Tata didn’t need to do much to the Indica, but it’s put in a turbocharger. Sushant Balsekar discovers a much tastier recipe

When Tata Motors, then TELCO, had revamped the Indica and called it the V2, they played it smart by retaining the sticker price. That instantly got applause for Tata Motors’ buyer-friendliness. Sales shot up and the Indica got a boost. It got a boost again recently, this time with a turbo and an inter-cooler and 68bhp on tap. Say hello to the turbocharged Indica diesel.
The Indica platform reminds me of Lego. Mount plastic blocks one on top of the other and make a character or a vehicle out of it.
If you ever go to the Tata Motors plant you'll see that the body parts of the Indica, Indigo and the Marina float around on the same assembly line. And now with the Indica getting the Indigo's 70bhp inter-cooled turbo-diesel, the circle is complete. The 2bhp difference in maximum power between the Indigo and the Indica is only ECM tweaking.
After the engine transplant the Indica TD has risen above its tourist-cab status. This motor was always rev-happy; bottom-end is not great but once the turbo spools in, it’s very quick and raspy. You could perhaps match the petrol Indica in clogged city conditions. Actually this is self-development, as the Indica diesel has no direct rivals in its class. The Palio 1.9D is largely redundant and not turbo-charged. It doesn't sell either. So the Indica's king. And a more tractable engine in an already hot-selling car is the olive in a Martini.
The gearshift has the same old rubbery feel to it (not surprising) and the transmission is still clunky, but a turbo and inter-cooler mean better fuel efficiency (we'll have to confirm that.) But the Indica's cheap (we all know) and that matters.
Interestingly, Tata Motors has not replaced the non-turbo fleet completely. Only the DLG and DLX variants get the new engine. Equipment lists for these two are unchanged, and there is a miniscule price increase, no more than an extra EMI if you buy it on finance.
And you’ll buy it, I expect. A peppy, efficient turbodiesel under glowing skin is very much the politically correct recipe for a hot product.