The Mahindra XUV300 rivals the likes of the Tata Nexon, Ford EcoSport, Nissan Magnite, Hyundai Venue, Kia Sonet, Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza as well as the Toyota Urban Cruiser in the Indian market
The sub-compact SUV space is currently one of the most competitive segments in the Indian market, and currently hosts over 8 cars from different manufacturers. The rising competition in the segment urges manufacturers to spruce up their products from time to time, in order to stay relevant in the market, and the Mahindra XUV300 will be the next sub-4m SUV to undergo some changes.
Up until now, the Mahindra XUV300 has been offered with a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine that puts out 110 PS of max power and 200 Nm of peak torque, along with a 1.5-litre oil burner that produces 117 PS and 300 Nm. Both the engines have been offered with a 6-speed manual transmission so far, while the oil burner also gets an optional 6-speed auto.
However, with competitors offering more and more transmission options with their offerings in the sub-compact SUV segment, Mahindra does not want to be left behind. The homegrown carmaker is now finally set to introduce an optional automatic gearbox for the 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine. We expect the transmission to be a 6-speed torque converter unit.
Talking about the car, Mahindra has equipped the XUV300 with features like an electric sunroof, R17 alloy wheels, dual-zone automatic climate control, a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto & Apple CarPlay, push button/start stop, rain-sensing wipers, heated and electrically adjustable wing mirrors and so on.
On the safety front, the SUV gets 7 airbags, rear parking camera, front and rear parking sensors, a tyre pressure monitoring system, ESP with Roll-over Mitigation, Corner Braking Control, ABS with EBD, all four disc brakes, Hill Start Assist etc.
Mahindra currently retails the petrol-powered XUV300 at a starting price of Rs 7.94 lakh, going up to Rs 11.11 lakh, while the diesel trims are priced between Rs 8.69 lakh and Rs 12.29 lakh (all prices, ex-showroom). However, the introduction of the automatic trim(s) will obviously lead in a bump in price of the former.