Honda Boosts Output 67% for Its First Diesel in India

Surging demand in India is prompting Honda Motor Co. to raise monthly output of its diesel-powered Amaze small sedan by two-thirds to 10,000 units, The Nikkei reports.

The car, which debuted in India in April, is powered by a 1.5-liter four-cylinder turbo diesel engine rated at nearly 61 mpg. The $7,700 four-door is a variant of Honda's Brio $6,300 five-door hatch.

The company has been making about 6,000 Amaze cars per month at its plant in Uttar Pradesh, but Honda amassed a backlog of some 20,000 units in August, according to The Nikkei. It says the company expects to sell roughly 38,000 Amaze cars in the fiscal year that began April 1 more than half its total sales in India the previous year.

Honda says the Uttar Pradesh factory, which has employed 2,600 workers on two shifts, will add 1,000 employees and add a third shift in November. Components for the Amaze's diesel engine come from a factory that opened in April at the company's manufacturing complex in Tapukara in the state of Rajasthan.

Diesel-powered cars are increasingly popular in India because government taxes make gasoline more expensive than diesel fuel.

The Nikkei reported last week that Honda plans to introduce diesel-powered versions of its Brio, city and Fit subcompact cars.