Fiat's 1.3L Multijet diesel engine to be discontinued by 2020

Fiat India might drop its 1.3-litre Multijet (BS-IV) diesel engine by 2020. A media report suggests that Fiat has no plans to upgrade the engine to comply with Bharat Stage VI emission norms to be introduced in 2020.

Maruti Suzuki has been Fiat's biggest customer and has been building the 1.3-litre Multijet engine locally under license. The engine has proved to be highly reliable, economical and has been cost effective for India's largest car maker. It has been used in the Swift, Dzire, Vitara Brezza, Ertiga, Ignis, Baleno and Ciaz. However, reports say that Maruti is developing its own 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder diesel engine to replace the 1.3-litre Multijet. This new motor will be BS-VI compliant and is expected to be introduced on the next-gen Ciaz.

Similarly, Tata Motors has developed a 1.5-litre diesel for the upcoming Nexon. The smaller 1.05-litre diesel offered on the Tiago was also developed in-house. Eventually, Tata will phase out the Fiat-sourced 1.3-litre Multijet and replace it with the company's own engines. 

Thus, with two of its main customers moving to new engines, there would be fewer takers for Fiat's 1.3-litre Multijet. Secondly, Fiat's own sales volumes are too small to justify the development costs to upgrade the engine to be BS-VI compliant. Hence, it looks highly unlikely that Fiat would continue to offer the 1.3-litre Multijet beyond 2020.

Source: Autocar