Mahindra has been delivering hit after hit in recent times. The past few launches from the Indian carmaker have all been phenomenal in sales. The latest in the line is the BEV duo- XEV 9e and BE 6e- two electric SUVs based on Mahindra’s new-age INGLO platform, that were launched recently. The 9e, essentially an electric coupe form of the XUV 700, comes as a 5-seater. The 700, on the other hand, is a seven-seater.
Mahindra CEO (Auto & Farm Sectors) Rajesh Jejurikar in a recent interview with ET said that they could launch a 7-seater version of the XEV 9e if there is enough demand for the same. Such a project could be completed even at short notice as most of the groundwork is already there. Mahindra completed the BEV project in 2-3 years- phenomenal for anything of this sort.
It was in June 2021 that Pratap Bose (ex-Tata) joined Mahindra as chief design and creative officer. Back then, all that Mahindra had was a vision to bring out an electric vehicle in another few years. We remember Bose telling us in an exclusive one-on-one interview, that the BEVs would be his first ground-up project at Mahindra.
Back then, even the electric platform wasn’t defined. A year later, Mahindra announced the INGLO architecture and the first few details of its upcoming electric SUVs. In another two years, the products hit commercial production- how fast is that? More than anything else, this is a testament to the shared passion, collaboration, and commitment among the folks at M&M. It also signifies the agility the company has with decision-making.
Jejurikar is confident that this agility and enthusiasm will enable them to bring out the 9e 7-seater in record time, should there be the need for one. The company aims to maximise volumes for electric vehicles, and if a seven-seater form becomes critical for sales growth, it would hardly hesitate…
7-Seater Mahindra XEV 9e: The Tech Side Of It
Building a 7-seater based on the XEV 9e is easy in many ways. At the same time, there are a few challenges and/or grey areas to as well. The advantage here is the platform itself. The INGLO is a scalable, modular, dedicated EV platform. It can easily be expanded or shrunk in length to accommodate the third row if needed.
The stock 9e has a huge boot space of 663 litres. This is in fact, ample room to accommodate two extra seats. Thus it is unlikely that Mahindra would have to tweak the chassis to generate more room for the third row. Now consider the third row of the XUV 700. It isn’t the most spacious, nor is it the most comfortable. The first and second rows remain the cream there.
How would Mahindra make a 7-seater out of the 9e you ask? Well, most likely by using the existing room to add two additional seats. But the challenger here would be the headroom. The current top hat has an extremely sloping coupe roof line. This would limit the headroom severely on the third row. The company might have to redraw the same if it were to provide proper headroom at the rear.
Also worth noticing is that the existing powertrain- 79 kWh and 59 kWh batteries and the 282 hp rear-mounted electric motor- is capable of pulling the additional row of seats and the possible extra weights they could bring in.
