Mahindra had been looking for solutions to escape from the extra duty levied on its SUVs since that fateful day on February 28th this year. The Union Budget presented that day dealt a big blow to SUV manufacturers, especially Mahindra. The rigid definition of what qualifies as an SUV (length above 4-metres in length, engine displacement of more than 1500cc and a ground clearance higher than 170 mm), put almost all of Mahindra’s passenger vehicles in jeopardy of losing customers.
Updated on 12th July 2013
Just like we had told you before, Mahindra has now launched the ‘lowered’ XUV 500 in the market, the prices have gone down by Rs. 27,000 – Rs. 33,000 approx. depending on the variant.
Price
Mahindra XUV 500 W6 : Rs. 11,85,926 . The older model cost Rs. 12,13,330. Difference of Rs. 27,404
Mahindra XUV 500 W8 : Rs. 13,40,770 . The older model cost Rs. 13,71,816. Difference of Rs. 31,046
Mahindra XUV 500 W8 AWD : Rs. 14,44,278 . Th eolder model cost Rs. 14,77,736. Difference of Rs. 33,458
The models without the revised ground clearance will still be available till the stocks last, and are expected to sell for a hefty discount.
Updated on 8th July 2013
The XUV 500 could soon cost Rs. 27,000 to Rs. 33,000 less, depending on the variant, thanks to the addition of a stone guard that lowers the ride height of the SUV to 160mm from the earlier 200 mm. This reduces the cost as the XUV no longer qualifies for the extra duties imposed on SUVs with more than 170mm of ground clearance.
Though there are no reports that the new stone guard will affect the XUV 500’s ride quality, Mr. Pawan Goenka, president of Mahindra & Mahindra is not happy with the measures the company had to take to lower the cost of the SUV. The company does have any plans to introduce the cost saving measure in other SUVs, like the Bolero and Scorpio, as of now.
The company has not specified when the SUV with the new configuration will be introduced in the market, we expect it to be launched in the coming months. Apart from the stone guard, the XUV 500 will also receive changes to its electronics, brakes and clutch.
Source: ET
Updated on 23rd May 2013
To classify for the lower excise duty bracket, Mahindra had to either reduce the ground clearance of it’s SUVs, or reduce the engine displacement or decrease the length of their cars. It might seem that reducing the ground clearance would be the easiest way out, but that would affect handling and drive-ability. What did Mahindra do? They added a ‘stone guard’, and voila! All their SUVs now have a ride height of less than170mm. The stone guard will be fitted to almost all of the SUVs in Mahindra’s arsenal including the Bolero, XUV500 and the Scorpio.
A stone guard is a metal plate under the body of an SUV that prevents stones from damaging the underbody of an SUV. According to ICB, Mahindra has already got these modifications approved by ARAI, and they will feature in their cars soon. The lower excise duty on Mahindra SUVs will most probably also make them cheaper by a couple of thousand rupees. Other vehicle makers will not be far behind to use cheap tricks to beat what is undeniably a very ill-thought piece of legislation.
source – ICB
