Kindled by the success of the petrol-driven Hyundai i10 here in India, the Korean car major, Hyundai, has scheduled a diesel version of the Hyundai i10 by next year.

The new diesel version of the i10 is likely to come with a 1.1 L CRDi engine. This diesel engine will be more fuel efficient and will offer improved drivability due to its higher torque output compared to the petrol. The diesel version of the compact car is expected to be expensive compared to the petrol-powered i10.

Though the car’s transmission will be built in its Chennai plant, Hyundai Motor India will be importing the engines from its parent company in South Korea. At present, the Indian arm of the Korean automaker has a petrol engine plant at Sriperumbudur near Chennai which makes Kappa and Gamma engine.

Hyundai is the second largest car manufacturer in India. Hyundai holds a market share around 20 per cent in the passenger cars segment. The Korean car company is counting to scale it up to over 25 per cent by 2012. In order to strengthen its hold further in the car market, Hyundai Motor Company has plans to launch new cars in India.

The i10 diesel is going to be the smallest diesel car in India. Hyundai has recently introduced the diesel variant of the i20 in India. It is also planning to roll out the entire i-series cars in Indian car bazaar.