Mahindra XUV500 Ground Clearance Lowered;Price Cut

Published: Monday, July 8, 2013, 10:47 [IST]

In the face of declining sales of its SUVs, particularly the XUV500, due to this year's price hike caused by the higher excise duty, Mahindra has been forced to compromise. India's leading SUV manufacturer will soon start selling its flagship XUV500 with a new, lowered ground clearance.

The changes to excise duty brought about by this year's budget meant any vehicle with a ground clearance of over 170 mm, measuring more than 4 meters and powered by an engine larger than 1,500cc, would be levied with an additional 3 percent excise duty. The SUV segment was hit in general but Mahindra was among the worst hit.

Previously, it was rumored that Mahindra would launch a lower specced XUV500 to cope with the problem. Now though, it seems the company has compromised on a more significant scale, by lowering the ground clearance of the XUV500 from 200mm to 160mm. A full 40mm lower. As a result, the SUV500 will also sport a stone guard to protect the engine bay.

To provide a perspective, Maruti Suzuki Alto has a ground clearance of 160 mm as well.

This will automatically bring down the price of the lower end W6 variant by Rs 27,000 and the top end W8 variant by Rs 33,000. Mahindra is set to commence sales of the new ground hugging XUV500s in the coming few days. The company expects sales to go up by 10 to 15 percent post this price cut.

Mr. Pawan Goenka, president, automotive and farm equipment sector, Mahindra & Mahindra, expressed his unhappiness over the change the company was forced to make, but said it was a move they had to make to retain their potential customer base. Mr. Goenka also revealed that the company is looking to lower ground clearance specs of other vehicles, including the Scorpio.