please tell me what should i check pre-registration & pre-delivery ?
should i take a test drive?
April 24th, 2012 at 1:50 pm
Hi, Don’t think of me as an expert in cars. but from my experience, a diesel is better if u travel a lot and keep the car for very long. if u are doing very few KMs and often chenge it for newer models, petrol is better bcas it cost less and need less to maintain. I tell u as an example, my cousin’s M800 was bought at 11000 (2nd hand), he used it for more than 5years and sold @ 92000! decide yourself. (I am a fan of jeep, don’t like cars and thus no confusion about petrol or diesel)
April 25th, 2012 at 12:21 am
Hello all,
I am getting confusion on diesel or petrol car, which one is good for me. I am considering below points in car buying.
1. Fuel efficiency
2. Maintenance
3. comfort.
My usage will be per day 20 KM 22 days in a month, 4 week ends – 100 to 200. 2 or 3 months once 900 to visit my native place.
I have selected couple of model in petrol and diesel as well.
Petrol: Hyundai i10 Sportz and Ritz vxi.(both are at same price)
Diesel: Chev Beat LT and Ritz VDI(Ritz VDI is bit expense to me)
I heard one of new channel today. Govt going to remove the suicide on diesel. Still I am considering diesel bcz it gives more FE.
Please suggest which one is suitable to me.
April 25th, 2012 at 12:23 am
Corrections on my posting.
I had wrote suicide instead of subcide. Pls consider
May 8th, 2012 at 9:50 pm
In normal driving conditions, its the torque that matters.. not the bhp.
Modern CRDI diesels are much better than petrols.. In terms of sheer driving pleasure, mileage. Noise is comparitively more than petrol, but only marginally.
I have driven my friends FIAT PALIO MJD, and esteem 1.3 MPFI. Believe me much famed esteems 1.3L dont even stand near to MultiJet Diesels. The turbo kick will blow your mind off.. A new Swift Diesel is at 2K rpm when the speedo touches 80, which shows the effect of torque. Remember that the idle speed is 1K. What it means is that engine is not under any stress when it is cruising at 2K. remember the turbo is not even on, when it is at 2K. What it translates is that you can cruise at comfortable speeds, while keeping engine stress to a minimal level.
Even if the govt subsidy of 16 rs is taken out, still diesel is cheaper. Morover any modern diesel will give a mileage of 21km/ltr, while a famed Swift Petrol will give a 12K/liter in normal conditions. And swift Petrol K series is now 1.2L, which means that it has to work more to get the power and torque produced.
And about reliability, all new modern diesels will last a 3 Lakhs kms, with out any engine overhauling..
May 9th, 2012 at 11:40 am
Splendid analysis between Diesel Vs Petrol cars. I own Spark petrol, I would like replace its engine alone with Beat Diesel engine with necessary accessories. Would it possible and what would be cost involved. We have make a suitable mounting flange to couple the clutch unit along with Gearbox. Transmission system will not be disturbed. Would you able to consider this and respond to this and guide me suitable.
Regards,
Suria
May 11th, 2012 at 12:37 pm
Suria, I don’t have any experience in this , but I would like to understand why you want to do this? Cost or just fun and experiment? definitely it would be huge effort and this custom configuration would not be less cost efficient than replacing it with new Beat Diesel, and you need an expert to perform it correctly, not sure if still you will be get away with small niggling problems after that. Diesel engines are around 100 kg heavier than petrol engines of same size, how that weight balancing and structural modification will be done, would be interesting to see. Please share with us if you are doing this custom work, I would love to see it.
May 18th, 2012 at 11:36 am
Hi Abhishek,
I am planning to buy a diesel hatchback and did go through the diesel vs petrol comparisions. It definitely makes sense when you eloborate it with numbers. My question to you is considering that i even opt to go for a petrol variant I would still take up a loan, however it might not be as much as I would plan to go when it comes to diesel.
My usage will be around 1400kms/month, and probably 2-3 trips a year outside of bangalore which would be around 3000kms/year additional.
I am currently looking at Ford Figo diesel/Nissan Micra/Toyota Etios Liva as my 3 preferences. I will be finalizing on one by end of this week. So any inputs from you on this would also help.
May 19th, 2012 at 11:23 pm
@Preetam: For your need I would recommend Figo diesel. Your usage is suitable enough for it. Compare to Micra and Etios, Figo is bigger and has got better boot space for your quite often outdoors. Also Interior and features are more attractive then the other duo. Now Ford has good service network and support as no. of vehicle are increasing on the road. you can find more details about the Figo in my other post rightindicator.com/ford-figo-reviews/ .
May 20th, 2012 at 5:40 pm
Hi Abhishek / Sahil,
Am planning to buy a car….but my usage would be very less since i have to learn to driving, Whether its wise to buy a Diesel car in case if am driving the car twice in 2 weeks…that is 2 weeks around 50 to 100 kms. Since ppl around me say that its better to go for diesel rather than petrol due to the increasing prices. Please advise me!!!!
May 20th, 2012 at 7:18 pm
Hello Abishek,
I am getting confusion on diesel or petrol car, which one is good for me. I am considering below points in car buying.
1. Fuel efficiency
2. Maintenance
3. comfort.
My usage will be per day 20 KM 22 days in a month, 4 week ends – 100 to 200. 2 or 3 months once 900 to visit my native place.
I have selected couple of model in petrol and diesel as well.
Petrol: Hyundai i10 Sportz and Ritz vxi.(both are at same price)
Diesel: Chev Beat LT and Ritz VDI(Ritz VDI is bit expense to me)
I heard one of new channel today. Govt going to remove the subcide on diesel. Still I am considering diesel bcz it gives more FE.
Please suggest which one is suitable to me.