As India Auto Inc inches closer to conforming to the mandatory BS VI emission regulations which come into effect from April 1, 2020, OEMs have started announcing their preparedness to meet the rather tough emission targets.

In the two-wheeler space, this calls for an 85 percent reduction in NOx, a 25 percent reduction in the evaporative fumes while refilling fuel and a 29 percent decrease in the CO (carbon monoxide) released from all gasoline-powered two-wheelers. While most mass-market two-wheeler products, both scooters and motorcycles have been running on carburettors, BS VI will determine a needful shift to electronic fuel injection systems (EFI) to adhere to these parameters.

India's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, Hero MotoCorp today announced having received its first BS VI certification for the Splendor iSmart 100cc from testing agency International Centre for Automotive Technology (iCAT). In a press conference held in New Delhi, Dinesh Tyagi, director, iCAT conferred the certificate to Markus Feichtner, AVP, R&D, Hero MotoCorp. 

L-R: Dinesh Tyagi, director, iCAT; Markus Feichtner, AVP, R&D, Hero MotoCorp, and Pamela Tikku, chief business officer, iCAT.

How the iSmart got a fix on BS VI
The Splendor iSmart needed to be equipped with a closed-loop catalytic converter system, a fuel canister, an EFI unit, an ECU and lambda (O2) sensor to be able to meet the stringent emission requirements set under BS VI. While all the work has been done in-house by Hero's R&D centre CIT, in Jaipur, the company, which is the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, hasn't unveiled when it actually aims to launch the Splendor iSmart BS VI version. 

While OEMs only got a limited amount of time to leapfrog an entire generation of regulations after the BS IV norms which were only implemented in April 2017, the race to the goalpost is on and OEMs, Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers and homologation agencies such as the iCAT have been working hand-in-hand to achieve the strict regulations set by the government. 

"OEMs have faced a tough challenge due to the short timeline for the conformance to the new emission regulations. iCAT is diligently helping them in their accord as we have 19 engine test beds, six emissions test beds and three mileage accumulation test beds at our centre in Gurgaon," said Tyagi at the conference. 

"Many projects are on and we are assisting the industry to achieve the target of complying to BS VI norms well in time," he added. 

Interestingly, in the four-wheeler segment, iCAT has already issued BS VI certification to the latest Maruti Suzuki Alto hatchback, as well as to Honda's newly launched Civic sedan. 

ICAT is the premier testing and certification agency authorised by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) for giving testing and certification services to the vehicle and component manufacturers situated within India and abroad.