Mahindra’s new generation electric SUVs, the BE 6e and XEV 9e have been launched at Rs 18.90 lakh and Rs 21.90 lakh (both ex-showroom).
Mahindra have launched their latest EVs based on the new EV-only INGLO skateboard platform, and these two cars are packed with features. The prices were announced as well, with the BE 6e costing Rs 18.90 lakh and the XEV 9e costing Rs 21.90 lakh. Mahindra mentioned that the average price in the UV1 segment is Rs 21.7 lakh and in the UV2 and UV3 segments it is Rs 30 lakh, so the BE 6e undercuts the average in UV1 by a decent margin whereas the XEV 9e does that by quite a large margin.
The design language of both the cars are highly futuristic, dominated by sharp creases and geometric straight lines. The BE 6e has a floating roof design with a blacked-out A-pillar, while the XEV 9e eschews that in favour of a more conventional design, which is slightly more rounded. Both cars have very strong shoulder lines, which give them a squat, aggressive stance. These lines are highlighted by LED strip lights at both front and rear, complete with illuminated logos.
The BE 6e and the XEV 9e pack a ground clearance of 207 mm, just 19 mm short of hardcore off-roaders like Mahindra’s own Thar and Thar ROXX. Their wheelbases are identical at 2,775 mm. While the wheelbase is identical, the two cars are quite different in size, with the changes being present in the overhangs. The BE 6e measures 4,371 mm and the XEV 9e measures 4,789 mm in length respectively. The Be 6e rides on 18-inch wheels while the XEV 9e comes with 19-inch wheels. The boot volumes are decent as well and both cars come with frunks.
Mahindra bucked the trend of hyping their cars’ handling, instead focusing on the ride comfort. The BE 6e and the XEV 9e are both equipped with semi-active suspension which can react to changes in road surfaces in 15 milliseconds, which should ensure a plush ride. This technology consequently should also lend the cars sure-footed handling characteristics, which is a bonus.
The cars come with massive displays all over, with the XEV 9e boasting a dashboard-spanning superscreen. Running that much screen real estate requires a lot of computing power, so the BE 6e and XEV 9e come with 24 GB of RAM and 128 GB of hard disc space. They also pack the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon processors and Adreno GPUs. This computing power is also utilised by an AI assistant, with Alexa integrated.
The AI tech is also utilised for ADAS, which on the BE 6e and XEV 9e are capable of all the usual stuff like lane departure warning, lane keep assist, blind spot monitoring, but there are some other neat tricks as well. For instance, the cars have a manually selectable auto park feature, where you can instruct the cars to park in the way the parking spot is oriented. Also, if a lane change manoeuvre is possible, then tapping the indicator will automatically shift the car into the lane the driver indicated.
Mahindra claim the in-cabin noise levels are some of the lowest across all the cars in this segment, and they have leveraged that silence to create the first made-in-India car with Dolby Atmos sound system, co-engineered with Harman Kardon and boasting 16 speakers. The sound tuning was done by a specialist to make the largest possible band of frequencies audible to the passengers. Speaking of passengers, the front passenger can take Zoom calls via the same dashboard-mounted camera which tracks the driver’s alertness level.
The Pack 1 variants which were showcased come with a 59-kWh LFP battery, which can be charged from 20 to 80 per cent SOC in just 20 minutes via a 140-kW fast charger. The powertrain puts out 210 kW (286 hp) and 380 Nm, which provides blistering performance, as the BE 6e hits 100 km/h from zero in 6.7 seconds, and the XEV 9e takes only a tenth longer.
There is a lot more to talk about these cars, but we will be driving them tomorrow and surely discover more about them, so watch this space.
