[Infiniti.Rahul]

A review par excellence yet again by the good fellas at Team-BHP. I was lucky enough to get a Moondust Silver booked on October 8th second half of the day, and woke up the next day to the harrowing news of the bookings having closed down.

The review reaffirms the good points about the vehicle and is as detailed as it gets! Kudos to GTO and Manson!

Manson/GTO/ Any fellow BHPian: Could someone throw some light on whats the standard route to enhance the audio experience since whats been given by the OEM in the XUV is apparently not too great a product? Are integrations with the XUVs system possible? Assuming they are not, still, what can someone do to upgrade the sound system? Some detailing will be much appreciated.

[prashanthyr]

Thanks for an excellent review! Team-BHP's reviews have become the default standard for any automotive review.

A big Congratulations to Mahindra for getting it right from the word GO on all parameters, save for the styling.

Of the 6 Airbags, we know the location of 4 - front and side (seat mounted). What about the other two? are they for the rear seats (door mounted) or curtain airbags which conver the entire side section?

I do hope and wish Tata learn a thing or two from this, especially about finishing a good base product properly (Vista/Manza/Aria) and importantly pricing it right.

The Japs / Europeans are trying to go to the lower end of the market, whereas the Indians are going to the upper end of the market for 'image' and margins! Its going to be interesting to check who will be more successful!

[Superleggera]

Thanks So much for the review. I am proud of Mahindra,giving neck to neck competition to the well established Japs and Koreans !!!

[Behemoth]

Thanks Manson and GTO for a Great review!

Even when I saw the XUV500, I was overwhelmed by its VFM package and the kind of package that it offers that this price seems almost unbelievable! In hindsight now, I feel that I just paid too much for my Yeti!
It's time now that other manufacturers also rationalized their offerings and started manufacturing cars in India and offering better value to Customer. E.g. Captiva till now is a CBU (CKD has been planned, but so far not done!) and at a 18 Lacs ex-showroom price, now seems way overpriced when compared to the XUV500. Even the Aria, inspite of being a good package overall, is nowhere close to the features / presence and image that the XUV500 is able to cut out. This is seriously one vehicle where Mahindra has one-upped everyone in the 10-20 lacs segments (Cars + SUVs). The only bone of contention left is the reliability of the components and the service levels they are able to maintain.
Overall a great effort from Mahindra!

One feature which I could not find an answer in the official review is : does the XUV500 have HID lamps..?

Regards,
Behemoth

[BoneCollector]

Originally Posted by manson

Mahindra XUV5OO

Excellent 5 star review.Thanks a lot manson and GTO for such a comprehensive and detailed look 'inside' the XUV5OO.I hope that this is launched in Bihar,sometime in 2012 so that my signature stands where it is now .
Just wondering,do you have any snaps/video that could show some details about the projector headlamps and their cornering capabilities(at night)?Something like with headlamps off and then on and then with projectors on(from driver's seat). but i wish to know about it.

Originally Posted by Behemoth

One feature which I could not find an answer in the official review is : does the XUV500 have HID lamps..?

I too wish to know more about it.


Wow,100th post of mine and that too for XUV5OO!!

[amitg79]

What a fantastic review, manson and GTO... 5 stars!
What I love the most is that you have conveyed the feeling of actually driving the XUV, rather than reduce it to a bunch of statistics (0-100, x to y in -- gear etc).
Mahindra have come up with a truly aspirational vehicle that many of us can realistically dream of buying.
The multi-grille front takes a bit of getting used to, but overall a very handsome car. And is it just me or do the headlights (the way in which the grille starts directly below the lights) seem a bit inspired from the R8?

[BlackRaven]

Manson & team, Awesome review as always. Thank you.

@GTO, I had booked the TFort early september and after XUV's price was announced this is exactly what I felt. "A nearly 10 lakh premium is a lot of money for an SUV with rear drum brakes and a stiff ride."

I want to wait and see if Toyota has anything remarkable to offer with the facelifted TFort. if not your above comment has sealed it for me. It will be XUV W8 AWD whenever bookings open.

and again coming from the value conscious society, I find it hard to digest and plonk 10L more for a vehicle with less safety features and relatively poorer drive.

Fingers crossed. Bring it on Toyota.

[mmmjgm]

Nice review manson ! Way to go, OTOH I thought you had a white Scorpio.

Once again, nice review of the Eks you Vee, !

[Tushargohil]

Thank you Manson / GTO & Team, Much appreciate it.... Fantastic Review..

[tachobells]

Thanks for the detailed review, Manson and GTO.

I'm happy that my booking (W8 FWD Satin White) is now justified
Hope it has the reliability for the long haul.

[fuel_addict]

Fantastic review. The XUV500 is indeed a game changer as noted by GTO. The equipment list is truly mind-blowing. The pricing is so attractive that C and C+segment sedans look overpriced. And the other SUVs look like no contenders unless brand name is a deciding factor. No surprise that overbooking has forced Mahindra to stop taking new bookings (a concept that Maruti does not seem to believe in until things go really bad).

Good to see Mahindra coming of age over the years. They have launched a good product and it should do really well.

[//M]

Excellent review manson and GTO sir. The XUV5OO is definitely a game changer and the fact that it comes from the in-house Mahindra stable is unbelievable. I have test-driven it and for sure, I'm totally impressed. The pricing makes the car look even sweeter. Saw a black XUV5OO the other day and it looks stunning.

Rated the review a 5-star. Thank You !!

[Sheel]

Holy smoke, you folks have kicked the goal posts forward. This review is as detailed & as exhaustive as one can pen down.

Hats off Team

Post no.3 where it is asked to click upon for interior + exterior color combinations isn't working.

The Cars like these make sense. Yesterday we were on the E-W corridor in our Safari and with the agitation because of AMU's land deal, the road was completely blocked. We clambered over the divider & got ourselves out. Wonder if it would be possible in my low slung hatch. But on the XUV? I believe yes. It would gobble up expressways and get out of messy situations w/o acting pricey

5*

[BlackRaven]

I just called my Sales advisor in Toyota for any news bits he may have on the facelifted model and I could not beleive what I heard. Classic TFort available off the shelf and that includes "White". I don't recollect this happening in the past 2 years.

I am not sure what to read of this news.

1) have potential TFort owners already drifted to XUV 5OO OR
2) do people know the upcoming Facelifted model and putting off their purchase

Other folks who have their contacts in Toyota, could you check if this is the case in your geography as well?

[mshooli]

Originally Posted by manson

Another typical Mahindra weakness is that our 1,000 kms run XUV5OO was already making squeaks and creaks from the tail-gate and rear door area. The sounds weren’t audible when I was sitting on the front seats, but they were prominent on the middle row, and really loud on the third row. This is not something that will go down easily with the 15 lakh rupee customer I spoke of earlier.

Agree. Paying so much of money and getting the squeaks after 1000kms is bothersome.

I have booked the XUV and delivery is sometime in Jan 2012. But I will look forward to some ownership reports to see if this problem surface.

Question here. Do I need to rethink about my booking if this problem exists in the vehicles being delivered ?