The Union Budget 2013 was not a good one from Mahindra's point of view. The SUV maker which was affected the most during the Finance Minister's proposal to hike excise duty of all SUV's - classified as engine capacity greater than 1.5L , Ground clearance greater than 170mm and length greater than 4,000 mm.
Since Mahindra's SUV's lies under this category and the home grown carmaker had been taking a hit due to above said policy, but had already planned to let their vehicles fall under the said category and get tax exempt for their customers.
Mahindra had now, reduced the ground clearance of XUV 5OO by 40mm - substantially reduced from earlier 200mm to now 160mm without compromising on the engine specifications and hereby reduces the effective cost of the vehicle by apprx. 33,000 INR.
The SUV maker will also install "stone guard" below the vehicle in order to protect engine getting a hit because of uneven roads in India.
Mr. Pawan Goenka, president, automotive and farm equipment sector, Mahindra & Mahindra, expressed his unhappiness about this, but said that he had to do it as the higher price due to the increased duty was taking a hit on their potential customers. Mahindra expects the sale to rise by 10-15% apprx.
Mr. Pawan Goenka also said - The reduced ground clearance of the XUV does in no way affect the ride and handling of the vehicle. On the contrary, it has become more robust. We are evaluating whether the changed parameters can be applied to other vehicles. We are looking at the feasibility of a smaller power train for the Bolero, but that would take a minimum of 18 months to develop. The Scorpio is a power and performance-driven vehicle, and there is no way that we will look at a lower power train for it. We may consider a lower ground clearance for the Scorpio as well.
Since Mahindra's SUV's lies under this category and the home grown carmaker had been taking a hit due to above said policy, but had already planned to let their vehicles fall under the said category and get tax exempt for their customers.
Mahindra had now, reduced the ground clearance of XUV 5OO by 40mm - substantially reduced from earlier 200mm to now 160mm without compromising on the engine specifications and hereby reduces the effective cost of the vehicle by apprx. 33,000 INR.
The SUV maker will also install "stone guard" below the vehicle in order to protect engine getting a hit because of uneven roads in India.
Mr. Pawan Goenka, president, automotive and farm equipment sector, Mahindra & Mahindra, expressed his unhappiness about this, but said that he had to do it as the higher price due to the increased duty was taking a hit on their potential customers. Mahindra expects the sale to rise by 10-15% apprx.
Mr. Pawan Goenka also said - The reduced ground clearance of the XUV does in no way affect the ride and handling of the vehicle. On the contrary, it has become more robust. We are evaluating whether the changed parameters can be applied to other vehicles. We are looking at the feasibility of a smaller power train for the Bolero, but that would take a minimum of 18 months to develop. The Scorpio is a power and performance-driven vehicle, and there is no way that we will look at a lower power train for it. We may consider a lower ground clearance for the Scorpio as well.
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