Mahindra launches TUV300 compact SUV at Rs 6.9 lac
Mahindra delivered as promised on Thursday, launching the TUV300 compact SUV across multiple cities with much fanfare. Mahindra has been talking this vehicle up for some time now (we brought you the first sketches previously) and Anand Mahindra himself was present, giving you some idea of how important it is for the company.
There are seven variants of the TUV300 on offer starting at a base price of Rs 6.9 lac (ex-Pune) for the T4 trim. Prices go all the way up to just over Rs 9 lac, and there’s lots on offer for the money. As we’ve grown accustomed to with Mahindra’s recent offerings, there are frills like Micro-Hybrid, regenerative braking, parking assist, static bending headlamps and airbags and ABS. Mahindra has been at pains to explain how ‘authentic’ an SUV the TUV is, and is playing up the ‘macho’ styling of the vehicle. In metal, it isn’t very far off from the concept sketches we saw earlier, with a high, chunky stance. Unlike the Quanto that’s approximately the same size, the TUV300 looks better proportioned.
Putting the spare wheel on the rear door frees up room for two jump seats in the TUV, and the vehicle is officially sold as a 5+2 seater. They’re not awfully comfortable, those +2 seats, but they’ll get the job done. If not used, there’s a reasonable amount of cargo space in the back (expandable to 720 litres). The motor is the mHawk80, a 1.5 litre three-cylinder generating 84bhp and 230Nm of torque using a two-stage turbo. At moderate speeds, the engine is remarkably quiet, as is the cabin in general. This is something we took note of with the updated XUV500 as well, and we’re pleased to see Mahindra’s strides in refinement. In addition to the 5-speed manual, there’s also an automated manual on offer (Mahindra calls it ‘autoSHIFT’). The interior also shows marked improvements over Mahindras of old, with a nice two-tone dash and accoutrements such as steering-mounted audio controls and Bluetooth connectivity.
While there’s only rear-wheel drive on offer currently, the TUV300 is a good approximation of what an SUV should look like, particularly for its size. Mahindra seems to know its audience, and we wouldn’t be surprised if it sells very well.
Prices (ex-showroom, Delhi)
Mahindra TUV300
T4 Rs 6.9 lac
T4+ Rs 7.25 lac
T6 Rs 7.55 lac
T6+ Rs 7.8 lac
T8+ Rs 8.4 lac
T6+ AMT Rs 8.52 lac
T8+ AMT Rs 9.12 lac
