The diesel-powered Tata Nano has once again been spotted testing, this time, around their manufacturing plant in Pimpri, Pune. Set for an early-2014 release, the car was spotted by a team at Autocolumn.
Going by the pictures, the diesel Nano has few cosmetic differences which include a revised bumper housing a bigger air inlet, along with rounded fog lights. The front bumper’s honeycomb grille style is carried over to the rear bumper of the car and the exhaust pipe has been moved to the left. With an openable hatch to be introduced, so we can also expect a small boot.
The engine and transmission will be evolutions of the Ace pick-up truck's drivetrain to control costs. Tata might have also put in some effort to bring down the NVH levels to acceptable ones. The car will be powered by a 800cc, three-pot engine fitted with the turbocharger being supplied by Garett. We can expect around of 42bhp from the mill with a mileage of more than 30kmpl.
Tata seems to be putting in a lot of efforts to re-develop the Nano's image. After revealing a new facelifted version in July, Tata had introduced a new CNG-powered Nano eMax in October and the power-steering verion, Nano Twist, is set to be launched next month. Tata now seems to understand that the absence of basic features have reflected on the badly on the Nano and lead to low sales figures of the hatchback. Tata’s plant in Sanand, Gujurat has an annual capacity of producing 2,50,000, cars but due to the low demand, it is operating at barely 20 per cent capacity. Pricing the Nano properly will be crucial for the hatchback to succeed. Once launched, it is sure to become the cheapest diesel car in India, but by how much, remains to be seen.
