2018 Maruti Ertiga (LDi) base diesel variant to be discontinued soon

• The base-spec Ertiga diesel will be officially discontinued on 1 April 2019.
• Buyers who have booked the Ertiga LDi in February will get their cars delivered soon.
• The petrol-powered Ertiga will continue to be available in four variants: LXi, VXi, ZXi and ZXi+.
• The Ertiga VDi, which is currently priced from Rs 9.56 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), is now the most affordable diesel variant of the MPV.

Maruti Suzuki launched the second-gen Ertiga in India in November 2018 in four variants - L, V, Z and Z+ - with both petrol and diesel engines. At launch, the Ertiga was priced from Rs 7.44 lakh to Rs 10.90 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Now, a few months after its launch, the Indian carmaker is planning to discontinue the base-spec Ertiga diesel (LDi).

A leaked image that claims to be an email sent by the carmaker to its dealerships reveals that the 2018 Ertiga LDi will be discontinued on 1 April 2019. The email has also directed Maruti dealers to stop accepting bookings for base-spec Ertiga diesel starting 1 March 2019.

The discontinuation of LDi variant is quite surprising move considering the fact that the carmaker has no plans to offer the new 1.5-litre diesel engine, which is set to be introduced soon, in the base L variant.

• Maruti Ciaz, Ertiga Base Variants Will Not Get 1.5 Diesel Engine

The 1.3-litre Fiat-sourced diesel engine on the Ertiga makes 90PS of power and 200Nm of peak torque and comes mated to a 5-speed MT. The 1.5-litre diesel engine, on the other hand, will make 95.1PS of power and 225Nm of peak torque. It is likely to be mated to 6-speed MT.

• Maruti To Launch New MPV In 2019; Will Be Based On Ertiga

With the LDi variant set to be discontinued soon, the VDi variant will take over the role of being the most affordable diesel variant of the Ertiga. It is priced at Rs 9.56 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), which is a premium of Rs 72,000 over the LDi. The Ertiga VDi is only Rs 43,000 more affordable than the base diesel variant of the Mahindra Marazzo, prices for which start at Rs 9.99 lakh (all prices, ex-showroom Delhi).

Also Read: ​​​​​​​Toyota To Launch 2019 Maruti Baleno Facelift-based Hatchback Soon

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Disclaimer: This article has not been edited by Deccan Chronicle and is taken from a syndicated feed. Photos: CarDekho.