XUV300, Mahindra’s best to date

With respectable annual growth and an ever-expanding product portfolio as well as the addition of a local assembly plant, it can be argued that the Indian firm has firmly rooted itself in South African soil. I travelled to the Western Cape recently to drive the manufacturer’s new XUV300, a medium-sized SUV that slots between its entry-level KUV100 and large XUV500 models.

Exterior styling

The medium-sized SUV segment is cutthroat with just about every mainstream manufacturer having a competitor for us to choose from. Therefore, if Mahindra wants to compete, its offering needs to offer the usual value associated with the marque, but also rid of the quirky design language of old.

I’m happy to report that the XUV300 looks rather good when compared to its rivals. The front-end is very upright, with a grille that extends into the upswept headlamps which also incorporates the Daytime Running Lights. The side profile features a high shoulder line which curves upwards at the rear door handle, where the bodywork also flares out. The blacked-out C-pillar also creates a ‘floating roof’ effect. At the rear, there are teardrop-shaped LED taillamps which round-off what is a rather attractive entrant into this segment.

Interior

The interior is less impressive than the exterior, however, On the W8 variants driven at launch, there was quite a bit of kit as standard. There is a handy seven-inch colour touchscreen infotainment system with Bluetooth, USB, AUX, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity that performs very well.

Other niceties included leather seats, cruise control as part of the multi-function steering wheel, a colour multi-information display in the instrument cluster, a sunroof and dual-zone climate control. The same issue that has plagued India-sourced cars for a while now, a light interior hue, is also present in the W8 spec XUV300. Occupying the space of an SUV for small families and young couples, the lighter colour will not age well. Mahindra has stated that if demand is there, it will consider adding a darker interior option.

Aside from the light interior colour, which admittedly does make the interior appear larger, the general build quality is commendable. There is the odd number of sub-par plastic surfaces, but the standard features and indeed the interior occupant space offered is competitive. The real let-down of the package though is the boot, which despite having three options for floor height is too shallow and offers less than 300-litres of space.

Powertrain and driving impression

There are two engine options as well as two specifications for each engine in the local XUV300 line-up. The aforementioned specification of the W8 isn’t too far ahead of the more attainable W6 models which also get the infotainment system but make do with standard air conditioning, black cloth seats, electric windows and two airbags versus the seven in the W8 and misses out on the electronic stability programme(ESP) from the W8.

In terms of the petrol engine, it’s a 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbo with 81 kW and 200 N.m of torque. At the launch, we only had a chance to sample what is likely to be the pick of the two engines on offer, a 1.5-litre four-cylinder diesel with 85 kW and 300 N.m of torque. The small motor and six-speed manual gearbox were the highlights of the package for me, feeling refined and smooth in operation, while the general ride and handling is certainly far better than I have experienced from the brand before.

Verdict

This is, by some margin, the best Mahindra product that I’ve sampled so far. It’s also the right sort of vehicle for the current, SUV-crazed market. With respectable specification and competitive pricing, the XUV300 should be on your shopping list when browsing for the likes of the Renault Duster, Hyundai Creta and Ford EcoSport.

Service plan and warranty

The XUV300 range comes as standard with a five-year / 150 000 km warranty and a five-year / 90 000 km service plan

Pricing

XUV300 W6 1.2 Petrol: R 249 999

XUV300 W6 1.5 Diesel: R 274 999

XUV300 W8 1.2 Petrol: R 304 999

XUV300 W8 1.5 Diesel: R 324 999