Rumour: Hyundai mulls 1.4-litre diesel engine for Xcent

Hyundai Motor India is rumoured to be considering a larger and more powerful diesel engine for its Xcent compact sedan. According to a tweet by Gaadiwaadi, the company is exploring the possibility of plonking a 1.4-litre diesel engine in the car.

Hyundai already has a 1.4-litre CRDi engine in its portfolio which it uses in the Elite i20 hatchback and Verna sedan. It produces 89 bhp and 220 Nm of torque and comes mated to a 6-speed manual transmission.

At present the Xcent is available with a 1.1-litre U2 diesel engine. Producing 71 bhp and 180 Nm of torque, it is, on paper, not quite as powerful as rivals such as the Honda Amaze (98 bhp, 200Nm) and the higher variants of the recently launched Tata Zest (89 bhp, 200Nm). The introduction of the new engine will bring the Xcent at par with the Amaze and Zest.