General Motors will launch the Chevrolet Beat Diesel in the second week of July, 2011. However, we got our hands on the car for a brief time and are impressed with the work GM engineers have done on the diesel Beat. For starters, the Chevrolet Beat Diesel uses a 936cc, 3-cylinder engine, which develops 57 bhp of power at 4000 RPM and 150 Nm of torque at 1750 RPM. The engine in the car we got our hands on, was labeled ECOTEC (the one which NDTV tested though read SMARTECH). The low end response is very good and the Chevrolet Beat Diesel does not feel sluggish at all. The clutch is light but the gearbox felt little hard to shift around. However since the unit was a pre-production one, we can expect the gearbox to be much better on the production car.
The Chevrolet Beat Diesel sports excellent NVH levels. Don’t believe us? Checkout the video above in which we revv the car all the way to its redline at 5000 RPM. The electric power steering in the Beat Diesel is a breeze to use and makes parking in tight spots very easy. Everything else is the same on the diesel Beat except the audio system which now sports both a USB and an Aux out point. The company has also tweaked the suspension for comfort, something which weren’t able to make out during our short stint with the diesel Beat. GM was trying to achieve mileage figures close to 28 kmpl and the Beat TCDi has got an ARAI certification of 24 kmpl. This makes it the most fuel efficient CRDi car in the country.
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Harish July 1, 2011 at 12:40 am
Wow, great initial impressions, I think this car will sell if priced well. Waiting for the full blown review.
Harshad July 1, 2011 at 10:19 am
Hows engine noise? Askin as its a diesel!
fas July 2, 2011 at 1:12 am
Harshad, engine noise is very less. You can barely hear the car at idle.
Rohit July 1, 2011 at 10:57 am
looks good, I would also like to get my hands on it.
Sachin July 1, 2011 at 12:51 pm
If they price it well under figo diesel then it will do well in market else figo will take the cake.
Hunky July 1, 2011 at 3:17 pm
How is the performance of the engine ?? Top end ??
fas July 2, 2011 at 1:11 am
Performance is good. But top end is just like diesel, flat.
Mas July 25, 2011 at 8:11 pm
I am upgrading from an ford Ikon to a Beat Diesel( as the mileage is killing!!! ) – I am looking at long weekends on the highway. what would you suggest – especially with the tyre size that beat comes in.
Amit Chakravorty July 2, 2011 at 11:12 am
Hi Fas,
is the performance comparable to ford figo,I have heard that the turbo lag is even less than that of figo(which itself has very less lag).is that true? also do you reckon that it would perform better than the figo overall (top end,0-100 etc) .I am thinking of getting a figo but this again looks tempting hence the confusion.
plz help me out.
fas July 2, 2011 at 11:38 am
Amit, yes the performance is better than the Figo at low revvs. The Beat Diesel has considerably lesser turbo lag compared to the Figo. But the 0-100 and top end of the Figo is better. I would suggest you get the Beat if you want fuel efficiency, the Figo is a better car overall.
Amit Chakravorty July 2, 2011 at 11:53 am
Thanks a bunch Fas for the feedback,should be relatively easy now to go for figo
fas July 3, 2011 at 11:03 am
Amit, your most welcome buddy.
Hunky July 2, 2011 at 3:48 pm
Swift is having a pretty healthy wating time, so that comes to only Figo and Indica :P for a quick buy..
Punto is there too, but TATA guys are not much keen to sell Punto :(..
sidd July 2, 2011 at 4:56 pm
did i saw some smoke at the end of the video ?????????????
fas July 3, 2011 at 11:02 am
Sidd, where did you see smoke?
Narayann July 3, 2011 at 12:55 am
All diesels smoke on and off. Nothing to worry. And did’nt he say – we revved the Beat upto it’s redline – What did you expect??
sidd July 3, 2011 at 11:33 am
@fas sea carefully near the driver ac wents
@narayna thank you i don’t have a such experience with diesel
fas July 3, 2011 at 12:36 pm
Sidd, that smoke is from a cigarette and not from the car. Nice observation :)
RS July 4, 2011 at 3:38 pm
i’m currently driving a 4.5 yr old indica v2 and would like to upgrade. i have been looking at punto 90, but beat diesel also seems like a gr8 option, considering the size, price and features on offer. what do u suggest?
fas July 4, 2011 at 3:43 pm
RS, honestly there is no comparison between the Fiat Grande Punto and the Beat. The Punto is in another segment. If you want a good overall car get the Punto, but if your looking at city commute and fuel efficiency, the Beat Diesel is for you.
parinay July 9, 2011 at 12:31 pm
wooow i did not think gm could have pulled it off…. the engine is really very silent….
neeraj July 12, 2011 at 5:02 pm
for sasti sunder & tikaou tata indica is the best car
pradeep July 13, 2011 at 8:08 pm
super hit machine best suitable machine for middle class going to be generalmotors big son
Joy July 18, 2011 at 9:18 pm
Hi,
Just wanted to know which car would be the best between Beat & Indica ev2, as both claim the same ARAI average & even space & comfort wise, as planning to buy a ev2.
fas July 18, 2011 at 11:05 pm
Joy, the Chevrolet Beat is a better option any day.
adi September 17, 2011 at 8:54 pm
Even with all this, its not selling that well!
shreyas September 21, 2011 at 6:35 pm
still not the best car in the segment because figo is that little bigger