Mahindra to enter premium mid-size SUV segment.
Mahindra has its eyes on the premium mid-size SUV segment currently dominated by the Toyota Fortuner and the Ford Endeavour and is planning to launch a model of its own to get a piece of the pie. Instead of developing a model in-house, like it did with its current flagship model (Mahindra XUV500), it will use its South Korean brand SsangYong.
The current SsangYong Rexton is sold as a SsangYong product in India, but that won't be the case for the next-gen SsangYong Rexton (codename: SsangYong Y400) due this year. According to a report from Autocar India, the all-new SsangYong Rexton will be rebadged as a Mahindra SUV for India.
The redesigned SsangYong Rexton will be the production version of the SsangYong LIV-2 concept showcased at the 2016 Paris Motor Show. Built on a new generation body-on-frame chassis, the next-gen SsangYong Rexton will be a 7-seat mid-size SUV. SsangYong hasn't seen much success with the Rexton in India. Only 146 units of the current model were sold from January to November last year.
The 2017 SsangYong Rexton will be unveiled at the 2017 Seoul Motor Show on March 30. Its Mahindra-badged version for India will have a few design tweaks, including in the grille, to make it look like a Mahindra with a family face. Sales of this new Mahindra premium mid-size SUV are expected to commence in late-2017. It will be heavily localised, and according to company sources, it could be priced around INR 4.5 lakh lower than the Toyota Fortuner.
Also See: Ssangyong Tivoli compact SUV spied in Ahmedabad, shows LED taillights
The 2017 SsangYong Rexton will be available with a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine which produces 225 hp and 349 Nm of torque and a 2.2-litre turbocharged diesel engine which develops 184 hp and 420 Nm of torque. Transmission choices for the petrol model will be 6-speed manual and 6-speed automatic, and the same for the diesel model will be 6-speed manual and 7-speed automatic. The Mahindra-badged version will be available only in diesel initially.
[Source: Autocar India]
