Should You Consider Buying A BS6 Diesel Car Right Now?

Thinking of buying a BS6 diesel car? This is what you need to know before taking the final decision.

New Delhi: Some years back the price gap between diesel and petrol fuel was high and that meant that diesel was the preferred choice. All car-makers offered diesel and customers loved the high fuel economy plus the lower cost of running compared to a petrol. Then things changed and slowly the price difference reduced between petrol and diesel plus the diesel-gate scandal broke out and that tarnished the reputation of diesel. What resulted was a war on diesel and stricter emissions were called upon. In India you had two big developments with the move from BS4 to BS6 plus in Delhi NCR registration of diesel cars was capped to 10 years. With this diesel car sales have fallen and also due to BS6, the cost of making one has made many car-makers stop making diesel altogether. Maruti has stopped making diesel cars and so have Volkswagen, Renault plus others. However while diesel car sales have fallen, it still makes sense in certain terms and it is not going to be banned or be going away anytime in the future. We explain whether it makes sense to buy a diesel car today or not. Is diesel a lot more polluting? If you count BS4 cars or older cars, then yes, diesel cars are a lot more polluting than petrol cars. However the move to BS6 has bought in a massive change to diesel cars with their emissions being much lower and therefore new diesel BS6 cars are much cleaner. Modern day diesel BS6 cars have various modifications to bring down the sulphur and nitrogen content on them. Plus now BS6 engines have an on-board diagnostic and real driving emission for real time emission data. Diesel BS6 cars on top of that have a particulate filter too. For big cars diesel still makes more sense While diesel cars under Rs 10 lakh have gone down with the Tata Altroz being the only diesel hatchback, in terms of bigger sedans and SUVs, diesel still rules the roost. Diesel engines have more torque and for heavy/big SUVs it still makes sense. Hence cars like the Tata Harrier for example are available in diesel only or the fact that the MG Hector diesel is a much better car than the Hector petrol. Same is the case with the Jeep Compass. Diesel cars are a lot more efficient In terms of fuel economy-surely a bigger factor in today's times of higher fuel prices, the diesel car beats petrol easily. For example a Kia Seltos diesel which is one of the few diesel SUVs below the Rs 20 lakh price point, delivers more than 21 kmpl in highways to 17 kmpl in the city- something which even a petrol hatchback cannot give. Along with that a diesel car will run 650-700 km on a full tank thus giving better range and going long distances easily without stopping. Diesel cars are better now There was a time when diesel was thought to be a noisy engine and also being a bit rough or high on maintenance. Now for example the Kia Seltos here has a BS6 1.5l diesel which is really quiet plus very smooth. New-age BS6 diesel cars are nearly as quieter as petrols. Fuel availability That is a big concern when buying a BS6 engined diesel car as since BS6 fuel might not be available everywhere. Well nearly all fuel pumps are now stocked with BS6 fuel. But also a BS6 diesel car like the Kia Seltos can run on BS4 fuel. Plus unlike other BS6 SUVs, the Seltos does not require an adblue tank also. Price of diesel cars and re-sale It was thought that BS6 diesel cars would be too expensive but that has not been true. In-fact diesel cars have become cheaper now than ever with the price difference between petrol and diesel getting narrower. The Kia Seltos as seen here in diesel form is only Rs 35,000 more expensive in terms of the entry-level petrol and diesel models. Yes, in terms of re-sale the diesel car, 5 or 10 years from now will have a lower re-sale particularly in Delhi NCR for the rule. Verdict If your monthly usage is less than 50 km a day or less than 1500 km a month then buy a petrol car no question. So unless you drive a lot a petrol makes more sense. But if you drive around 50km plus a day and clock in around 2000km a month or more than 1500km a month then a diesel still makes sense to buy. Plus a diesel is now even better considering that BS6 has made it much more refined now yet it is still very efficient and also crucially it is kinder to the environment than ever before