Mahindra NuvoSport review, road test

Read the Mahindra NuvoSport review, road test from Autocar India; Less than a year after the launch of its TUV300, Mahindra has launched another sub-four-metre SUV. We find out what's different.

Published on May 10, 2016 12:15:00 PM

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Rear looks identical to Quanto, but black cladding and accents give it some much-needed relief.

Heavy dose of black cladding helps disguise the slab-sided profile.

After all the similarities to the TUV300, it’s no surprise to know that the engine and gearboxes are essentially the same too. This one, however, is called mHawk100 instead of mHawk80 and that points to its power output, which is 101.42hp (or 100bhp). The 1,493cc, three-cylinder mill has had its torque uprated to 240Nm, and both these numbers are, incidentally, identical to what you used to get in the Quanto. But, Mahindra says, the advancements to the motor since then – mostly for refinement and fuel economy – have earned it a place in the ‘mHawk’ engine family and to that end, it’s closer related to the TUV300’s mHawk80 motor.

Fire it up and it feels that way too. It’s got the same clatter and vibration at start-up, felt especially through the tall manual gear lever, but then it settles down to a surprisingly quiet idle. In every aspect, this engine is at its best at low revs, making you want to shift up early and keep the revs below 3,000, and you can put some of this down to the well-tuned dual-stage turbo and the dual-mass flywheel. Beyond 3,000rpm, you lose refinement and power starts to fade too, and once you’re past 3,800rpm, it’s all noise and no go. The NuvoSport steps off the line very eagerly, and the torque feels strong enough to be able to do this with a full load too. It pulls smoothly and cleanly in traffic and the only letdown here is the slightly rubbery manual gearshift.

Then there’s the optional five-speed AMT. This is the same Ricardo-sourced unit from the TUV300, and while we were very disappointed with its jerky and inconsistent behaviour in that car, it has been improved since. You can feel a bit more smoothness in everyday driving, provided you’re gentle with the accelerator, but it still stutters a bit too much when you ask a lot of it – like in kickdown acceleration and especially on a hill start. It still has a long way to go, and unless an automatic gearbox tops your priority list, we’d stick with the manual.

While it feels a lot like the TUV300’s 84hp motor in practise, the NuvoSport is ultimately quicker. The manual car, at 60kph from standstill, is 0.8sec quicker than a TUV, and by the time they reach 100kph, the NuvoSport is 2.3sec ahead, with even in-gear performance being around 1sec better. The bigger difference comes from using the NuvoSport’s Eco mode, which seriously blunts performance – 100kph is reached in a yawning 25.62sec; the price you pay for better economy.