Mahindra Marazzo price holds key for the upcoming MPV’s popularity in India and we expect it to undercut Tata Hexa
Mahindra & Mahindra announced the official name of its upcoming MPV a couple of days ago and it created quite a buzz. With some bold claims and much-needed technical details, it is no secret that Mahindra is packing big plans for the ‘Marazzo’. As you might have known by now, the ‘Marazzo’ name is derived from Basque, a sublanguage of Spanish, and it denotes ‘Shark’, the ultimate inspiration of this MPV.
Confirmed to be offered in seven- and eight-seat configurations, Mahindra took time to finalise the Marazzo nomenclature from a list of 11 other monikers. It will be launched in the second quarter of this fiscal, which we are already in, meaning that end-September could be the time of its arrival. The Mahindra Marazzo MPV will be manufactured at the vast Nashik facility and has been developed in association with famous Italian design house Pininfarina and Mahindra North America Technical Centre in the US.
The Mumbai-based manufacturer won’t replace the Xylo with Marazzo, instead it will compete in the premium MPV space against Toyota Innova Crysta, Tata Hexa crossover and upcoming new-gen Maruti Suzuki Ertiga. Mahindra has also confirmed that the Marazzo will be powered by an all-new lightweight engine that could be the 1.5-litre diesel unit making 121 bhp and 300 Nm.
The exterior has shark inspired toothed-grille, LED DRL integrated fog lamps, a sporty side profile with beltline leading upwards towards the rear, shark fin antenna, LED tail lamps encouraged by shark’s rear and swept-back headlamps. Inside the cabin though there are equally many surprises with what claimed to be industry-first surround cool air-conditioning system.
It is Mahindra’s way of saying roof-mounted AC with new technology and is accompanied by a much cleaner instrument panel with lavender surrounds for binnacles and needles, AWD drivetrain logo indicating the possibility of Marazzo becoming the first-in-class 4×4 MPV, light interior colour tone with piano black detailing, leather-wrapped seats and much more.
We suspect Mahindra will price the Marazzo below the Tata Hexa as it embarks on appealing for different sets of premium customers. It could be priced between Rs. 11 lakh and Rs. 18 lakh (ex-showroom) to give Mahindra a breathing space in terms of pricing while addressing customers with packed features. The Marazzo, based on a new platform, is part of the three launches planned for the coming months as S201 compact SUV and re-badged G4 Rexton will consolidate the brand’s portfolio.