Review : Mahindra KUV 100 Diesel

The KUV 1oo is Mahindra’s latest addition to it’s alphanumeric portfolio of SUVs. Mahindra calls it ‘Kool Utility Vehicle’. Though we don’t really find the ‘Kool’ cool, lets admit that one can’t really look just once at it.

Mahindra has been playing the ‘being radical’ card ever since the launch of it’s blockbuster XUV 5oo with a lot of design related drama, burst of features and utility. But of late, it has not been just about being radical. Mahindra’s focus has shifted to being disruptive.

On paper, the specifications, dimensions, construction and the Front Wheel Drive configuration of the KUV 1oo screams out ‘hatchback’. But Mahindra doesn’t subscribe to that thought orientation. The KUV 1oo is marketed as a ‘young SUV’ and the concept is being perceived well enough.

Apart from the unconventional looks, Mahindra introduces it’s first indigenously built 3 cylinder K82 petrol and D75 diesel engines with the KUV. Given the ‘young SUV’ tag and the price point it is offered at, the vehicle places itself as competition to Maruti Suzuki’s Celerio, Honda’s Brio, Hyundai’s Grand i10 and the upcoming Tata’s Tiago (earlier called Zica).

Armed with a line-up of 24 variants — petrol and diesel, 5 seater and 6 seater options put together, the KUV is generous on what it offers with ABS standard on all variants — which is a radical move by itself.

The Outside

Being very unconventional, the KUV gets a lot of appeal — both positive and negative. It is not a car that your eyes can simply ignore. Even to a not-so-car person, the KUV will command another couple of looks forcing a judgment.

But, this has a down side too. ‘Wow!’ and ‘Eww’ are the only two positive outcomes to the way it looks. It invites very polarized opinions just like the TUV 3oo. But unlike the TUV, the KUV’s looks don’t grow on you like an A.R. Rahman song. One would buy it only when sufficiently confident about the looks.

The unconventionality is because of one sole reason — the KUV is more of a ‘wannabe’ SUV than a hatchback. It aspires to be one, but just can’t try any harder. Just like the XUV 5oo, the KUV doesn’t take design elements lightly. It’s got loads of them.

First thing that catches your eye would be the swept back headlamps that extend to the length of the hood and the LED Daytime Running Lights (available only in the K8 variant). Each headlamp unit is essentially made of 3 compartments — the swept back area has the KUV badging on the right side of the car and the mFalcon engine badging on the left, the second compartment houses the LED DRL and turn indicators and the third compartment houses the main headlamp. The two headlamp units are cleverly merged by a thin front grille that is actually quite unlike Mahindra’s usual design work but more like what Ford’s design work with the EcoSport. The fake skid plate gets a mention too.

The lower portion of the bumper is still black plastic that gives you a dual tone colour experience irrespective of the wackiest colour choices the KUV comes with. (check our pictures of our test drive for what we mean by ‘wacky’)

The sides have a very busy profile with a design accent at the bottom of the doors and a significantly thick crease starting from the rear door and stretching all the way up to the tail lamps. The Chevrolet Beat-like rear door handles add to the unconventionality, but it does not make the ingress any easier.

The wide rear profile and the large tail lamps give an impression of a car that’s dimensionally bigger than what the KUV actually is. The dual tone colour continues here as well. The short roof integrated spoiler adds some minor styling points. Mahindra has also worked to ensure that the rear exhaust pipe and the suspension components are well hidden unlike the TUV.

What would be the most disturbing about the KUV is the comical disproportion between the abnormally tall body and the tiny 14 inch wheels that it runs on. Upgrading to a 15 inch could save up some space in the wheel making it look more EcoSport-ish.

Overall, the looks department is completely subjective given the complexity and high dosage of design elements Mahindra has chosen to proceed with. It’s a matter of how you see yourself next to it at the end of the day.

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Getting Inside

Inside the car is where the package surprises you.

There is a good balance of familiarity and strangeness when you get inside the KUV. The familiar steering wheel and instrument cluster borrowed from the TUV welcome you to the driver seat.

What initially surprised me after the first interior shots of the KUV were out was the fact that Mahindra decided to develop a fresh new dashboard. I had first assumed them to share components and a good chunk of the TUV’s. Kudos to that.

A quick look at this new dashboard is bound to surprise you. What strikes out as the most unconventional is the dash mounted gear lever that is not found in any Mahindra, ever. Mahindra also brings in a touch from the past by utilizing old school parking brake levers. (Which you can also find in the Datsun Go, Go +)

Ergonomically, the placement of the 5 inch entertainment system and associated buttons occupying the top of the dash’s central console is not the best. One has to stretch to operate most buttons. Also there is an understandably direct relationship with the cost of the vehicle to the quality of the plastic. I wouldn’t say it’s great, but it’s certainly not the worst on offer. On the other hand, the music player and speakers do a good job when it comes to the sound quality.

The AC knobs and dials are neatly arranged one below the other on the left side. But what might annoy is you the KUV’s self-obsession by having a badging on the inside above the gear lever.

Surrounding the central console is a thick strip of ornamental dull chrome — a design element that can be found in the TUV as well.

Between the 5 seater and 6 seater configuration options, I would any day prefer the 6 seater option as the front middle seat can be toppled forward and be used as a hand rest for the driver and co-driver. The middle seat is not convincingly usable given that there is no leg room and the seat gets only a hip-seat belt.

While the 6 seater option does not get you adjustable headrests for the front seats, the 5 seater loses out on the foldable hand rest and offers the adjustable headrests that’d be helpful for tall drivers.

The front seats make sure you don’t complain and are quite comfortable. The cushioning is bit on the firm side — but a good place to be in, nonetheless. The driver seat can be height adjusted as well.

Moving to the rear is where the KUV surprises you again by being disruptive. Mahindra introduces the rear arm rest for the first time in a vehicle at this price point. Not just that, it also equips the rear middle seat with an adjustable head rest; a feature that is not available even in most executive sedans.

The rear seats offer a good amount of thigh support. The scooped front seats offer some usable rear legroom. The angle of the seats and the adjustable headrests make the perfect seating position for an 5’11” adult.

There are lots of cubby storage areas and this includes a secluded storage space under the floor of the rear middle passenger which might make it pretty useful for storing footwear.

But the rear adjustable headrests and the relatively small rear wind screen make a compromise on the rear view-ability. This might induce some pain points for the driver when it comes to reversing the vehicle as the top end trim does not come with park sensors/ cameras. With 3 occupants occupying the rear seats, the view-ability comes down to 0.

As the door handles for the rear doors are unconventionally placed, it blocks out the view from the windows and rear passengers can’t lean on the windows but an additional padding on the inside.

The boot comes with lesser length but greater depth and offers a volume of 230L. The deep boot with a high loading lip might add some hassle to loading and unloading of bags. Getting the spare tyre out might be quite a strain as well.

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The Drive

The D75 mFalcon diesel engine is a 1.2L 3 cylinder pot that delivers justifiable 75 HP of power and 190 Nm of torque. One thing I love about Mahindra engines is that they have their own signature of delivering the torque. The engine starts serving you meaty portions of torque right from the time the turbo kicks in at 1750 RPM. This would mean you shift gears lesser and you have torque on demand throughout.

Just like the TUV, the KUV also gets an Eco mode which limits the torque and throttle response drastically as it remaps the engine to be more fuel efficient.

I had my own reasons to believe that the KUV won’t be a great ride. But it did surprise me. It’s not a light vehicle and actually pulls quite some weight with it. This weight makes it feel like the KUV doesn’t run on a monocoque platform but on a regular body-frame chassis.

Being a Mahindra, I expected the regular niggles and wiggles — gear lever and steering wheel vibration, engine clatter, heavy clutches, etc but the KUV surprised me on that element too. Everything was well controlled and subdued — the gearlever stood still, steering wheel vibration was barely noticeable, engine clatter inside the cabin was well insulated and the clutch was light. But the vibrations found it’s way to the dashboard though — I was able to notice a certain left portion of the dashboard being subjected to some engine vibration.

Another surprise was how the gear lever worked. For a change, Mahindra has employed a super-short throw gearbox. This means that, you need to just move the lever one-step instead of Mahindra’s regular 2-step to engage a gear. In the 6 seater variant, the arm rest serves as great support to rest your left hand and also use it to shift gears very conveniently.

The 5 speed gear box felt well matched to the engine torque curves. With the torque on offer at low RPMs, you can take off at 15–20 kmph on 3rd gear with ease.

The surprising hydraulic power steering instead of the usual electric power steering found in the segment offers some commendable driving feedback and for a front wheel driven vehicle, I found it quite precise. Though a bit heavy when it comes to taking a U-turn/quick maneuvering, it makes up for it when it comes to stability at higher speeds.

The 14 inch tyres offer some good grip, but I wouldn’t put this car at unconventional speeds through corners given the body roll it induces. The tall body and long travel suspension don’t work the best when you are making a sharp turn and causes uncomfortable body roll.

The long travel suspension is on the softer side. It’s a boon in the city, but doing high speeds on a highway, you can do lesser of the car pitching at the front and rear.

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The Verdict

If you are bored of the regular i10s and the Brios and want something fresh and different from the factories, this might be your deal breaker.

It’s got road presence, it’s an eye-magnet (at least as long as it’s novel) and its spacious inside-out. The KUV 1oo has a lot of things going for it than against it. But the pricing puts it in a segment that sees the most intense competition.

So it all boils down to the personality match that makes the final verdict. Are you outdoorsy? Are you unconventional? Are you weird? Are you like the KUV 1oo?

On paper and on a logic-oriented decision, the KUV might not win the rat race to your wallet in the segment. Also, CarMatch can help you with that.

But this vehicle changes its approach. It appeals emotionally for a personality match and if that clicks, there’s nothing stopping it.

Good stuff, Mahindra.

Pros:

1. It’s got some swag value
2. Dash mounted gear lever is great
3. D75 diesel engine’s torque delivery is fantastic
4. Good driving feedback
5. Rear Legroom and cubby storage spots

Cons:

1. Rear View-ability
2. Dashboard vibration
3. Mildly soft suspensions
4. Deep boot space and high loading lip
5. Not so well placed and slow music player

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Images — Arvind Ramanathan