[timetraveller]

Nice insights, Samurai.

Originally Posted by Samurai

if Mahindra had priced it differently, say in the similar lines as in Tata Aria, would it have attracted similar attention

Surely not. Premium pricing isn't something one can suddenly demand with a one product. That's something to be earned over a period of time. And usually done with a separate product line altogether. I am glad M&M didn't kill the XUV by trying to 'make it look premium' by tagging a premium price to it.

Originally Posted by Samurai

If you compare Aria with XUV5OO ...but neither one is blowing the other away in any department except in price. ...

For me cars are also about quality and ingenuity of engineering. May be because I am a product engineer, I have a soft spot for well designed cars. When I say design, I mean under the hood, and not merely the curves of the sheet metal.

But there are clear differences! What about the first desi monocoque, suspension design by Lotus engineering, and weight savings of 440 kgs over the Aria? Those are product differences well under the hood.

Clearly there is plenty for M&M to do before the XUV can be called a truly 'world-class' car, but this has been a terrific start. You mentioned product engineering, and that's exactly what M&M has tried to do with the XUV. So my take is that they've put in the kind of efforts 'to build a product' that other desi manufacturers haven't done yet and is a generation ahead while the desi competition is more of only incremental changes. That's worthy of appreciation. The XUV may well start the trend of 'mainstreaming' safety technologies, but it remains to be seen if the other manufacturers will follow suit. The Indian market is very price sensitive, but hopefully the good stuff (airbags? abs? ebd/esp?) will be forgiven the excise duty by the govt so its easy to get.

Maybe the XUV will succeed maybe not, maybe I'll cancel my booking (for a W8/AWD and I am getting tired of waiting) and go with good old Toyota, but the fact is that the XUV has altered the dynamics at least in the SUV/MUV markets for a while and that's a good thing. I'll readily agree that there are better end-to-end engineered products launched in 2011, but the most significant product of 2011 is.... the XUV 500. (That's in my opinion of course. )

[RacingForIndia]

No doubt, its got to be the XUV 500.
Awesome car, fantastic price.

[hiren959]

My vote is for Hyundai Verna, as it is the best suited for Indian mass market with its stunning desing and engine options.
Personaly I would not buy this car, my vote goes for the Car of the Year 2011 tag only. My choice in this segment is ford Fiesta or Skoda rapid.
For XUV IMO it is the best product from Mahindra yet but it is not a complete package.

[S2!!!]

Have voted for the Swift- the car that changed the perception of Indians towards larger/ B+ segment hatchbacks. The car is just fantastic to drive and with the slightly improved interiors has become that much more desirable and upmarket.

[rajat_r_sharma]

I've voted for the Hyundai EON as that, to my mind, is a car which is going to redefine the 'entry level' segment - a la` Maruti 800 style

[brownears]

Among the cars launched this year, none of the contenders could probably even dream of matching the hype created by the XUV500. As a product it may not be perfect, but as far as running away with imagination and living up to the hype goes, nothing we have seen this year comes even close, as is comprehensively shown by this poll. Personally, I am still trying to palate the front and rear styling. But I have to give it to M&M and the XUV500 for its engineering and VFM appeal.

[Dine]

Its XUV-500.
The Test drive was convincing that its another Game changer like Scorpio.
EON Sportz cost 4.25 Lakhs On Road in Chennai - Hyundai has to revisit its pricing strategy, if it bets big on entry segment

[venkateshkm]

My vote is for the Mahindra XUV 500. Not very classy interiors, nor seems proportionate in design, but a combination of great engine, good space, great many features, coupled to a practical pricing gets the vote.

[vc.vinay]

It's xuv 500 kudos to mahindra for making such a nice car.

Second choice goes to swift and verna.

[suddensandy]

The XUV 500 wins my vote hands down just for the daring that Mahindra possesses in product design and all the gadgets that this vehicle carries.

But there still are niggling issues on their systems engineering and change engineering expertise that have made some owners take it back to showrooms for errors coming up on the infotainment screens. But you do forgive them for the price tag!!

[GTO]

2,600 votes makes this COTY poll the heaviest yet. And with a dominating 57% of all votes received, the Mahindra XUV500 is the Team-BHP Car of the Year 2011.

A true game-changer. Well deserved, I say!

[anjan_c2007]

Its again Mr Anand Mahindra quoting the teambhp Car of the Year 2011 choice viz. the XUV 500!

Mr Vivek Nayyar, Sr Vice President, M&M is quoting Anandji here on twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/Vivek_Nayer

And the quote

[quote]"XUV500 wins Team-BHP Car of the Year 2011 poll with a huge 57% of votes out of 2,600+ well informed car owners & enthusiasts[quote]

We teambhpians are all well-informed car owners and enthusiasts, he says !

[shankar.balan]

I think the XUV carried it off on account of its extreme VFM positioning and feature rich characteristics.

[pacman2881]

Well deserved win for the XUV and Mahindra seems to be capitalizing on the popularity- XUV5OO to be costlier by 55k!

Business Line : Companies News : M&M's XUV500 to cost by up to Rs 55,000 more from Jan

[ACM]

It did deserve to win and as shankar says Extreme pricing was the deal clincher along with clear SUV like looks and features never before seen at this price point. - A More SUV per SUV tag bettered over its competitor.