Chevrolet Beat Diesel - Review

The American auto biggie GM from the Indian wing has rolled out the new Chevrolet Beat Diesel on July 25, 2011 and with a price tag for the Beat diesel base variant at Rs. 4.29 lakhs and with such a price its expected that there will be a price war in the diesel segment of the hatchbacks; Chevrolet Beat diesel is the most inexpensive hatch in the diesel segment.

Chevrolet will cover all variants with the launch of Beat EV (electric) and Diesel; it has already been successful with Petrol, CNG and the LPG versions. The manufacturing unit of Beat Diesel is at Talegaon Plant, Pune and the plant is expected to produce 1.60 cars annually.

With the launch of the Smarter Beat Diesel General Motors is clearly intending to give a tough ride for the recently launched Toyota Etios Liva and also the sooner to be launched Maruthi Swift and the Honda Brio, which belong to the same segment. In fact the company dealers have started pre launch bookings for the Chevrolet Beat Diesel with a booking amount as little as Rs 5000. But before that here is a quick review of the features.

Looks - The exteriors and the interiors
For city dwellers Chevrolet Beat could be the ideal small car, as the compactly built Diesel beat seems to smoothly cruise through the traffic congestion. The first thing that catches the eye is the swish headlamps that almost stretch out to the hood and center of attraction has to be the chrome finish radiator grille. The tail lamps are round and with transparent polycarbonate lenses that gives a swanky touch to the car. The body colored bumpers and the exquisite fog lamps add to the flamboyant looks of the Beat diesel. The other expected exterior features of the new Beat are integrated rear spoiler; tubeless tyres and the tail gate handle are likely to get the body color.

Do not worry about the space in the new Chevrolet Beat, although the car looks small from the outside; it is supposed to offer enough leg and head room for the passengers and yes, similar to other small cars this one too will easily accommodate five passengers including the driver. But one possible complaint could be less luggage space. The interiors of the car are most likely dual tone accentuated and body colored instrument panel and the elegantly designed dashboard makes up for the interiors.

The high end model of Chevrolet Beat diesel will obviously be feature rich adorned with automatic brake system (ABS), dual airbags, power steering, windows and doors, crumple zone both at the front and the rear will be the safety features along with child lock and central lock system.

Engine, performance and mileage
The four versions of Chevrolet Beat diesel is expected to hold a 1.0 Liter TCDi, SMARTECH 936cc engine that could generate 57 bhp at 4000 rpm and a peak torque of 150 Nm at 1750 rpm.



Sources from the company have revealed that the new Beat will be an eco-friendly car that will emit less sound and the robust engine assures the owner of good performance and fuel efficiency. And as per the ARAI the Chevrolet Beat diesel will give you a mileage of 24 kmpl on the highway and around 16 kmpl in the city.
The PAF EPS (Pro-Vario Assist Featherlite Electronic Power Steering) facilitates for very smooth and easy drive power steering and the human comfort technology will assist for least efforts in parking as well as maneuvering the car at low speeds.

The SECP or the Smart Engine & Clutch Protection Mode will enable the Engine Protection Mode to manage the torque and the power output depending on inputs that the engine receives. There is this specially designed Clutch Assembly protection for car launch upon grades and it's perfect for Indian driving and beginners. The same technology facilitates for the fuel efficiency and prevents clutch wearing.

The GRTS (Gas Charged Rebound Tuned Suspension) is designed to maximum cushioning and aids in dynamic vehicle handling for Indian road conditions and the wide tyres give extra road grip and in turn aid in stability in high speed cornering and overall braking efficiency.

All said Beat diesel will be a performance poor and handling good hatch.

Colors, variants and price
The Chevrolet Beat diesel will be available in four variants: Chevrolet Beat diesel PS, Chevrolet Beat diesel LS, Chevrolet Beat diesel LT and Chevrolet Beat diesel LT optional. The car has various nine color options such as: Caviar Black, Sandrift Grey, Misty Lake, Moroccan Blue, Swift Blade Silver, Olympic White, Linen Beige, Super Red and Green Cocktail.
Chevrolet Beat Diesel PS - 429,000
Chevrolet Beat Diesel LS - 459,000
Chevrolet Beat Diesel LT - 499,000
Chevrolet Beat Diesel LT Option - 545,000

Verdict:
One cannot give a clear opinion about the car until a test drive but with the accumulated information so far about the Chevrolet Beat diesel tells us that the price and the quality will be the major brownie points of the car and also that it could in fact 'beat' the upcoming models in the segment. Is it? The pricing will prove a blunder for GM. Come to think of the power of 57 bhp? Its going to be a sluggish 4 wheeler on the road. If people look for ONLY (Read: Nothing else) mileage car, pay a price and own a Chevrolet Beat diesel...else wait for the new Maruti Suzuki Swift diesel. It won't let you down at least like the Beat diesel.