According to a report by Autocar India, M&M has confirmed the SsangYong Rexton for the domestic market. Until August, the company remained sceptical about launching the SUV in India citing the product's high price as the primary concern.
Speaking to Autocar India at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Rajan Wadhera, President of R&D and Global Product Development (Automotive Sector) said:
The costs are still a challenge, but we have decided to launch the Rexton as we believe there is a good opportunity for this product in the Indian market.
Mahindra will address the main issue through assembling the Rexton in India and carrying out processes like welding and painting in-house. However, the level of localisation will remain low. Components like the powertrain and body panels will be imported from Korean suppliers. Mahindra will target a very competitive price tag and will attempt to undercut the Toyota Fortuner by INR 3-4 lakh Rupees, the report says.
The decision regarding the branding of the SUV is yet to be taken. However, Wadhera did indicate that the company seems to be leaning towards a Mahindra badge. Despite Mahindra introducing the SsangYong brand in India via the previous generation Rexton in 2012, it failed to gain traction. Keeping that mind, the G4 SsangYong Rexton maybe badged Mahindra XUV700 (as the online media likes to call it) or along those lines when it arrives in showrooms in the second half of 2018.
The SsangYong Rexton made its world debut at the Seoul Motor Show in April this year. It went on sale in Korea in the same month priced at 33.5 million won (INR 18,99,149.17). Powering the Rexton is a 2.2 L e-XDi220 LET capable of 187 PS and 420 Nm.
[source - Autocar India]
