Mahindra & Mahindra, has rolled out the 2015 Mahindra XUV500 face lift in India at a starting price of Rs. 11.21 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi). The new styling, up-market cabin and a few mechanical updates, makes the new XUV500 a better product. The company has also introduced a new top-end model - the W10 - priced at Rs. 15.99 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi). The different variants and its price ex showroom New Delhi are given below.
1. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 W4 – INR 11.21 lakhs
2. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 W6 – INR 12.48 lakhs
3. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 W8 – INR 14.18 lakhs
4. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 W8 AWD – INR 14.99 lakhs
5. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 W10 – INR 14.99 lakhs
6. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 W10 AWD – INR 15.99 lakhs
The front fascia of the XUV500 facelift is redesigned with new headlight enclosures and S-shape LED light guides. The front bumper has chrome-plated Foglight enclosures and new air damps. 2015 XUV500 gets new 10-spoke alloy wheels and chrome lining for the windows and comes in two new colors, Sunset Orange and Pearl White. 2015 Mahindra XUV500 has features such as a passive keyless entry with push button start, an electric sunroof with anti-pinch function, logo projection lamps on the wing mirrors, 6-way power adjustable driver seat, 7-inch touchscreen navigation system with reverse camera, Mahindra BlueSense app, dual-tone black-and-beige dashboard, beige leather seats and ‘Icy Blue’ lighting.
The new XUV500 has a 2.2-liter four-cylinder diesel engine which produces 140 bhp and 330 Nm of torque, paired to a 6-speed manual transmission. Improved dynamic torque and the fuel efficiency of the SUV with a new ECU. A Brake Energy Recuperation System is fitted on the XUV500. Enhanced suspension at the front and rear promises all-round stability and better comfort. The XUV500 facelift also has a ESP-9 with a rollover mitigation system for better control.
"We plan to launch nine products including two all-new compact SUVs and refreshes of current models during the current fiscal," said Powan Goenka, executive director, Mahindra & Mahindra during the launch. After the launch of the 2015 XUV500 facelift, Mahindra & Mahindra announced that they will be launching 9 more cars this year, out of which 3 will be all new, 3 major refreshes and 3 minor refreshes.
The face lifted XUV 500 will compete with Nissan Terrano, Tata Safari Storme and Renault Duster in the segment. The company plans to explore and increase the share in the Indian market of SUVs from the existing 15% to something similar to the global SUV market of about 40%. Mahindra already enjoys a market share of 60%.
Mahindra claims, that it is the India's fastest selling SUV with 1,00,000 units were sold in just less than 3 years. It sold 36,229 units between Oct 11 and Sept 12. The New Age XUV 500 has two major things going for it - price and the features. The top end new W10 variant is a full Rs. 82,000 cheaper than the Innova ZX which is priced at Rs.15,81,000 ex showroom Delhi. It also offers increased fuel efficiency of 16 kmpl.
Company aspires to its customer base with a completely home-built product from the Chakan-Pune India plant. The vehicle is most likely to go for global markets too. Most of the vehicle parts are 90% localized and the company is exploring new ways to make the product 100% localized. Make in India is a very big boost for company’s this aspiration.
By Premji
