All Mercedes-Benz India Cars To Be BSVI-Compliant By End of 2019

Diesel engines to be upgraded first followed by petrol powerplants across Merc’s Indian lineup

Mercedes-Benz India is all set to upgrade its current portfolio from BSIV to BSVI by the end of next year. While speaking to CarDekho about moving the existing portfolio from BSIV to BSVI, Roland Folger, MD & CEO, Mercedes-Benz India, said, “Everything will be done [moved to BSVI standards] by end of 2019.” The government has made it mandatory for all new cars to be BSVI-compliant from April 1, 2020.

The just-launched Mercedes-Benz S-Class facelift became the first BSVI-compliant diesel car in the country. The S-Class is also available with a petrol engine but that is still BSIV-compliant only. Folger, however, said that the S-Class petrol will also move to BSVI standards in 2018. At present the Mercedes-Maybach S 560 and S 650 are the only petrol cars in Mercedes-Benz’s India lineup that comply with BSVI emission norms.

Most other carmakers in India who also sell cars globally have BSVI-compatible engines powering their cars outside India. But they have expressed concern in the past about running their BSVI engines on BSIV-grade fuel. Clearing the air about the same, Roland Folger told us that the S-Class’ new diesel engine will run on BSIV-grade fuel without any hiccups. He said, “This is a BSVI diesel engine which can take BSVI fuel and the exhaust will also conform to BSVI standards, as confirmed by the ARAI.” This not only makes the Mercedes-Benz S 350 d the cleanest diesel car in India but also puts it right alongside any BSVI petrol car as far as tailpipe emissions are concerned.

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While automakers across the globe are pulling the plug on diesel cars, Mercedes-Benz is confident that its diesel technology will blossom in the BSVI era. Firstly, Folger explained, BSVI diesel engines will be as clean as petrol engines as far as tailpipe emissions are concerned, so there’s no power now that can ban diesel cars for excessive pollution compared to petrol cars. The other reason, he said, is that CO2 emission is directly linked to fuel consumption. Since diesel engines are more fuel efficient than petrols, they exhale less CO2 as well.

Folger also mentioned that whenever it gets an opportunity, Mercedes-Benz will move its existing BSIV cars to BSVI ones. He also explained that there are about 10 launches that Mercedes-Benz has planned for 2018. The Stuttgart-based automaker has already launched two new vehicles in the country till now: the Mercedes-Maybach S650 and the S-Class facelift. The luxury carmaker also showcased the upcoming E-Class All-Terrain at the Auto Expo 2018 but Folger said that that’s not coming to India in the next couple of months. We expect all new cars from Mercedes-Benz in India to draw power from BSVI engines from here onwards.

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