[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by DriveLogic

1) Rather than having a cheesy 'by Mahindra' badge, couldn't they have branded as Mahindra Rexton only, at least in India I think they could slowly transition Ssangyong's decent products into Mahindra's portfolio as the former doesn't have a formidable brand value anyway!

A surfeit of beige AGAIN!!! Bah!
However, this vehicle will pass my "golf bag test" in spades!!
I think they are bang on with their pricing.
Wonder where the smaller Korando C will get positioned then?
And I completely agree with the above post that they ought to have branded this as a Mahindra Rexton - Mahindra has huge Brand Equity here in India whereas Ssangyong does not. Indeed, Ssangyong is considered like a poor man's utility brand in most places abroad where it sells, so why bother trying to "premium-ize" it here!
In today's world, with fantastic access to information via the internet and travel and all the rest of it, us consumers in the "third world" "developing nations"
are no longer unaware of what is happening around the globe!

[DriveLogic]

Alas, something we should be very happy Mahindra did NOT do to the Rexton, given how easily it could've been done . Esp with the grill bulging onto the bonnet, it could perfectly made to look like the pre-facelift Xylo.

P.S. Pardon the amateur Photoshop skills

[StarrySky]

Originally Posted by Guna

Car maker is liable to provide service to the car he has sold for 15 years (not sure about the years), even if he closes a particular brand. That's how GM is made to service the Forester even after the partnership with Subaru is over and the car has been discontinued for several years now.

I don't know how it works, but who is the car maker in this case - Ssangyong or Mahindra? If it's Ssangyong and Mahindra sells it to someone else, does Mahindra still have to service the Rexton? Also, the brand is not killed, it's sold to someone else.

I mean, who will service the JLR cars sold during Ford ownership of JLR - Ford or Tata?

Then again, rules are rules - but Peugeot left India somewhere in 2001, less than 15 years back. How many Peugeot service centres are there in India?

Anyway, this is completely OT. So no more posts on this from my side on this thread.

[sridhar-v]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

I think they are bang on with their pricing.
Wonder where the smaller Korando C will get positioned then?

My take is that the Korando C pricing will overlap that of the XUV 500. So if you need a large 5(occasional 7!) seater softroader it is the XUV & a slightly posher 5 seater(alibet smaller) it is the Korando.

Korando will fit my requirements. Hopefully by then i will be spoilt for choice with the Ford Kuga & the Hyundai IX35.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by sridhar-v

My take is that the Korando C pricing will overlap that of the XUV 500. So if you need a large 5(occasional 7!) seater softroader it is the XUV & a slightly posher 5 seater(alibet smaller) it is the Korando.

Korando will fit my requirements. Hopefully by then i will be spoilt for choice with the Ford Kuga & the Hyundai IX35.

Me too really. Only I just could not wait any longer at the time and just leaped at the Yeti. No regrets though.

[AdiSinghV12]

Nice coverage bro! I feel that someone planning to spend around 20L on a SUV, would probably be better of spending a 'little' more and buying the Fortuner IMO. I certainly feel that the pricing of the upcoming Captiva will determine the fate of this vehicle...

[CRtorquefan]

Oooomph..
Definitely a great car in the Sub Rs.20 lakh price range, previously which was left almost vacant, as Fortuner, Pajero Sport & Captiva are 20+ lakh now, Endy is too old now & started looking dated now.
So, with Rs.5-6 lakhs less than Fortuner & Pajero Sport & Mahindra badge, this can serious make the buyers reconsider their decision.
I Expect this car to 2nd best seller here in ~Rs.20 lakh price band, with first one being Fortuner.

[harishpr]

im all in for getting this monster. I looked at youtube and several other sites, infact this was pitched against volvo, where it lost a bit; but nevertheless, this seems a great buy. i cannot afford a volvo or audis or beemers, but this one seems very affordable, especially with AT box. Even Yeti has no AT.
im eagerly waiting for team-bhp review, post which i will plonk the amount for getting rex'd.
I like those understated looks, yet significant presence.

[ranc]

Originally Posted by DriveLogic

Alas, something we should be very happy Mahindra did NOT do to the Rexton, given how easily it could've been done . Esp with the grill bulging onto the bonnet, it could perfectly made to look like the pre-facelift Xylo.

P.S. Pardon the amateur Photoshop skills

Not a bad job buddy. Somehow after the XUV 500 Mahindra grill has started looking better and aggresive.

[pradyblr]

Thank you for sharing. Looks very promising with the AT option.
Now will Rexton eat into XUV market (with Mahindra increasing XUV price almost every other month) or fortuner/endeavor market?
Either way can't wait to get my hands on it for a test drive!!!

[magikrider]

almost 22 lacs, on road mumbai, for manual seems a bit high when you have a fully loaded XUV W8 with much more features at 15-16 lacs! I have seen the car and the second row seating is no where as comfortable or spacious compared to the XUV. its pretty low and under thigh support is not much so long distance travel could be tiring. third row is useless. they should have removed that seat completely and sold it as 5 seater only. you have to fold your legs and sit. haven't driven but started and revved the engine in the showroom itself! the engine is also noisy and sound will filter in at highway speeds and when revved high. interiors are good in some parts and ok in some parts. kenwood touchscreen unit looks after market job. except the GPS there isn't anything else like tyretronics or any other info in it like the XUV unit. dials also look outdated. steering is only tilt adjustable. not for reach.

the front seats are good with electronic adjustment and seat memory. but i guess thats only on the AT.

had seen mostly ok to some even dissapointed reaction on people checking the car. no one seemed as excited or tempted the way people were when the XUV was launched. had seen people ready with down payment cheques and even trying to pull influence to cut the waiting period when i had gone to see the XUV a week after its launch. none such thing here. one guy even said he was waiting for almost 6 months for this car and he didnt find it worth it and XUV's interiors and dash layout is better looking. I too felt that it doesn't have that wow factor which the XUV have. all in all AT makes some sense compared to the manual, which i don't see selling much as it is. the XUV makes even more sense now.

[Hits_80]

I am definately thinking about buying the same in near future. Even though Reliability & Brand value remain a concern, its sheer product to product comparision (with 4*4 AT, sunroof etc.) with Fortuner and the 2.5 L price difference & 3-6 months waiting period for Fortuner, is definately tilting the balance is favor of Raxton RX7. Will wait for detailed team-bhp review though.

I think its a great Value for money product with all the features you can ask even in 30-40 L SUVs, rightly priced (Between XUV 500 & Fortuner) and all the competitor products except Fortuner (Endaviour, Captiva, Pagero Sport, Santa Fe, X-trail and the List goes on..!) look bare skinned..!

Even going by the sheer outside looks, it can compete with Q3 and appeals more than the X1 to the naked eye. (It's a personal opinion) Also, I always like to own a premium product which is seen rarely on the road.

When I bought my Mitsubishi Cedia, (Choosing over Civic & Corolla Altis petrol) about 3 years back (Dec'09), many of my friends made a mockery of my choice of selecting Mitsubishi brand over Honda & Toyota, but my Cedia has served me really well. I have done about 45K KM on one of the worst city roads in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, without a single day failure & my overall spent on *** is less than 15K during 3 years..! My overall experience @ Mitsubishi service outlets has been surprisingly very good!

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[sam003]

Seems like Rexton fever is coming down very fast. M&M must have lauched this vechicle and 5 seater, for people like me who were looking for good 7 seater option will stay away even though its offering some missing goodies in other competitors.

[GunMo]

@Parrys, Excellent launch report with detailed photographs! Thank you very much!!

Car looks non-offensive in photos and comparable in size with Fortuner, however, the commanding road presence (or lack of it) need to be seen in person.

As usual, Mahindra has hit a sweet spot with package & pricing (the 'introductory' part is worrying though)!

XUV500 successor, we can call it :: which sadly reminds the nightmarish episodes of XUV as well (namely niggles/issues and unprepared A.S.S).

One question to M&M though:
Why can't you make the controls suitable for right-hand driven cars?
(Yes, I am pointing at the swapped lights/wiper controls as well as the 60:40 split seat orientation)!

[pganapathy]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

A surfeit of beige AGAIN!!! Bah!
However, this vehicle will pass my "golf bag test" in spades!!
I think they are bang on with their pricing.
Wonder where the smaller Korando C will get positioned then?
And I completely agree with the above post that they ought to have branded this as a Mahindra Rexton - Mahindra has huge Brand Equity here in India whereas Ssangyong does not. Indeed, Ssangyong is considered like a poor man's utility brand in most places abroad where it sells, so why bother trying to "premium-ize" it here!
In today's world, with fantastic access to information via the internet and travel and all the rest of it, us consumers in the "third world" "developing nations"
are no longer unaware of what is happening around the globe!

For better or for worse Mahindra seem to have taken their lessons from the Indian car market. Both Maruti and Tata tried to take their brand more upmarket and failed miserably (in Tata's case by overpricing the aria, but still). VW brought in their skoda brand, a VFM brand anywhere else in the world and managed to "premium-ize" it. Guess Mahindra figured it would make more sense to risk launching the rexton under the ssangyong brand so that there were no negative effects on their bread and butter products.

It seems that the thinking is the "phoren" brand will sell. Admittedly a lot of the more educated indians wouldn't buy into that, but it really seems to sell amongst a lot of the nouveau-riche who only seem to care how the vehicle looks on the outside.