Mahindra XUV700 (G4 Rexton) luxury SUV production timeline revealed

Mahindra will start assembling the XUV700 (G4 Ssangyong Rexton) from the second half of 2018. The CKD kits of the XUV700 will be imported from South Korea, and assembly operations will happen at Mahindra’s Chakan factory, near Pune. Mahindra is expected to localize a lot of components to keep costs as low as possible. The automaker has signed an deal with Ssangyong to import CKD kits until December 31st, 2023.

The Ssangyong brand will not be retained on the new Rexton, which is expected to be called the XUV700. The luxury SUV will compete with the Toyota Fortuner and the Ford Endeavour, and will offer 7 seats. The new SUV will go on sale in India during Diwali 2018.

It will feature a 2.2 liter turbocharged, 4 cylinder diesel engine with a peak power rating of 178 Bhp and a peak torque rating of 420 Nm. These outputs are par for the course, and are similar to what the Fortuner and Endeavour offer. A 7 speed automatic gearbox will be standard on the XUV700, and the top-end version will get a four wheel drive layout. It remains to be seen if Mahindra also offers a lower priced, 6 speed gearbox-rear wheel drive layout on the new SUV. The XUV700 is expected to carry a price well within Rs. 25 lakhs to make it attractive in comparison with competition.

The new SUV will be sold and service at Mahindra outlets throughout India. It was shown at the Auto Expo 2018, where it had a new Mahindra front grille and logo. At the rear as well, the Ssangyong badging was replaced by the Mahindra badge and logo.

Apart from these minor changes, the vehicle is more or less the Ssangyong Rexton G4 with Mahindra badging. The previous generation Rexton – sold as a Ssangyong in India – had a poor run. Mahindra will be hoping that the new model, along with the rebranding, will do much better.

Via KoreaHerald