Honda Mobilio gets ready with its road tests.

Honda Cars India, now that it has a thrifty diesel engine as well as a great petrol engine, are gearing up to launch the mobilio multi purpose vehicle (MPV) in India. The MPV is expected to be launched around July 4, 2014. The vehicle is a mid-size stylish 7-seater MPV.

Though several news reports talked about the cars being dispatched to dealerships across the country, the company continues to test the car for its braking etc. The car was seen being tested at a test facility in the country for its ABS and other parameters. ABS tests are done on specially laid out tracks with ground installed water jets spraying water on the track for the car to be tested for its grip while braking on a wet surface.

The testing ground also had a well laid out speed track to test the speed of the vehicle as well as other crucial parameters like road handling, cornering etc. The Mobilio will be pitted directly against the Maruti Ertiga, a popular MPV from Maruti Suzuki and also the Enjoy from General Motors India. All three vehicles are likely to compete and also expand the market for reliable MPVs in the country. Toyota Kirloskar’s Multi Utility Vehicle Innova is in a different league with a much more powerful engine and seating capacity.

 The Honda Mobilio has already been launched in Indonesia, and now it has been caught by Motown India team while being tested in a proved test ground in the country. The car will be manufactured at the Greater Noida plant of Honda Car India.

The Mobilio diesel will definitely be powered by a 1.5 iDTEC engine that is doing wonders in the Amaze and City sedans. This thrifty engine delivers as much as 25.8 km per liter of diesel fuel. A lot of inner fascia features are likely to be carried into the Mobilio too. As for the petrol engine, the option could be either the 1.2l iVTEC or 1.5l iVTEC. Sources say that a 1.2liter could be slightly underpowered for a car of this size. Prices of the Mobilio could be upwards of Rs 6. 4 lakh.