Toyota
is considering a diesel version of the Corolla Altis for the Indian
market. The all-new Altis was launched this month with only the
1.8-litre petrol carried over from the previous model. The new Corolla has a 2.0-litre engine for the European market.
It would have been logical to introduce this motor to the Indian
market, where diesel luxury saloons are fast gaining popularity.
However, the European Corolla has different mounting points for the
engine which makes the transplant of the diesel motor to the Altis a
complicated process. “There will be serious engineering changes to
adapt the European Corolla’s diesel to the Altis and given the volumes
we anticipate, we don’t think it’s viable to do this,” said a senior
Toyota executive.
However, Toyota is considering its smaller 1.4-litre turbo-diesel that
powers the Yaris hatchback for the Corolla as well. Toyota engineers
have hinted that its compact 1.4 motor could be boosted to give more
power in the 90-100bhp range and transplanting it to the Corolla is a
relatively straightforward process.
There is no official confirmation from Toyota on its plans for a diesel
Corolla but we expect it to be in Indian showrooms by mid-2009. soruce- ACI
Sri
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