2015 Mahindra XUV500 Facelift : Official Review

[RavenAvi]

We brought our second Cheetah (in our family) home a week back, on 9th August.

It's a W6 variant, with the latest April 2017 updates (EcoSense, individual cabin lamps for 2nd row passengers, puddle lamps under ORVMs, auto-folding/opening ORVMs on locking/unlocking, etc.).

Total cost came to Rs 15.75 lakhs OTR, including zero-dep insurance from Oriental at Rs 55,000/- (for Rs 12.61L IDV), Full 5-year Extended Warranty (Shield) package & full 5-year Roadside Assistance package.

Dad & Ma did the pujas, while the dealership celebrated my wife's birthday as a special surprise by bringing a cake in and wrapping Arion with ribbon wraps and having it covered with a purple cloth, for us to unveil and unwrap.

Dealership experience on the whole gets a solid 4 stars from me, except for the accessories procuring problem. Full marks to the Balaji Motors dealership, the GM Mr. Roy Choudhary and my Sales Rep Sonal Das for making this occasion a very memorable one for all of us.

Named our new family member Arion, after the divine & immortal horse in Greek mythology which is touted to be the fastest steed in all of creation.

Added reverse parking camera (with Nightvision), front fog lamps (without chrome garnish), rear bumper guard & dual-tone PVC black/beige mats to make it a bit more complete. I was also initially interested in the front parking sensors & HUD but dropped the plans later, because the dealership couldn't procure them on time.

Now waiting to finalise a good set of Plati/Momo alloys and upgrade the OEM Apollo Apterra tyres, which have come shod with our Cheetah, to either Yokos or Bridgestones. Hopefully soon.

First glimpse at the stockyard. Fresh off the delivery truck!


VIN decoded as July 2017 manufactured.


Looks particularly handsome from this angle.


Rear view from the other side.


Celebrating wifey's birthday at the dealership.


Taking the wraps off our future steed,
with my little one giving instructions.


The proud girl and her mean machine.


Dad starting the puja proceedings.


Ma did the shubh-labh and blessed Arion.


Whole family coming together.


Wifey opens the ribbon wrap for hubby (driver) side.


Hubby does the same for the wifey (passenger) side.

[jesrani]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

We brought our second Cheetah (in our family) home a week back, on 9th August.

It's a W6 variant, with the latest April 2017 updates (EcoSense, individual cabin lamps for 2nd row passengers, puddle lamps under ORVMs, auto-folding/opening ORVMs on locking/unlocking, etc.).

I am interested in a Diesel AT SUV, annual running is 18k kms. I have a few queries :
1) How is the front seat comfort for long drives, road trips?
2) How is the acceleration of the diesel AT? Currently using the Honda City Diesel and very happy with the linear power delivery
3) How is the ride quality and ground clearance on bad roads, we have plenty where I live.
4) How is underthigh support for driver?
5) How is the handling on curves?

[rambo1o1]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

We brought our second Cheetah (in our family) home a week back, on 9th August.

It's a W6 variant, with the latest April 2017 updates (EcoSense, individual cabin lamps for 2nd row passengers, puddle lamps under ORVMs, auto-folding/opening ORVMs on locking/unlocking, etc.).

Total cost came to Rs 15.75 lakhs OTR, including zero-dep insurance from Oriental at Rs 55,000/- (for Rs 12.85L IDV), Full 5-year Extended Warranty (Shield) package & full 5-year Roadside Assistance package..............

Congratulations!
We too have booked a Purple XUV500 W6, but in the Automatic variant. Our car should reach the dealership by monday,21 August.
We too are taking insurance from oriental but we have been given a quote of 35,000 for zero depreciation(IDV 13 lakhs), is there anything extra added to your insurance?

Also what discounts were you offered? I was offered 25,000 cash discount and 8,000 corporate discount cheque.
Couldn't wriggle out anything else, not even mats!
I found it funny that they were minusing the 25k discount from the total On road which includes the refundable TCS(14k). For honest tax payers, the discount should be given by cheque or deducted without adding the refundable TCS to the cost.

Anyways, Do let us know whether you find any quality improvements between the two XUVs at home, will get to know if mahindra is still improving or they have reached their limit.


Wishing you a joyful ownership experience.

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by jesrani

1) How is the front seat comfort for long drives, road trips?
2) How is the acceleration of the diesel AT? Currently using the Honda City Diesel and very happy with the linear power delivery
3) How is the ride quality and ground clearance on bad roads, we have plenty where I live.
4) How is underthigh support for driver?
5) How is the handling on curves?

1) Haven't taken a long drive yet (ODO stands at 130 kms right now, it was at 8 kms when I had taken delivery) but the front seat comfort is outstanding. A slight ergonomic problem is the clutch pedal interfering slightly when you want to keep your left leg on the dead pedal, otherwise everything else is superb, including lower back support.

2) I found the AT superior to the MT in terms of in-gear response. 3rd gear and beyond, the cheetah comes into it's own and feels like a real, untamed beast. Reason for not going for the AT - poor AT penetration in my area, service-related doubts, and resale value.

3) Again, superb. Minor potholes and breakers are dismissed with a small thud, and there's ample jacked-up GC on offer to tackle the worst the roads can throw at the cheetah.

4) Ample. Not plenty but just enough to keep things happy and comfortable. (I am 6'0" tall)

5) Sticks to the road like a heavy leech, this one. Not surprising, because the sorted suspension and the driving dynamics are excellent. Despite it's near 1.8 tonne weight, the XUV actually feels nimble to drive. The engine is a real gem.

Originally Posted by rambo1o1

Congratulations!
We too are taking insurance from oriental but we have been given a quote of 35,000 for zero depreciation(IDV 13 lakhs), is there anything extra added to your insurance?

Thank you, rambo1o1. Congratulations in advance to you too!

Their original insurance quote was too steep - 63K for normal insurance & 69K for zero-dep add-on (Iffco Tokyo). I told them to match the quotation I got from outside (from a relative who works in New India Assurance) which was 45K for normal and 50K for zero-dep.
After negotiations, they brought it down to 55K for zero-dep from Oriental and said that's the best they could do. Since they bundled in a few other stuff in our overall deal, I didn't do any further negotiating and stuck with their final offer.

Here's the M&M insurance issued for Arion:

In case the pic isn't clear,

IDV = 12,60,797 (not 12.85L, apologies for that)
Basic prm = 33,720/-
Zero Dep = 5,058/-
Net liability = 8,390/- (including third party @ 7,890/-)
IGST (@18%) = 8,491/-

Total = 55,659/-

Originally Posted by rambo1o1

Also what discounts were you offered? I was offered 25,000 cash discount and 8,000 corporate discount cheque.
Couldn't wriggle out anything else, not even mats!

Same as you. The car's ex-showroom price had been slashed by around 75,000 rupees after GST, and M&M had only these on offer (for August).

I would get the 8K corporate discount cheque separately, I am told. Deduct that from the final total and the final price paid would be Rs 15.67L.

Good thing is - I managed to procure the accessories for free, so that was an extra saving of 15,000+ rupees!

Originally Posted by rambo1o1

I found it funny that they were minusing the 25k discount from the total On road which includes the refundable TCS(14k). For honest tax payers, the discount should be given by cheque or deducted without adding the refundable TCS to the cost.

Not here.

The discount from M&M was applied to the existing ex-showroom pricing, and everything else was calculated accordingly. TCS for us is at 13K.

Originally Posted by rambo1o1

Anyways, Do let us know whether you find any quality improvements between the two XUVs at home, will get to know if mahindra is still improving or they have reached their limit.

Our other XUV was bought back in Dusshera 2016 (Purple W10). Haven't found much difference between the two, except that the revised post-April 2017 W6 variant is now quite loaded for it's price.

Only thing I am missing in the W6 is side & curtain airbags. Our W10 developed a crack on the driver side front alloy without any reason and had to be replaced, so I am actually glad that the W6 doesn't have the OEM alloys, plus we have no need of the sunroof (it stays closed 99% of the time).

[goswami.j]

Wanted to book a W10, Silver with the black interior seats option (got little kids ). The local dealer tired to book in the Mahindra Ordering system and informed that the order is not being taken as it is removed from the options.

The official website still lists moon dust silver exterior color with options of Black Seats & Black Dashboard. Located another dealer across town who has this option in stock & shared the VIN. Using team-bhp VIN decoder, the manufacture date is June'17. Think it is good enough for me. Will go for it.

Anyone else has come across this issue that option of black interior is discontinued ? Or the dealer is trying to pull a fast one on me.

[differential]

9,000 km update on our W8 XUV:

It's been almost 4 months and apart from the few niggles, sounds and licence plate lights falling off in the first week, I am happy to report that the car is performing above expectations.
All the niggles were quickly and efficiently addressed with due apologies. The first service was quick and good. The engine seems to have run in well and the car has seen all kinds of roads and no roads. The high GC with almost negligible turbo lag make crossing bad roads a no stress affair. The engine pulls well from low rpm and frequent shifts are not necessary; which is a good thing because, the clutch is very springy and difficult to modulate and gear shifts are notchy.

Not too impressed with the suspension. It feels firm at low speeds and suspension dive on braking is pronounced. The tyres are absolute squealers. Period! Never seen anything like this from Bridgestone before. Brakes are just OK. They are not too confidence inspiring.

Overall FE is around 12 over 9,000 km.

Things missed:
1. Lights on reminder
2. Black interior
3. Better clutch and brakes.
4. 3rd row not really useful. Actually, a super spacious 5 seater.
5. Better ICE.

Good Points:
1. VFM
2. Nice engine, chuckable inside city.
3. Space
4. Good headlights
5. Reasonable spares and service cost.

Will I recommend it?
Yes, definitely. The car has grown on me. The quality has a to improve, but it's VFM for what you pay.

The compass seems to make a case for itself, but for a similar spec you are expected to shell out 3-4 lakhs more.

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by rambo1o1

I found it funny that they were minusing the 25k discount from the total On road which includes the refundable TCS(14k). For honest tax payers, the discount should be given by cheque or deducted without adding the refundable TCS to the cost.

I forgot to mention that I had received a 3M Maxicare complete package from the dealer as well. It includes paint protection, premium underbody protection, interior panels anti-rust protection & engine coating systems, and comes with 2 years' Warranty + 4 free inspections every 6 months.

The 5-year Mahindra Shield cost Rs 24,317/-, while the 5-year RSA package cost Rs 6,275/-.

TCS amount for me was billed at Rs 13,272/-. I shall receive the TCS certificate by 7th of September according to the dealership, as all certificates are generated after the monthly closing.

Been driving our Arion (the April 2017 "Techno Pack" updated W6) around for the past 10 days, and I have noticed a marked improvement in the suspension behaviour of the XUV - it stays more planted, vertical movement is less, thuds have lessened, and nose dive under hard braking has considerably lessened. Yet to check on the torque steer issue.

This is in comparison to our purple W10 of October 2016.

Mahindra has definitely worked on the dynamics a bit and tweaked the suspension for a more pliant ride quality, while adjusting/calibrating the brakes for better, gradual hold than sudden, sharp bite. The gears are still a bit notchy though, although I feel that the clutch has improved slightly. The steering-rod issue (of brushing with the left foot while turning) still remains.

[rambo1o1]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Been driving our Arion (the April 2017 "Techno Pack" updated W6) around for the past 10 days, and I have noticed a marked improvement in the suspension behaviour of the XUV - it stays more planted, vertical movement is less, thuds have lessened, and nose dive under hard braking has considerably lessened. Yet to check on the torque steer issue.

This is in comparison to our purple W10 of October 2016.

Mahindra has definitely worked on the dynamics a bit and tweaked the suspension for a more pliant ride quality, while adjusting/calibrating the brakes for better, gradual hold than sudden, sharp bite. The gears are still a bit notchy though, although I feel that the clutch has improved slightly. The steering-rod issue (of brushing with the left foot while turning) still remains.

Great to hear that Mahindra has made some improvements to the suspension.
Our test drive vehicle was a 2015 46k km abused car and on top of that, the dealer fitted aftermarket alloy wheels with spacers, which gave us a totally different drive then what I experienced on my friends facelift XUV.

With added competition from the hexa and compass, Mahindra shouldn't rest on its laurels, needs to constantly improve but kudos to them for still trying.Some other manufacturers are inherently lazy to do anything.

Regards

[n.devdath]

Originally Posted by rambo1o1

Our test drive vehicle was a 2015 46k km abused car and on top of that, the dealer fitted aftermarket alloy wheels with spacers, which gave us a totally different drive then what I experienced on my friends facelift XUV.

Inform M&M about this. It is foolish things like this by the dealer that lead to many potential leads not getting converted. TD vehicles are supposed to kept bone stock and in good nick. Did you fill the feedback form after the TD on the tab?

[rambo1o1]

Originally Posted by n.devdath

Inform M&M about this. It is foolish things like this by the dealer that lead to many potential leads not getting converted. TD vehicles are supposed to kept bone stock and in good nick. Did you fill the feedback form after the TD on the tab?

In Goa all the Mahindra dealerships are owned by the same group and there are only 2 manual XUV500 test drive vehicles for the whole state.
I complained to customer care and the dealer offered me to test drive a new AT vehicle in their stock Yard, however it was a very short test drive (2km). There was no feedback form provided after test drive, I inquired about it ,was told I would get a call about my experience. Never got that call.

Hence I test drove my friends 2016 W4 model to get a feel of the suspension.
It's a sad state of affairs but not many Prospective customers Complain, hence the arrogance shown by the dealer.

[SVNY]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

We brought our second Cheetah (in our family) home a week back, on 9th August.
===========
Hubby does the same for the wifey (passenger) side.
Attachment 1667009[/center]

Fog lamps are not a standard attachment in W6 so how much did they charge for the fog lamps?

[rambo1o1]

Originally Posted by SVNY

Fog lamps are not a standard attachment in W6 so how much did they charge for the fog lamps?

Fog lamps inclusive of fitting charges is 4500. Chrome part around the fog's is about 1500. I am getting my W6 At delivered on Tuesday.

[udaygk77]

Sales rep from Sahayadri Motors, Pune has informed me that the W8 model will be discontinued soon and they have received information from headquarters to give consolidated details of the bookings for the W8.

[sk13]

Originally Posted by udaygk77

Sales rep from Sahayadri Motors, Pune has informed me that the W8 model will be discontinued soon and they have received information from headquarters to give consolidated details of the bookings for the W8.

W8 is being replaced with W9, with a 170bhp version it seems. I got to know this from Anant cars Bangalore. Don't understand their strategy, why upgrade just one variant. Probably W8 was not selling that much compared to w10 ?

[goswami.j]

Originally Posted by sk13

W8 is being replaced with W9, with a 170bhp version it seems. I got to know this from Anant cars Bangalore. Don't understand their strategy, why upgrade just one variant. Probably W8 was not selling that much compared to w10 ?

This uncertainty around the refresh of XUV 500, made me move away from the W10 which I had almost booked. Did not want to buy a car which would soon have a better performance version as I tend to keep my vehicles for eternity.
The dealers though had flatly refused any near term refresh plan for the XUV 500. Are you sure of the authenticity of the news ?