8 new Toyota Fortuner rivaling SUVs coming to India in 2017

India has always been a SUV centric market. Since people here prefer to flaunt their muscles, SUVs give them the best chance to do so. That coupled with the fact that our roads are not in the best nick make SUVs a good proposition. While Toyota has established itself in the market with the Fortuner, there are now new players coming that might make it tougher for the Fortuner to stay on top. Here are 8 such contenders:

Skoda Kodiaq

This is going to be Skoda’s first attempt at a full size SUV. Yes, they already have the Yeti on sale in India and though it is a good product, it is more of a crossover than an out and out SUV, the way it looks atleast. The Kodiaq on the other hand will become Skoda’s flagship product when launched in the country. It has the side profile of a Q7, something that certainly gives it presence.

It will come with the 7 seat option when it is introduced in the market in September this year. Power will come from a 2.0 liter diesel engine that either makes 187 Bhp and 400 Nm or 148 Bhp and 340 Nm. While a petrol engine is also offered globally, we think India would not be getting that one.

Mahindra Y400

Mahindra currently has the Ssangyong Rexton to take on the Fortuner. Sadly, the Ssangyong brand never caught on in India which has made Mahindra scrap their plan of brining in any of the Korean manufacturer’s products in the future. What it will however do is to create an all-new large SUV, codenamed the Y400 based on the new Rexton which will have a Mahindra badge on it.

So you will see a flagship Mahindra product coming from the brand that will sit above the XUV500. It will most likely be powered by a 2.2 liter turbo diesel engine making 184 Bhp and 420 Nm. Both manual and automatic gearbox options will be on offer. The vehicle is expected to reach our shores by the end of 2017, which makes it an interesting vehicle to watch out for.

Tata Q501

Not to be left out, Tata is also working on an all-new flagship SUV, codenamed the Q501/502 to take on the the Fortuner. This one will share a lot of underpinnings with the Land Rover Discovery Sport but is expected to look nothing like it. It will be powered by a 2.0 liter turbo diesel engine from Fiat making 170 Bhp. It will be offered with various layouts (2wd/4wd) and manual and automatic gearbox options. Given the amount of excitement the Hexa has created, this one could certainly do wonders for the Tata brand in terms of premium positioning.

VW Tiguan

VW will be launching the all-new Tiguan in the country this year. While the vehicle they showcased at the Auto Expo earlier last year was a 5-seater, there is a possibility that the newly revealed Tiguan Allspace, which just made its global debut at the Detroit Autoshow will be launched in India.

The Allspace is longer than the normal Tiguan by 110 mm and it has the additional provision of 7 seats as opposed to the 5 seats that the normal Tiguan has. Power will come from the same 2.0 liter diesel engine which does duty on the other products from the brand. State of tune however is not yet known. People looking for a european SUV positioned below the luxury brands should wait for this one.

Continued below: Eight new Fortuner rivals coming this year