Average fuel efficiency of cars in India to be 18.2kmpl from 2017
The Indian government has started taking a keen interest in the automotive industry since 2014. However, things don't always fall on the automobile manufacturers side. This piece of news will now as a matter of rejoicing for the automobile buyers but a bit more of R&D from the manufacturer's end. Looks like 2017 is the new start date though. The Government of India will reportedly set a standard fuel efficiency target of 18.2kmpl for cars and utility vehicles starting from 2017.
These new mileage norms will show a 15 per cent improvement from the current efficiency numbers that manufacturers quote. Starting from October 2017, the government will also enforce stringent safety rules on cars which will include airbags as well as ABS to be made mandatory. This will need the manufacturers to also work on structural reinforcement which means the overall weight of the automobile will go up. The government also caps the average weight of a vehicle at 1,145kg which means extensive research which will focus on weight savings along with safety features as well as high fuel economy for all passenger vehicles. The rule though will be slightly altered to suit goods carriers and buses.
There however is a catch. Vehicles which will not deliver 18.2kmpl in 2017 can still be sold in the Indian market. However, the average fuel efficiency of all the cars that the manufacturer makes should be 18.2kmpl. For example if X car were to deliver 17.0kmpl while Y does 20kmpl and the manufacturer only has these two cars in its portfolio, X can still continue to be sold as the mean average comes to more than 18.2kmpl. Come 2022, the average standard fuel efficiency of all cars will be rated at a high 22kmpl. The increase in efficiency will translate to savings of nearly Rs 90,000crore per year, a report says.
Source: ET Auto