Mahindra is about to drop its most important model to date - the Mahindra 3XO. It's a small compact SUV that is destined to take on the affordable Chery Tiggo 4 Pro in the small SUV sales race in Australia. Paul Maric and Alborz Fallah test drive the 3XO at Mahindra's proving ground in India.
Skip Ahead:
Intro: 00:00
Exterior: 01:11
High speed track: 03:35
0-100km/h: 14:15
Dynamic handling: 14:30
We review every new car on the market, bust car myths, cover the latest car tech and answer your burning questions.
Whether you need new car advice, purchase validation or simply love learning more about new cars and technology, we are your car experts.
Subscribe to Car Expert: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7DvMhvy3H7ntEgn9n3xQcQ?sub_confirmation=1
You'll find us dropping new video content three times a week. If you'd like to ask a question about one of our videos, simply leave us a comment. If you'd like to give us any feedback on our content, feel free to email us, or alternatively, hit us up on social media.
Finally, we want this channel to grow with your support and feedback. If there's anything you don't like or would like to see us change, we'd love to hear from you!
Follow us on social media to see what we're up to and to ask any questions!
CarExpert:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarExpertAus
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/CarExpertAus
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carexpert.com.au
Paul Maric:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaulMaric
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/PaulMaric
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/PaulMaric
#mahindra #3xo #review
Skip Ahead:
Intro: 00:00
Exterior: 01:11
High speed track: 03:35
0-100km/h: 14:15
Dynamic handling: 14:30
We review every new car on the market, bust car myths, cover the latest car tech and answer your burning questions.
Whether you need new car advice, purchase validation or simply love learning more about new cars and technology, we are your car experts.
Subscribe to Car Expert: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7DvMhvy3H7ntEgn9n3xQcQ?sub_confirmation=1
You'll find us dropping new video content three times a week. If you'd like to ask a question about one of our videos, simply leave us a comment. If you'd like to give us any feedback on our content, feel free to email us, or alternatively, hit us up on social media.
Finally, we want this channel to grow with your support and feedback. If there's anything you don't like or would like to see us change, we'd love to hear from you!
Follow us on social media to see what we're up to and to ask any questions!
CarExpert:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarExpertAus
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/CarExpertAus
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carexpert.com.au
Paul Maric:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaulMaric
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/PaulMaric
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/PaulMaric
#mahindra #3xo #review
Category
🚗
MotorTranscript
00:00G'day, I'm Paul. So, the consumer market in Australia is going crazy at the moment.
00:04People, cost of living pressures, they don't have money, they want to buy a new car,
00:08but there isn't a great deal out there that is affordable.
00:10Chinese brands are coming in to change that, but Mahindra wants to do the same.
00:14And if you have a look at some of their other cars, like the XUV700 and the Scorpio,
00:18they've really sharpened up pricing there, and they have dropped the ball a little on some of the specs and features of those.
00:23But this is a car that they're hoping to really take on the Chinese brands with.
00:27It's called the XUV300. So, it's basically a small version of the XUV700 that we already have in Australia.
00:35So, I'm excited to see what it's like and how it compares to that.
00:38We're over in India at the moment, being hosted by Mahindra at their proving ground.
00:41We were actually here last year or the year before looking at the Scorpio and the Tar, and it was a stack of fun.
00:47So, what we're about to do is go take this out on a drive of the high-speed track here, some dynamic handling stuff.
00:52And in the next month or two, we're actually going to get our hands on this in Australia as well,
00:56where we're going to do all of our comprehensive testing like we normally do to make sure it stacks up.
01:00So, today it's going to be more high-level and just using the facilities that we have access to here.
01:04So, if you do want to skip ahead to other parts of this video, you can use the time codes that are on the screen,
01:08or if you're on YouTube, you can scroll down and use the chapters below.
01:11Okay, now let's talk about the design. Now, sorry if I'm sweating, it is like 38 degrees outside, properly humid.
01:16So, around the front here, this kind of takes on a very different design to other Mahindra products.
01:21They've tried to just jazz up the styling, if only that's a dad word, but just kind of make the styling a little more trendy in terms of how it looks.
01:28They're going to be targeting a younger audience as well.
01:30And I've got to be honest, like if you look at a lot of the Mahindras that are sold in Australia at the moment,
01:34a lot of them are driven by Indians who know the brand over here.
01:36And I think that is something they really need to work on, getting this brand out there to people that aren't Indian and just want value for money.
01:43So, on the styling front, big black grille there with the Mahindra logo.
01:47You've got headlight cluster off to the side here with LED daytime running lights.
01:51And given that Mahindra's now kind of shifted to just doing SUVs and commercial vehicles,
01:56they've given this that sort of SUV stance.
01:58So, when you're getting in and out, it sits higher off the ground.
02:01It has a higher hip point.
02:02So, it means that it is going to be better for those people that perhaps don't want to be sitting into a small hatch like a Mazda 2.
02:08Cladding on the side here, again, signifying that this is off-road ready,
02:12despite the fact it is just front-wheel drive.
02:1417s with a black finish on the inside, a machined finish on the outside there as well.
02:18In terms of pricing, we don't know exact pricing yet.
02:20But if you have a look at what they want to target, they need to be at or under TIGO 4 Pro pricing.
02:24And that means top spec being under $30,000 drive away,
02:27and the entry level being probably closer to that sort of $25,000 mark.
02:31Everyone has stuff like a full panoramic glass roof that opens.
02:34You've got the roof rails off to the side there.
02:36You've got keyless start.
02:37It sort of all adds in there to give this that premium vibe.
02:39Then around the back here, this is a pretty cool setup as well.
02:42So, full LED lights that run along the back and the sides there.
02:46And this will be available in two specs for the Australian market.
02:49You've got the AX7L, which is the top spec that gets the glass roof 65-watt USB charging,
02:54and the AX5L, which will be the entry level model, and XUV 3XO lettering just there.
03:00This is powered by a three-cylinder engine as well.
03:01So, it'll have a unique sort of sound to it, which is what three-cylinder engines have.
03:05So, I'll show you what the boot's like as well.
03:08So, look, it's a reasonably sized boot.
03:10Nothing sort of too crazy with quite a high entry point as well.
03:13So, it could be a little bit tricky to get stuff in and out.
03:15But they've thought of things like having hooks on the side there.
03:18You've got a space saver spare under the back there as well.
03:21So, it comes with all the sort of creature comforts you need.
03:23And you'll see here as well, three top tether points too.
03:26So, again, important if you do want to have baby seats in that second row.
03:29So, we're going to hop behind the wheel now.
03:31Go for a spin around the track here.
03:33We'll see what it's like once it's on the road.
03:35Okay.
03:36So, we're in the car.
03:37And you may have noticed I have a new friend here in the car with me.
03:41This is Elborz.
03:41For those of you who don't know, Elborz and I and Tony started Car Expert a little while ago.
03:47And Elborz has been joining me in the Drag Race video.
03:50So, make sure you check those out.
03:51Yes.
03:51Trust me, I'm not that slow.
03:54I don't know about that.
03:55All right.
03:56So, we're in the car.
03:57And I thought, you know, this would be a good opportunity for us to discuss the car.
04:00But also discuss, I guess, the Indian car market in general.
04:04We're both over here at the moment, hosted by Mahindra.
04:07And just been sort of checking out some of the stuff that they're doing.
04:10So, let's start off with the car.
04:12So, this is an interesting concept because it's got a three-cylinder engine.
04:16Yeah.
04:16I'm actually really impressed by it.
04:17As someone that has been recommending anyone I know to buy a Cherry Tigger 4 Pro,
04:21which is pretty much this car's direct competitor,
04:24sitting in here, I'm really impressed.
04:25It's actually quite a nice car.
04:26Does this impress you?
04:28No.
04:29The indicator sounds have been something that I've been writing about in Mahindra.
04:32They changed for quite some time.
04:33That is actually infuriating.
04:34Yeah.
04:34It really is annoying.
04:36They've fixed this, though, which is the blind spot camera.
04:38So, this was first started by, I think, Hyundai and Kia.
04:41And in every Mahindra I've driven, when you switch it on, it is at, like, one frame per second for some reason.
04:48So, that's fixed, which is good.
04:49The three-cylinder engine is fascinating because it only makes around, sort of, 80 kilowatts of power and 200 newton metres of torque.
04:55But they've been quite proud about saying that it's made into a six-speed ASIN transmission.
05:00Yeah.
05:00So, it's a Japanese transmission, turbocharged, small engine, 82 kilowatts of power.
05:04It's pretty good.
05:04Like, I got it up to 165 here before it basically just gave up.
05:08So, that is going to be my starting point for beating him in just a second.
05:11There's no way you can get past that because I'm weighing you down.
05:14But, you know, just being here in this proving ground, which is actually really nice, goes to show you that these guys are serious.
05:19Like, whenever we go to China and we go and drive cars, they won't let us go over 40 k's an hour because they're just absolutely paranoid.
05:26And they've just handed over this car and it's like, go as fast as you want, do whatever you want.
05:29And the speed limit here is 180.
05:31There's literally a sign there that says 180.
05:32I can't get to 180, but it's still pretty impressive with these bank corners.
05:36Yeah, so, in terms of the rest of the car here, I do notice here, travelling at 100, the steering is pretty heavy.
05:42So, I don't know whether that is just this car that they've got here for us.
05:47But that is something we'll check out once we get the car back to Australia.
05:50Presentation of the interior is quite nice.
05:52You've got big screen up the top there, screen ahead of the driver as well.
05:56When you look at the value that you're getting in this segment, and I often say this about Chinese cars,
06:00that there is so much value when you're buying one of those that you're getting all of these features you wouldn't expect to have.
06:06But to think that, you know, only a few years ago you could, and I think this will be around between $25,000 and $30,000 mark,
06:11that you could have all of this, I think it's pretty cool.
06:13I mean, it's got a Harman Kardon sound system.
06:15Like, that is what you used to get in, like, top-spec Germans.
06:19And is it Lexus that uses them, or is that Mark Levensey?
06:20Mark Levensey, but it's like BMW and stuff.
06:22BMW, right?
06:22When I saw that, I was like, what is going on here?
06:25Like, how can they price this car where they're going to price it?
06:28And it's like a 300-watt system, which is quite an impressive sound system.
06:32So, and, you know, the rest of it's quite nice.
06:33This switchgear and everything here doesn't feel cheap at all.
06:36Yeah.
06:37We had an argument about this before, and I'm going to explain to you all why Elbors doesn't have much of a clue about stuff,
06:43but there's a 65-watt USB charger that Elbors is adamant will not output 65 watts.
06:48Well...
06:49What's your reason?
06:50My reasoning isn't that it's not possible.
06:52Of course, it's very possible for a car like this to output 65 watts,
06:56but I'm saying I have plugged my iPhone, USB-C iPhone, into many, many cars,
07:01and not one of them can fast charge it.
07:03I don't believe that will be all the fast charge.
07:05That is because...
07:06But I'm willing to give it a go because that would be a miracle if that could do anything above 30.
07:12Well, that is because Tim Cook has broken Apple, so we need to find a device that isn't that.
07:17Well, one thing I will say that I've so far found as a negative is the wireless charging map.
07:20It's down here. It is cool. There is vents in it, but it's super slippery.
07:25So if I put my phone in it, basically I have to hold it for it to charge.
07:29The minute you accelerate or brake, it'll move out of the way, and then it'll stop working.
07:33So I don't really get the point of putting a wireless charging map in that doesn't work.
07:37And that's probably some of the stuff that Mahindra is still a bit behind the times on.
07:42It's stuff like that.
07:43Yes, it ticks a box, we've got a wireless charger, but it's not really functional,
07:47and I don't know how they can really properly test that.
07:49Well, to be fair, both of us don't have cases on our phones,
07:52so maybe with a case it would be a little bit better, but I don't know.
07:55Okay, so this Proving Ground, I mentioned this in the last video we did with the Scorpio and the TAR.
08:01It was built in like two years.
08:03The banking here goes up to over 40 degrees.
08:06To give you a comparison, the Proving Ground we have in Australia where we do all our filming,
08:10the banking is like 25 degrees, so it is properly steep up the top there.
08:14So we're going to see now if we can break Alborz's measly 165,
08:20and I will be trying my hardest, given that he is in the car as well,
08:23and the wind has just picked up.
08:25The wind has just picked up.
08:27To cyclonic head-on levels.
08:29Okay, here we go.
08:30150, 155.
08:35Oh, good.
08:37That's what I'll worry about that shortly.
08:38160.
08:39The bonnet has opened.
08:41It says the bonnet has opened.
08:42Is it the bonnet?
08:43Yeah.
08:44Okay, well, there's...
08:45Hold on.
08:45I don't know about that bonnet.
08:47166, that's all I...
08:49Yep.
08:50I'm pretty sure I said 176.
08:51I don't think I've closed the bonnet properly before when I was taking photos.
08:55Well, that would have been an excellent video, had it opened and smashed into the windscreen.
08:59We could have pulled over a big lap.
09:00165.
09:02And then knowing Paul, he would have blamed it on some engineering issue instead of just incompetence.
09:05That would have been your fault, because I think he drove this before I did.
09:09That is so funny.
09:10Well, we have tested that the Mahindra can survive at 165 with the bonnet open,
09:15if your driver is an idiot like Paul.
09:18I guess I'll jump out and close it.
09:20Yeah, thanks.
09:21Okay, so, sorry to interrupt the video.
09:23We're actually in Mahindra's brand new crash lab here,
09:26and I've just witnessed a 3XO crashing into a sled there.
09:31So, this is how it all went down just moments ago.
09:40So, what was the point of doing this?
09:42Well, Mahindra has basically learnt from the experience they had in Australia,
09:45where Scorpio, despite having a five-star Global NCAT rating,
09:49got zero stars through ANCAT, which is Australia's crash-testing body.
09:53What they discovered was that, even though they had tuned Scorpio for Global NCAT testing,
09:58there are variations here to the type of testing they do for ANCAT and Euro NCAT testing.
10:03I'll quickly run you through what all that looks like here in person.
10:06So, the bulk of the changes are actually with this.
10:08This is a 1,400-kilo sled.
10:10It's designed to simulate another vehicle getting crashed into yours head-on.
10:14This was a frontal offset test.
10:16So, basically, that side of the car was hit into the corner of the barrier.
10:20With ANCAT and Euro NCAT, they actually test the deformation on the blue section,
10:24which simulates another car.
10:25And why Mahindra was able to score so highly on stuff like Scorpio
10:29was that they tuned the vehicle for protecting the occupants.
10:33But as a result of that, you deform this barrier here, which is effectively another car.
10:37And as a result of that, they got a poor score.
10:39So, here what they're now doing is basically testing all of these cars up against a new standard,
10:44which is coming into effect next year for Australia.
10:47That includes changes to the dummies and also this barrier here.
10:50So, that is what they were simulating today with one of their development cars.
10:54And I think, to me, it just shows you that they're probably taking this stuff more seriously
10:57than they were previously.
10:58And while the structure of their cars was always fine,
11:01same with the Scorpio and same with this one here,
11:03it was more just the technical details of how this crash testing occurs
11:07that really caught them out.
11:09Fortunately, though, with 3XO, as we've just discovered,
11:11it doesn't have a centre airbag and it doesn't have front and rear cross traffic alert,
11:15which are two features that they're going to need to achieve a five-star ANCAP rating.
11:20So, anyway, I just thought I'd quickly show you this.
11:23It's really cool to see one of these crashes in real life.
11:25And it was bloody loud, but very cool to see.
11:29Back in the car now.
11:30Bonnet is closed.
11:31Indicator is chiming.
11:33We're going to be doing this high-speed section
11:34and then we'll go over to the dynamic handling area
11:37to see what that feels like.
11:39But, yeah, to me, this feels pretty solid.
11:41I will reserve judgement until we get it in Australia.
11:43But by the feel of it,
11:45I think Mahindra understands that they have massive market opportunity
11:48in countries where they sell Chinese cars
11:51because they have the ability to scale manufacturing
11:55and manufacture affordably like the Chinese do.
11:59And I think that is probably the key thing they need to be able to do
12:02to take on the Chinese at their own game
12:04because the Japanese are no longer doing it.
12:06The Japanese have gone,
12:07well, we're just going to wait it out.
12:09And I just don't think that's a strategy
12:11because there are so many Chinese brands coming.
12:13I think what's pretty obvious, though, now is that,
12:16yes, China is the clear leader and going at 100 miles an hour,
12:19but these guys are chasing them down.
12:21And if anything,
12:22I think Mahindra is going to be bigger
12:23than some of the Japanese brands in Australia
12:25within a couple of years.
12:26I'm not talking 10 years here.
12:27I'm talking maybe five to six years here.
12:29So it'll be very interesting to see.
12:30But if this car has anything to go by
12:32and the pricing is right,
12:33I have no reason to think these guys
12:35won't double or triple their volume.
12:36And their aspirations to be a top 15 brand by 2030.
12:39And with a few more cars like this,
12:41I don't see any reason why they wouldn't be.
12:43And they've got scale on dealers now as well.
12:45This is something that the Chinese...
12:4517 dealers.
12:46Yeah, this is something the Chinese struggle at.
12:48Yes, you can go buy some Chinese car,
12:50but ultimately you might have one dealer per capital city
12:53and it's just not enough to fix things if anything goes wrong.
12:56So being able to then expand that
12:58and have access to other cities,
13:01over 70 of them,
13:02including like Alice Springs,
13:03middle of Australia.
13:04So yeah, I think from a coverage point of view,
13:07they're pretty secure there as well.
13:08Anyway, all right.
13:09So that's been our first sort of drive here
13:10on the high speed stuff.
13:11We're going to duck over now
13:12to the dynamic handling area
13:14and we'll see how that goes.
13:16Now, we're sort of doing some low speed stuff here
13:18towards the dynamic handling.
13:21Actually, you know what?
13:21I want to check to see
13:22when this switches off,
13:24if you can turn stop start off
13:25when it is off
13:26because last time it wouldn't restart the car.
13:28So there's that.
13:29That's a weird bug that Mahindra has.
13:31Okay, that's fixed.
13:32That's good.
13:33Glad they're actually listening.
13:33Fix the logic to that.
13:34Yeah.
13:35Well, it's like the Chinese, right?
13:36You have to listen
13:37and you have to fix it fast.
13:38Just fix the indicator sound.
13:39Yeah, it's just...
13:41I think that's an Indian thing.
13:43They just think that sounds premium
13:44or whatever.
13:45So anyway, for the Australian market,
13:48if they can delete that,
13:48that'd be good.
13:50Surprised by the amount of room
13:51in the second row,
13:52I was able to fit back there pretty easily,
13:54even with your seat quite far back.
13:57So from that point of view,
13:58I think it is pretty spacious.
13:59And reasonable headroom too
14:00in both rows.
14:01So, you know, you're pretty short.
14:03But for me, I'm like,
14:04I'm barely touching the roof here.
14:06All right.
14:07All right, I'll do our U-turn here.
14:09All right.
14:13All right, you're at the Z-100.
14:14Hold on.
14:15Here we go.
14:19It's got a great little rasp to it.
14:22Three cylinders always have that
14:23sort of unique sound.
14:24Sounds like a Volkswagen product,
14:25doesn't it?
14:26Yeah, that's cool.
14:27All right, so this is like
14:28a little lane change maneuver.
14:31Let's see what happens.
14:31Now, someone with two broken ribs.
14:34He's panicking a little bit,
14:35but that's okay.
14:37That is surprisingly good.
14:39It is pretty good, hey?
14:40Yeah.
14:40It's got softness to it,
14:41so it can move around a little bit,
14:43but it's not boaty.
14:45And even the ride on some of the cobblestones
14:47we did earlier was pretty good.
14:48They got like a little cone.
14:49And that's one thing where I think
14:51it might outdo the cherry,
14:52because the cherry's ride
14:53isn't that fantastic.
14:54And this actually rides pretty nicely.
14:57This is Paul pretending he's go-karting,
14:59which he's not very good at anyway.
15:00It's funny.
15:01I always beat our horse when we go-kart.
15:02It's interesting.
15:04Yeah, so look, I mean,
15:05this has been a very small sample of this.
15:07And like you said before,
15:08with the Chinese brands,
15:09typically it's like 40 k's an hour
15:11and that's it.
15:12The fact that these guys have let us do
15:13everything, you know,
15:14ended up getting up to whatever speed
15:16that was much higher than you
15:17on the high-speed track.
15:19And then this Slalom stuff over here.
15:22And I don't know where they got
15:23these tyre marks from.
15:24Because that was me before.
15:25I was literally doing,
15:26no, I was seriously doing donuts before.
15:27Why not?
15:28You may as well do it now.
15:28No one cares.
15:29I don't know how,
15:29because these are very much
15:30rear-wheel drive tyre marks.
15:32They must be testing something interesting here,
15:34because I didn't know they...
15:35Yeah, anyway.
15:37Side note.
15:38And yeah,
15:38I think when we get this back to Australia,
15:40we're going to be putting it through the ringer
15:41with all the standard stuff that we do.
15:43I'll be curious to see what the pricing is like,
15:45because I think the pricing
15:46is going to be one of those really hard things
15:48they need to get right,
15:49because you can only do it once.
15:50If you screw up the pricing,
15:52you're not going to get a second crack at it.
15:54So, from that point of view...
15:55You know what I guess?
15:56Yeah.
15:57I know my guess would be $26,990 for the base,
15:59and $28,990 for the top.
16:02Okay.
16:03That's my guess.
16:04Drive away.
16:04Drive away, yeah.
16:05Because that's what it's going to need to be
16:06to compete with the Cherry.
16:07You can't be more expensive than the Cherry.
16:09Okay, interesting.
16:10All right, let us know what you reckon
16:11in the comments section below.
16:13Are you excited to have a drive with these?
16:14What do you like and not like about it?
16:16Obviously, I've told you as much as I can,
16:17knowing the limited amount that we do
16:19and the limited amount we've been able to drive it,
16:21but let us know in the comments section below.
16:23I'm going to also try and eek as much information
16:25as I can out of them on the Global Pickup Truck,
16:27which is going to be big news for them.
16:29So, I'm excited to see how that all pans out.
16:32If you did enjoy the video,
16:32please make sure you like it
16:34and you share it with your mates,
16:35and if you haven't done it,
16:36so already subscribe to the channel.
16:37But, see, we're going to go eat some Indians
16:39for the side, can't we?
16:41We'll be back.
16:44I'm going to shut that place.
16:45I'm going to push that off.
16:46And if you look into it and you enjoy it.
16:46All right, show me that the G
Recommended
36:39
|
Up next
0:37
6:27
16:12
19:22
19:43
Be the first to comment