The Amaze was the first Honda car in
India to feature a diesel engine in the form of the 1.5-litre i-DTEC. No one
who has driven the car will deny that the engine is tremendously driveable and
efficient. We dive under the Amaze's bonnet this month to see what exactly this
engine is all about
In India, the fact that with the price
difference between petrol and diesel heavily skewed in favour of the latter for
years means that more than a fair share of customers in the mid-size sedan
segment want a diesel engine under the bonnets of their cars. Since the Amaze's
launch last year, the car has been selling quite well, especially in its diesel
avatar, playing an able role in the Honda India growth story.
The
Honda Amaze has been made specifically for the Asian market, specially India,
as demand for compact sedans is very high
Based on Honda's Earth Dreams Technology,
the 1,498-cc DOHC i-DTEC common-rail turbocharged diesel engine is a
high-pressure die-cast all-aluminium unit. Its cylinder-head is joined to an open-deck
engine block. As a consequence, the Amaze's engine is the lightest diesel
engine in its torque performing class. Additionally, the use of a lightweight
crankshaft along with several friction-reducing technologies mean Honda have
been able to cut down mechanical friction and the output losses arising thereof
to levels prevalent in petrol engines. Over and above that, this i-DTEC unit
uses low-viscosity engine oil - the oil actually has the lowest viscosity in
the world - which has been developed especially for this engine.
Its torque of 200 Nm peaks at a lowly 1,750
RPM with most of that developing even below those revs. Naturally, the Amaze's
engine pulls from nearly the bottom of the rev range and keeps pulling cleanly
to its maximum of 100 PS at 3,600 RPM. What you have, therefore, is a car that
can be driven at speeds close to stalling (which is a shade slower than
crawling) without engine knock. At the same time, there is enough spunk under
the bonnet to drive to a weekend destination with the family without any
effort.
The
dashboard is exactly similar to the Brio’s. Its pushed into the A-Pillars for
excellent knee room
In fact, after three back-to-back long
distance trips, we thought we'd give the Amaze a break from the highways. We
are happy to report that over the past three weeks that I've been driving the
car through Pune's crowded and slow-moving traffic, I am yet to see less than
15 km/1 on the trip computer (15 being the lowest it has shown so far). This
again is the result of that torque being developed really low in the rev range,
which means you can drive in pretty much any condition (other than stop and go)
without having to shift too much. Those dollops of torque also make overtaking,
be it on a short stretch of road or on a highway, a child's play. Just dab a
little on the throttle and the Amaze gathers pace with a purpose that matches
your own intent to take you safely past the vehicle ahead.
The
Amaze gets class-leading rear seat space. The center arm rest is useful
Overall, I would have to say that over the
three weeks that I have been living with this car within city limits, I have no
reason to complain. The Amaze does everything I ask of it, irrespective of
whether I am feeling enthusiastic or if I just want to crawl back home after a
hard day's work. At the same time, I find myself visiting the pump far less
frequently than I have with other cars of a similar size. So, if you ask me, so
far as this engine's anatomy goes, I'd say it's the Vitruvian Man of its
category.
