Mahindra XUV300 BEATS Ford EcoSport in 15 days of sales, approaches Tata Nexon numbers

The Mahindra XUV300 compact SUV has gotten off to a flying start. The sub-4 meter monocoque MPV sold 4,484 units in its very first month of launch – February 2019. These dispatch numbers mean that the XUV300 is now ahead of the Ford EcoSport, which clocked 3,156 units in the same month. The Tata Nexon retained its second place in the compact SUV market, with sales of 5,263 units. The Maruti Brezza continues to lead the market with a whopping 11,613 units sold in February 2019.

The Mahindra XUV300’s big numbers right in the first month of launch could be due to inventory stuffing by Mahindra as its the first month of a vehicle when there are a high number of test drive vehicles dispatched to dealerships across the country. Also, car makers push out a big number of cars in the first month of launch to meet the initial pre-booking demand. The coming months will give us a better picture on whether the XUV300 actually manages to keep its nose ahead of other competitively priced SUVs such as the Nexon and EcoSport.

The Mahindra XUV300 is a late entrant to the sub-4 meter compact SUV space. Mahindra has stuffed the SUV with a slew of features to clearly differentiate it from the existing offerings in the market. The SUV’s pricing is on the higher side, with the petrol variants starting from Rs. 7.9 lakhs, and the diesels from Rs. 8.5 lakhs, ex-showroom Delhi. This makes the XUV300 pricier than most other compact SUVs in the segment. However, the XUV300 does offer class leading outputs from its 1.2 liter turbocharged petrol and 1.5 liter turbocharged diesel engines. The petrol motor makes 110 Bhp-200 Nm, which makes it the torque leader of the segment. The 1.5 liter diesel – with 115 Bhp-300 Nm on tap, makes more power and torque than every other motor offered on other compact SUVs.

6 speed manual gearboxes are standard with both engines, and so is a front wheel drive layout. Mahindra has no plans to offer an all wheel drive kayout on this SUV although an AMT option on both the petrol and diesel variants have been lined up for launch in the next few months. As for safety, the XUV300 rules the roost. The SUV’s top-end variants offer 7 airbags including a driver’s knee airbag, ABS+EBD, cruise control, front and rear parking sensors, a reverse parking camera, hill hold, electronic stability program, tyre pressure monitoring system, automatic dimming wing mirror, heated wing mirrors, anti rollover protection and seat belt reminders for all five seats.

In terms of features, the list is quite long as well. The SUV gets a sunroof, leather seats, a touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, dual zone automatic climate control, full folding rear seat with a 60:40 split, multiple steering feel settings, LED headlamps, daytime running LEDs and 17 inch alloy wheels. The XUV300 is built at Mahindra’s Chakan factory, off Pune, with a high amount of localization. The SUV is based on the Ssangyong X100 platform, which also underpins the Tivoli.