Mahindra and Mahindra are looking to offer a cheaper variant of the XUV500 for the Indian market.
Insiders at Mahindra have disclosed that the company plan to reduced the ground clearance of the SUV in order to avail lower excise duty. The ground clearance of the XUV500 which was initially at 200mm would be cut to 160mm giving Mahindra a 3% savings in excise duty on the vehicle as part of the new government policies.
Recently Dr Pawan Goenka, President, M&M was quoted in a leading English daily stating that the price of the XUV500 would go down by almost Rs 33,000 in perspective of the new specifications. He also added that apart from lowering the ground clearance, Mahindra has also made certain other changes to the XUV500 in areas like electronics, brakes and clutch system.
The news of Mahindra rolling out a cheaper version of the XUV500 might just be due to the increasing competitiveness of the SUV segment in the Indian market. With the likes of the Renault Duster and now the Ford Eco Sport looking at carving a healthy market share, Mahindra’s plan of lowering the price of the XUV might just work in their favor.
