Mahindra TUV300 review, test drive

A rugged, ladder-frame SUV with a new engine and a lot of space – all in a sub-four-metre footprint.

Published on Sep 10, 2015 01:20:00 PM

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What’s it like on the inside?

Now this is a different story altogether. Unlike the exterior design, which follows the similar boxy template of Mahindra’s other ladder-frame SUVs, the Scorpio and Bolero, great effort has gone into making the TUV300’s interior friendlier and more car-like. Engineers didn’t have to stick to a template, and could change a lot of interior bits to improve space, comfort and even the driving experience, unlike the new Scorpio, which had to stick to its decade-old body-in-white (and consequently, its interior layout) despite the new chassis. As a result, the TUV’s interior is actually better in some ways than the Scorpio’s. Despite the 10mm higher ground clearance, for instance, the seats are placed lower, which not only improves ingress and egress (most will not need the provided foot-step) but also lowers the vehicle’s centre of gravity. You still get a sufficiently commanding driving position though.

The dashboard design is a breath of fresh air for a Mahindra SUV – a wonderful mid-point between the Scorpio’s angular utilitarian shape and the XUV500’s over-styled excess. It has contours and rounded edges, a smart looking texture, and a good use of glossy black and matte silver plastic on the centre console, which ‘flows’ out towards the gear lever. The doors have soft, cushioned arm rests and grab handles that look quite classy. The door handles aren’t the same rough-cut pieces from the Scorpio, and many of the buttons are new too. The new steering wheel has a neat, unique design, and even the hooded instrument binnacle, with its chrome rings and digital info display, looks really, really smart. This mature new design is a huge step forward for the company.

However, some gaffes still remain. The window switches at the front are mounted near the handbrake, not on the doors, and the unit is basically lifted straight from a Scorpio’s driver-side door. Though they’re fewer and harder to spot than on other Mahindras, there are still plenty of rough edges on trim pieces around the cabin, especially lower down. The Scorpio’s problem of inaccessible door pockets has been addressed at the front, but you still have to open the door to reach the ones in the second row. There are several cubbyholes around the cabin, but many of them are too small and shallow to be used for anything other than change; at least there are bottle holders in each door and cup holders between the front seats.

An area where there has been no compromise is passenger space – there’s simply loads of it. The front seats are big and accommodating, though a little too high on thigh support, much like in the Scorpio. However, that issue doesn’t recur at the rear, where support is just right. Legroom, headroom and shoulder room back here is ample for three passengers, without issue. Now we never recommend side-facing jump seats, especially in sub-four-metre cars, but it has to be said that, for once, even adults could conceivably use them, over short distances at least. There’s just about enough width and height for most, and with a little bit of knee-interlock, two can easily fit back here. With the jump seats folded up, you get 400 litres of space, and fold the middle row down (it doesn’t split or flip forward though) and it will expand to 720.

A quick word on equipment, and though there won’t be a touchscreen like on the Scorpio, the top-spec TUV300 T8 gets a pretty comprehensive in-house-developed integrated audio system with a monotone four-inch screen. There’s no CD player, but there’s USB, aux and Bluetooth connectivity. Better news, however, is compatibility with Mahindra’s Blue Sense app that lets you, among many things, control the audio system remotely, and check the vehicle’s speed and fuel level. Best of all, however, while ABS and dual airbags are standard on the T8, they can be had as a paid option on two lower variants as well.