The Wolverine : The XUV 500

The Mahindra brand has been quite an iconic one in India... first, the company was a steel trading company, then it manufactured true blue off roaders in India - The Willy Jeeps and now, it's famous for it's commercial vehicles as well as its passenger vehicles. As of now, in the passenger car segment, Mahindra has the Bolero, the Scorpio, the XUV 500 as well as now, the Ssanyong Rexton ! Each of these cars are  flat out winners in their segments, beating most of the competition. This article in particular is about the XUV 500 - the company's first grand entrance in the "Global SUV market".

The XUV 500 with its killer looks !  Front looks aggressive and well styled...

                 
The first time I saw this car on the road, its killer looks stood out on the road and I actually WANTED to look at it for longer... With the XUV 500, the designers at Mahindra have broken all limits and offered a design which earlier could only be expected at a price double at that of the XUV ! At first sight, the XUV looks like a premium SUV from the about 30 lakh luxury car segment... On checking out the prices on the net, I couldn't believe my eyes !

The XUV's pricing EX - SHOWROOM absolutely astonish you ! It's an amazing product from Mahindra at an amazing price !

The price points M&M have achieved with this car are amazing ! These prices are so impressive that they'll tempt many buyers of cars such as the Laura, the Civic, the Cruze, and a few other such 11 lakh + sedans to    move over to XUV's.... The variant which is amazingly priced is the W8 AWD...it comes with a 4x4 system developed along with Borg Warner which makes the deal even sweeter ! 

                          With this car, Mahindra seems to be targeting multiple types of customers - youngsters, families which need a spacious car, people whose job takes them to places where premium sedans take a bad beating.... AAND the list just goes on and on... 

A few important things to be noted :

- In this one, Mahindra's paid alot of attention to detail and little things which make you smile.. Like when you turn on the igntion, the mirrors automatically fold out.

- The key fits in the palm and is well built, sturdy and has a feel of quality. It has controls to unlock and lock the car's doors, as well as open the tail gate.

     The flip out style sturdy Mahindra XUV 500 key with the remote locking controls integrated in it.

- The stylish Mahindra alloy wheels are standard only in the W8 and W8 AWD variants which also support the tyretronics (tyre pressure monitoring)  functionality.

- As per the ARAI ,the 2WD variants (W8, W6) have an efficiency of 15.1 km/pl. This kind of efficiency coupled with the LARGE 70 liter fuel tank should give you around 1000 km to 1050 km, depending on the driving conditions...

- The vehicle comes with 200 mm of ground clearance which translates into no under body damage due to road bumps, speed breakers, etc. on our roads. PLUS, this 200 mm ground clearance excellent for that once in a while off road trip.  

- It has rain sensing wipers. It also comes with Disc brakes for all 4 wheels with ABS and ESP.

- The XUV 500 is such an amazing all round package that the only thing which was missed in this car was a sunroof... But that can easily be overlooked because in terms of features, it is packed to the brim with them !

Moving on to the Interiors:

                   Ingress and Egress in the XUV 500 is fairly easy... Instead of it being "a climb into to seats", it is simply more like a "walk in" feeling unlike the scorpio. This is something which will be appreciated alot be elders... The Cabin is spacious, well built and made of strong feeling materials.... Different colored XUV  come with either of the 2 types of trims...

Body Color ↓	Walnut interiors	Black interiors
Volcano Black	Y	N
Satin White	Y	N
Moondust Silver	N	Y
Tuscan Red	N	Y
Opulent Purple	N	Y
Dolphin Grey	N	Y

The Walnut Interiors... An elegant combination of brown and beige.... 

The black interiors aren't very nice.... the maroon and black combination looks garish....

The steering has a sturdy feel about it and has the audio system controls and cruise control buttons integrated  into its design. The meters (speedometer and Tacho) seem to be emulating the looks of a super bike's meter console. They do a full sweep the moment the ignition is turned on. Then, there are the large AC vents which do a good job at cooling the front. Then, we move towards the centre console where most of the action lies. It holds the touch music and navigation system, the climate control panel as well as controls for turning on and off the ESP. The centre console has a waterfall type design which is usually present on 40 lakh + luxury cars..... It has a good build with an amazing looking faux wood finish.  The dashboard also comes with two glove boxes. The driver's armrest on opening reveals a cooled compartment.

The front seats are well padded, are comfortable and have excellent under thigh support. They're ideal for long drives ! They even come with lumbar support.

The Star attraction of the Dashboard:

This is the XUV's amazing feat for a vehicle of its price- the infotainment system.  It has a touch screen interface and the quality of the touch sensitivity of the screen is satisfactory... This system can be used to access music, videos, navigation features, Radio, Car information and the phone facility. The system boasts of Bluetooth connectivity - using which, one can wirelessly connect iPods as well as mobile phones to it to stream music as well as in the case of phones, one can connect a phone via Bluetooth and then use the phones calling facilities on the move.

One of the major highlights of the vehicle - The XUV's infotainment system.

The XUV plays music quite well too. The speakers provide crisp audio which is really admirable for a vehicle at this price. The XUV's music system is supplied by Nippon. However, if you're looking for an In car Entertainment system with loads of bass, you're better off if you fit an after market speaker system. But for someone like me who doesn't need loads of bass, the music system is absolutely excellent !

The 2nd Row:

The 2nd row doors have puddle lamps inbuilt which is a very nice move on Mahindra's part. Again, it is a walk into the 2nd row seats (instead of a climb in like the Scorpio). The 2nd row seats are spacious, provide loads of leg space and can comfortably seat three. If not, then the centre armrest can be pulled out which provides 2 cup holders and is quite large. The leg space on the second row seats is expansive and the leg space can actually be called "GRAND" ! The under thigh support leaves you slightly wanting...but the headrests are well positioned and provide good support. Infact, the 2nd row gets it own Aircon wents too - they're located on the B pillars and have controls for the flow volume too.

The 2nd Row of Seats with the armrest open.

The AC vents for the 2nd row on the B-Pillar.

The 3rd Row:

For getting into the 3rd row, the 2nd row of seats folds down. But then, getting into the 3rd row is a tough task. One needs to bend quite a lot to climb into the 3rd row... But, once a person is sitting in the third row, he will be quite comfortable. The seats are comfortable for shorter people... But, I found them cramped.... A good feature is that even the 3rd row of passengers get air con vents along with a netted pocket and a bottle holder ! However, this seat is best suited for short runs, or for shorter people if for long runs....

Rear boot space minimal with the 3rd row of seats up... Just enough to fit a few shopping bags....

The Air con vent, the blower control and the net pocket for the 3rd row.

Moving on to the Exterior:

The Front view of the XUV ! Looks Aggressive and massive ! The numerous grilles as well as the toothed grille with the Mahindra logo on are an evident example of Mahindra trying to bring out "the Cheetah looks" in this car... The compact fog lamps seamlessly integrate into the design of the front. 

The XUV in motion ! The large wheel arches standout and actually seem to be styled as if a cheetah were sitting on its haunches, ready to pounce. They're a very acceptable inclusion in the design without which, the XUV wouldn't have its amazing looks.

The XUV has an attractive side profile. It comes with innovatively designed door handles which seem to be inspired by a "Cheetah's paw". Moving on to the rear, the design of the tail lamps is astounding ! They make the car stand out even more in traffic, ESPECIALLY at night. The large windows make the cabin of the XUV airy and spacious.

The XUV's hadlamps with the powerful projector lamps and the strip of DRL's look AMAZING !

The XUV 500's rear looks well styled. The "standing out" design of the tail lamps is nice. The rear stop light also holds two wiper sprayers for the rear glass. The rear glass has a defogger. The rear bumper looks sturdy with its ribbed structure and the well integrated rear skid plate. 

The dual exhausts of the XUV 500 give it a macho look.

The underbody mounted spare wheel.

The Powerplant:

The XUV 500 has the mHawk 140 Diesel engine powering it. This engine is a 4 cylinder one which has an output of 140 Bhp at 3750 RPM and 330 Nm at 1600 - 2800 RPM. It is a 2.2 liter engine and seems more refined than the mHawk in the Scorpio. The engine has an efficiency of 15.1 km/pl as per ARAI ratings. When the ignition is turned on, the engine seems to have a nice grunt.

The mHawk 140 in with all its glory !

The engine propels this beast to a maximum speed of 175 km/ph. The car reaches 60 km/ph in 5.4 seconds (as per Mahindra's claims) and 100 km/ph in 12.5 seconds (again,as per Mahindra's claims). This pickup is excellent for a car of its size with a 2.2 liter diesel engine !

Final Verdict:

The XUV 500 is an impressive product from the Mahindra stables. It truly lives up to Mahindra's idea of building a "Global SUV". It beats the competition such as the Aria, the Safari, the Scorpio, as well as the Force One in terms of comfort, driveability, and the number of features !

               If you need a car to comfortably seat 7 at times and comfortably seat 5 with loads of luggage space  the XUV is the car for you. It is ideal for families, for people using the car for trail driving as well as once in a while off roading as well as for people who want to upgrade from sedans to something more spacious.

               However, If you need to carry 7 people along with luggage, you'll have to fit an over roof carrier, or look elsewhere. At a price point of 13.2 lakhs (EX SHOWROOM MUMBAI), the XUV W8 Front wheel drive model is an absolute value for money package ! If money's no matters, I still would recommend going for the XUV W8 4WD which costs 14.2 lakhs EX SHOWROOM MUMBAI.

- Naayl Humza,

  14 year old car enthusiast.