Mahindra is busy readying its new MPV for the Indian
market scheduled to arrive this festive season. Codenamed Mahindra U321, the
upcoming Mahindra model was recently spotted testing on the Mumbai-Nashik
highway by Team-BHP user anilp.
From the looks of it, the test mule appears to be
wearing a production-ready body. It features steel rims with wheel covers and a
rear windshield wiper. This indicates that the Mahindra U321 seen in the images
here is likely to be a mid-level spec. As revealed by spy shots published
previously, the Mahindra U321 boasts a classic MPV silhouette. Up front, it
gets a 'toothed' grille flanked by headlamps with projector units and black
bezels. The LED DRLs are placed in the bumper along with the fog lamps. The MPV
gets an upright rear with vertically stacked tail lights.
Inside, the top-end variant will come with features
like a touchscreen infotainment system, automatic climate control,
multifunction steering wheel and more. The instrument console appears to have
lavender backlighting.
The Mahindra U321 was conceived at the Mahindra
North American Technical Center (MNATC) in Michigan. Later on, its development
was taken over by Mahindra Research Valley near Chennai. After the XUV500 and
KUV100, the U321 will be the company's third product based on a monocoque
chassis.
A report from December last year claims that the
upcoming MPV will employ a new 1.6 L diesel engine. This motor will develop 125
hp and 305 Nm, the report adds. While a petrol engine is also expected, details
regarding the same are unavailable at the moment.
Mahindra is likley to position the U321 between the
Maruti Ertiga and the Toyota Innova Crysta somewhere in the INR 10-15 lakhs
(ex-showroom) price bracket. Other rivals of the Mahindra U321 will be the
Renault Lodgy and the Honda BR-V. The new-generation 2018 Maruti Ertiga is
expected to arrive before the Mahindra U321 in August 2018.
