MOTORING Indian carmaker unveils bold NZ plans
%Mahindra has announced pricing for the first new model it’s launched in New Zealand in four years, the XUV700 three-row SUV, while also offering insights into its plans for the rest of 2023.
Mahindra will offer the XUV700 in three flavours; the entry-level 5-seater AX5, the 7-seater AX7, and the flagship AX7X. Each is powered by the same turbocharged 2.0-litre fourcylinder petrol engine paired to a 6-speed automatic and frontwheel drive.
The trio is priced at $36,990, $40,990, and $43,990, respectively. This makes them three of the most affordable midsize SUVs on the market, comfortably undercutting the likes of the Toyota RAV4 and Kia Sportage.
It also makes the XUV700 the cheapest 7-seater SUV currently offered in New Zealand. For reference, the LDV D90 starts at $41,990, the Mitsubishi Outlander $46,990, the SsangYong Rexton $46,990, and Honda’s CR-V Sport 7 is $50,000.
Those quoted prices do not include on-road costs or the model’s $2357 Clean Car Discount fee. Each model comes with a five-year, 150,000km warranty.
The XUV700 was launched at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park, with Mahindra head of operations Joydeep Moitra among those from the brand in attendance.
The XUV700’s arrival and rollout will coincide with the brand’s co-ordinated local expansion. It recently updated its logo and corporate identity, opening its first updated dealership in Manukau earlier this year.
Mahindra has had a presence in New Zealand for several years, but remains a fringe name. Despite this, it’s likely to be buoyed by the recent success felt by other former fringe marques, MG and BYD.
Unsurprisingly, Moitra believes that it is the perfect time for Mahindra to expand its operations around the world.
The brand will soon launch its Scorpio-N SUV – a dieselpowered, ladder-chassis rival to the likes of the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Toyota Fortuner.
It is also consolidating its local dealership network. It currently has 18 dealers across the country.
While Moitra was hesitant to talk about Mahindra’s electrification plans, he did confirm that the brand will eventually develop an electric version of the XUV700.
He reaffirmed that Mahindra is skipping hybrids and plug-in hybrids – instead choosing to focus solely on pure internalcombustion-engine vehicles and EVs.
Mahindra New Zealand has previously said that the fully electric XUV400 EV would be launching locally in 2023.
The timelines on these new models is unclear, although the brand teased that there are likely to be more models confirmed for New Zealand before the end of the year.
Critical to the success of Mahindra’s effective relaunch in New Zealand is whether it can secure an adequate supply of vehicles from overseas.
The brand was coy on the topic of supply quantity specifics, with Moitra stating only that Mahindra is ‘‘committed long term’’ to New Zealand, adding that ‘‘very good numbers of stock’’ will be available.
Russell Burling of Dealer Direct Wholesale Ltd, the local distributor of Mahindra, noted that the brand needed to ‘‘sell volume to increase our volume’’. He assured attendees that the brand had enough stock to provide dealers with adequate supply for the moment, noting that shipping times and waiting periods had improved in recent times.