Re: Mahindra XUV700 Review Took a TD of the XUV7OO Diesel AT and the Petrol AT.
Took them at 2 different places as there was a HUGE wait list.
Diesel AT - India Garage, Palace Cross,Bengaluru
Petrol AT - PPS Mahindra, Indiranagar, Bengaluru
Both top of the line AX7L's.
My first impressions over a stretch of 1.5-2kms.
Did not click pictures. Apologies in advance. Common observations (AX7L) - Excellent driving position, good view of the road ahead. Huge cabin, light interiors and the massive skyroof help with the airy ness. I'm on the heavier side and have a long torso, found it to be very comfortable. Seating three abreast in the rear is a breeze. Good shoulder room in the second row. Three of us with very broad shoulders sat comfortably.
- Excellent front seats. Very supportive and is of the right firmness to me. Merc inspired seat control is convenient to operate. Dummy switches look uncool. Missed under-thigh support adjustment and electric assist for the lumbar support (manual knob placed at an inconvenient position, Harrier's knob is placed better)
- Chunky steering wheel feels great to hold, thumb contours heighten the feel good factor. Hornpad is easy to reach. Sweet wind tone horn,big thumbs up. Tilt and telescopic steering help to find the perfect position. Telescopic adjustment should be standard across variants. Don't know why mahindra chose to skip them.
- Switches are of okay quality. The Koreans trump the XUV in this aspect. I personally am not a huge fan of piano black finishes.
- The infotainment screen and the driver's cockpit are slick to operate. Crisp graphics and good readability under sunlight. Digital cockpit changes graphics according to the drive mode selected (D-AT) .
- As expected, quite a few bugs wrt infotainment and cockpit .The blind view monitor on the Diesel AT simply went blue when I turned to the left, there was no display at all. It came back on later though. The switch to turn on the 360 view and the switch to turn off the screen did not work at all in the D-AT. 360 button worked on the P-AT but the screen OFF button didn't work here too.
- Spacious footwell with neatly spaced out pedals. Dead pedal is comfortable for a size 12 shoe. Long journeys won't be a problem.
- Space for an additional phone (below the AC unit), a notebook/user manual/ tablet device(inside the glove box) and a separate recess for the keyfob (inside the front armrest) are thoughtful touches.
- Third row is best suited for kids /very small adults. I'm 5'11 and could not fit inside. Very uncomfortable.
Driving the Diesel AT - Fire it up and you will immediately notice that it is a very smooth engine. NVH at idle and on the move are excellent. No significant vibrations or noisy clatter were heard. No cabin shakeup on stop/start either.
- The mHawk is a jewel and it proves why. The wave of torque is linear and the car pulls like a locomotive. The whopping 450nm of torque is felt. I luckily found an open stretch on my route and I easily reached the legal limit without realising . Cruising at triple digit speeds will be a cakewalk. Zip mode(155ps)is very much usable and you don't need to use the Zoom mode for most purposes . Zoom unleashes a different beast and will be a delight on the open road. Custom mode is a good addition and I noticed that climate control can be customised. I believe this is offered to lower the load.
- The 6 speed AT is not sporty but smooth. Shifts can be felt inside and it takes some time to downshift when floored. This is not a sporty vehicle by any stretch and the engine gearbox combo serves the purpose quite well. Paddle shifters are surely missed. Hope Mahindra makes a quick correction and offer us another variant with this and other missing features.
- Could not take the Diesel AT over rough roads as surprisingly, the roads were smooth(this is the poshest area of Bengaluru btw). But I can say that it's leaps and bounds ahead of the previous 5OO. It has a firm edge and there is no lateral movement. I ran over a few manhole covers on purpose and the car did not feel unsettled. Passed my 35 kmh speed breaker test with flying colors.
- The steering is light and easy to live with. Easy to manoeuvre at city speeds. Zoom mode adds some artificial weight but mind you, this is no Compass . The Compass is leagues ahead.
Driving the Petrol AT - The specs were impressive to begin with and I'm happy to report that it has translated well to real life.
- It is very smooth, power delivery is linear and builds up pace steadily. I Did feel a little lag but past 2000 rpm it takes off.
- IMO, 6AT mated to this motor, feels like a laggard. It's very smooth but takes its own sweet time to downshift (D mode). Wishful thinking but a DCT in future? Please mahindra? Pretty please?
- Was able to take the Petrol on rough(normal) roads of Bengaluru (Thanks BBMP). The car felt composed, didn't bounce around too much. There is a hint of firmness which means better high speed manners. I can confidently say that ride quality is no more a deal breaker. This is no Hexa but quite a big leap.
- The steering felt lighter than the Diesel (maybe because of lack of drive modes). Easy to use, easy to reverse. Got out of a tight spot pretty easily. I must also mention that the cameras are very good and helped a great deal.
I also had an interaction with a Mahindra official. - Asked him about the poor equipment levels of AX3 and AX5 variants. He replied by saying that M&M are anticipating high demand for the AX7. Hence emphasis on that. He also assured that the lower variants will be kitted properly in the coming months. He also cited that the semiconductor chip shortage was an issue.
- Asked him about the missing features like auto IRVM, ventilated seats etc. To which he replied that M&M have taken the feedback and will offer them at a later stage. Mostly by April-May 2022.
- The car initially was thought out to be a 7 seater, but Mahindra decided to make it a 5 seater at the last moment to enter the most happening segment. This is also one of the reasons why AX3 and AX5 are poorly kitted.
We will go ahead with the Diesel AT in the stunning Midnight Black(?) or the Rage Red after the niggles are sorted and hopefully by then, if we do get more features, will go for the 2022 model as the requirement is not urgent.
Last edited by Babruvahanaaaaa : 2nd October 2021 at 21:31.
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