[kpzen]

Caught the Brio diesel on Gurgaon road.

Was casually cruising home from office & suddenly a fully debadged BRIO with UP red plates caught my eye.
No badges on the boot, all black rims and no H logo on the front grill.

Slowed down, rolled down my window and let it pass by. Could hear the diesel clatter. Also, observed black smoke during acceleration.

Its 100 % diesel.

Sorry for the horrible mobile pics.



EDIT on 19th June, 2012 : GTO adds the Following Video

Spotted this UP-16-TC-1172 plate Brio on Marine Drive this evening. The number rang a bell from KPZen's thread, and I immediately noticed that there were no "H" badges. The brain is racing and there are only two words ringing aloud "BRIO DIESEL"

I drive up next to the unsuspecting driver with my video camera running. The dude of course denies it, but my camera keeps running . Poor chap was stuck in bumper to bumper traffic and could do absolutely nothing, even though he saw the smartphone pointing at his bonnet.

Brio Diesel SCOOP w/ engine sound : Team-BHP - YouTube

High Points:

- Quite a contrast between the diesel clatter & my Civic's sports exhaust. Please focus on the clatter in the video

- Especially pay attention from the 24-second point onward

- The car was rather loud and clatter was too obvious. This, and the car that KPZen spotted, is 100% diesel. I heard it revving 5 - 6 times in traffic.

- He tried to run away once, and the Brio diesel felt really sprightly. Definitely has great pickup.

- Yes, there was noticeable smoke under hard acceleration.

If Honda were testing a regular plate Brio with full badges et al, I wouldn't even have noticed. The fact that they tried too hard to hide gave them away.

[Vid6639]

What an excellent scoop KP. When you called me saying the Brio had no badging and UP TC plates I was sure it was the diesel.

So finally Honda has decided to join the diesel bandwagon. Let's hope they finish all the testing and get this thing out as early as possible.

Luckily they didn't try to run you over this time. Your Peted 1.5L CRDI Getz would have been no match. :-)

[suhaas307]

Super scoop!

Also, it had to happen sooner or later.

Honda can't keep selling petrol powered cars in a market that loves diesels. A diesel lump powering the Brio is a great move by Honda. I'd now like to see all Honda cars being powered by diesels.

So with the launch of the diesel Brio around the corner, one can also expect Honda to introduce a CS'd Brio some time soon. Even though I'm not looking forward to it () it would be great for our image-conscious market.

[Lalvaz]

Awesome scoop, long overdue from Honda, suddenly Indian diesel is of an acceptable quality for Honda.

[rjalihal]

So Honda has finally decided to up it's game. This comes as no surprise as Honda has seen it's market share dwindle by 20% to 30% range over the past year or two. Besides in a country like India, where diesel cars account for 60% of all passenger cars, Honda sales were on a self destruct mode. So, now the speculation, will this be i-DTEC 1.2 liter or 1.4/1.5 liter? If they price it right, it could pose a threat to the King - Swift. I expect it to hit the shelves by end of this year.

Thanks for the scoop!

Cheers!
Rohan

[swarnava.m]

This is an excellent scoop!! So FINALLY a diesel from Honda's stables!!!

I am thinking if this car is priced sensibly, what it may do to the sales of Eon and chart topper Alto, as well as eating into the market of players like Figo and Indica. After all, the 'H' badge can work magic, and knowing the Indian's obsession with diesel vehicles, it is hard to imagine this thing not being a success..

[vibbs]

A great scoop. Finally a diesel from Honda. Would love to get more news on this one. Does that mean we get to see more such diesels from Honda? What about a diesel city or jazz? This may also mean that their ertiga competitor may not be as far away as it was originally supposed to be.

[Bubby]

WOW

What a scoop. Fantastic news. Honda on the right track and if this is priced under 6.5L ( on-road ) for the top variant its gonna be once again a ace from Honda.

Cheers.

[extreme_torque]

I am still not sure if its a diesel. I would have expected Honda to launch it in City first given that a 1.6 litre engine is already in the works.

[SrikantDora]

Excellent catch kpzen. But I am little sceptical about the fact that they are testing Brio before the City Diesel because we have been hearing about the launch of City/Civic diesel for quite some time now.

This is a welcome move & going to help Honda to regain its market share. Looks like Honda is not left with any strategy apart from bringing the oil burner in to get back to where they were a year back.

[Pri2]

Did you just say Black smoke? Even the new generation indicas don't emit black smoke now a days. Tells a lot about the engine Honda is testing, if this indeed is a diesel engine.

[wilful]

Ahhh... is this the beginning of a diesel rush from Honda? Diesel Jazz, City and so on? Although this has come late - from the Honda stable - it is sooner than expected (if you know what I mean).
kpzen - this sure is a super scoop!

[superutp]

Awesome scoop! Any ideas on which/what engine Honda plans on using for the Diesel Brio?

[smashnerd]

Great scoop. Could it be Fiats 1.3L national engine under that hood? Or maybe a Renault? This should get Honda back on the front foot again if they price it sweet.

[kpzen]

Originally Posted by Pri2

Did you just say Black smoke? Even the new generation indicas don't emit black smoke now a days. Tells a lot about the engine Honda is testing, if this indeed is a diesel engine.

Put a choked filter and almost all CRDIs would start emitting black smoke under heavy acceleration.
Anyways, it was not smoking heavily. It was just an observation to confirm its a DIESEL.