The Mahindra U321/Mahindra S321 will go on sale in India later this year. Months ahead of its launch, M&M has confirmed that it has started its test production.
Dr Pawan Goenka, Managing Director, Mahindra & Mahindra, has confirmed the development. When asked about the status of the new MPV, he said: "Right now we are in the phase of manufacturing set up and try outs."
The Mahindra U321/Mahindra S321 is Mahindra's first product developed entirely at the Mahindra North American Technical Center in Michigan. The testing and validation is in the hands of the Mahindra Research Valley located near Chennai. The U321 will debut a new 1.6-litre four-cylinder diesel engine co-developed with SsangYong (unverified). Mahindra is working on a 1.5-litre petrol engine also with SsangYong. The chances are that this unit will find its place in the U321.
The 1.5-litre petrol and 1.6-litre diesel engines will keep the U321's pricing competitive, sandwiching the Maruti Ertiga and the Toyota Innova Crysta. However, if Mahindra dares challenge the Toyota Innova, it will need the 2.2-litre mHawk diesel engine and the new 2.0-litre petrol engine planned for future products, for this mission.
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Mahindra will manufacture the Mahindra U321 at its Nashik plant in Maharashtra. Spy media pouring in recently has revealed that the company is aggressively testing the future model on the public roads as it gears up for the launch this year.
