If you’re a fan of high-revving, sonorous petrol engines, the past few years have been quite depressing. With the skewed fuel pricing mechanism in our market, which subsidises the price of diesel, it makes more sense for consumers to opt for cars and SUV’s powered by the fuel of Satan rather than petrol – even if diesel machines are more expensive to buy and maintain. And this has led to some very odd sales ratios off late. Whereas India was primarily a petrol market for passenger cars about a decade ago, the ratio is now almost completely reversed. Consider this, if you look at the compact sedan segment, the ratio is 80:20 in favour of diesels. Needless to say, such heavily skewed sales figures have led to automakers focusing solely on diesel power. At the end of the day, everyone has to focus on what’s selling after all. Take Honda as a case in point. Historically, they made their mark on the back of their sweet i-VTEC technology – and yet they were reduced to being a peripheral player in the Indian market until they introduced a slew of diesel powered vehicles. The result of this market shift has brought us some fantastic turbocharged diesel engines with relatively big power outputs and massive torque numbers – which, at the same time, also provide excellent fuel efficiency. However, for the handful of petrol-heads left – and I consider myself one – driving a diesel is more of a forced choice rather than a preference. I still miss the high revving, beautiful sounding petrol engines that, until a few years ago, I was fortunate to drive on a daily basis. It’s addictive if I’m honest – the smoothness, the power delivery, the high rev limits, and, of course, the sound. It’s something that you just can’t get enough of. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with diesel engines today. In fact, the technology is now so far advanced that you simply can’t fault a modern day diesel engine for everyday use. After all, they’re powerful, hugely refined, and massively fuel efficient. But, for an old-school car lover like myself, the devil’s fuel just doesn’t seem right. Plus, they sound and smell pretty awful too. So, with fuel prices likely be deregulated in the near future, it gives me some hope that we still might see the return of a couple of nice petrol engines. And while I still prefer naturally aspirated power-plants, turbocharging has become so advanced that I wouldn’t mind a good, latest generation turbo-petrol! In fact, Honda’s latest line-up of engines – the turbocharged 1.0, 1.5 and 2-litre versions are prime examples of what modern petrol engines are capable of. In fact, the 2-litre turbo sounds particularly tempting – with 280bhp on tap – which I think would be a fantastic motor. So, here’s hoping that we’ll see some good petrol engines making a comeback soon – because, honestly, I’m getting a little tired of turbo diesels, and can’t wait to get my hands on a powerful, high revving, sweet sounding petrol engine.
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