There is no denying that the compact SUV is one of the most sought after segments in the country at present, and thus for obvious reasons every other auto-maker wants to have their share in the segment. It all started with the Renault Duster that became the top-selling crossover in India in no-time. Then came along the Ford EcoSport which raised the bar with the loads of features, performance and aggressive pricing. With companies raking in money from the customers due to their new found love for the compact-SUVs, competition is cut-throat and there’s little room for error. Everyone including Maruti, Hyundai, Volkswagen, Honda are currently known to be working on their respective sub-compact SUVs to take on the likes of Renault Duster and Ford EcoSport. The news is that our home-grown auto-majors Tata and Mahindra are also working on compact SUVs and will roll out their breeds in the market very soon.
Tata Motors unveiled the Nexon concept at the 2014 Delhi Auto Expo, which gave us a fair idea of what Tata’s sub-compact SUV might look like. The company recently showcased the same concept at the Geneva Motor Show, indicating that the product will be developed in accordance with global requirements.The Nexon will be built on a thoroughly updated version of the Vista X1 platform, upon which, the upcoming Zest and Bolt are also based. The vehicle will probably be powered by the company’s new 1.2-litre turbocharged Revotron engine that is capable of churning out 84bhp and 140Nm of torque. The diesel model might feature the 1.3-litre multijet diesel engine sourced from Fiat, which also does duty on the Vista. The compact-SUV is expected to cost you around INR 6 – 8 lakhs and is due next year.
Meanwhile India’s leading SUV maker, Mahindra & Mahindra is planning to roll out a couple of new SUVs in the country, out of which, one will be an compact SUV. Codenamed as the S101, the crossover will be measure less than four-metres in size, which should allow the company to give it quite an aggressive price tag. The Mahindra S101 sub-compact SUV might use the same 1.5-litre twin-turbo charged diesel powertain that powers the Quanto. However, for the petrol model, Mahindra is working on a 1.2-litre engine with its Korean brand SsangYong since it doesn’t have a small petrol mill. In terms of design, the car will look like a smaller version of the XUV500. The compact-SUV is expected to cost you around INR 6.5 – 10 lakhs and is due later in 2015.
We will keep you posted on both the compact SUVs, until then do let us know what you think of them!
