Mahindra TUV300 spied in production guise

The TUV300 is an anticipated new product from the Mahindra stable is a no doubt going to shake the game up when it comes to the compact SUV segment in the country. As of now, the only real competition that the TUV300 will have will be the Ford Ecosport but very soon, Maruti Suzuki’s XA Alpha and the upcoming compact sub 4-meter SUV from Hyundai too will give it tough fight in the segment.

Judging from these pics, the TUV300 is exactly how the first sketches made it out to be. With a rather upright and SUV-esque stance, the TUV300, even in this base model guise with blacked out bumpers and plastic unpainted grille combined with black unpainted door handles and ORVMs still manages to look brutish and aggressive. Unlike some of the other vehicles from the Mahindra stable, the headlights too look restrained and there is no real design element that has unnecessarily been over designed. In fact, we like how the TUV300 displays a level headed and simplistic yet modern design, no doubt helped by the fact that Italian design giants Pininfarina had a hand in designing it.

The side profile too is simple with all the impetus being put into the D-pillar which is finished in a shade of gloss black and gives the TUV300 an almost floating roof effect. The tail lamps too are not overdone and stacked vertically to give the car a sense of butchness. As Mahindra explained to us earlier, the Indian public does appreciate a boot mounted spare wheel and this has got to be one of the defining features of the new TUV300. In fact, from pictures, even despite being a sub-4 meter SUV, Mahindra seems to have gotten the proportions of this new car spot on.

The new TUV300 will be powered by a sub 1.5-litre turbo diesel engine, which has been given the mHawk80 nomenclature. Judging from the name, the new engine will most probably be rated at 80PS of peak power and will come mated to a 5-speed gearbox. Since the TUV3OO is based on an all-new platform, we also expect this compact SUV to be a front wheel drive layout. Recent reports also indicate that the Mahindra TUV300 will get an AMT gearbox, which will be a huge, plus point for this compact SUV and will no doubt attract a sizable hatchback-buying customer to this product. All that remains to see how is the price and judging from Mahindra’s past history with the same, we are sure that the TUV3OO will be priced competitively.

Picture Source - anything-on-wheels.blogspot.in