Latest news with #VelusamyR
The Advertiser
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Advertiser
2025 Mahindra XUV 3XO will have five-star safety for ‘the real world', not ANCAP
Mahindra says its imminent new XUV 3XO small SUV will meet all of the crash requirements to keep its occupants safe in the real world, but it has not been tuned to ANCAP's specific requirements. Having ran afoul of ANCAP's safety assessment standards with its vehicles in the past, notably for reasons such as crushing the barrier in which the Mahindra Scorpio crashed into (in other words, being too safe for its own occupants and not prioritising other vehicles on the road), the 3XO is likely to suffer a similar fate if ANCAP performs its own tests. With the XUV 3XO already having scored 29.36 out of 32 for adult occupant protection and 43/49 for child occupant protection in local NCAP testing, and the fact Mahindra expects it to achieve similar results in Global NCAP testing, the Indian automaker is no doubt looking to establish the small SUV's real-world safety credentials regardless of whether it falls short of ANCAP's box-ticking requirements. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Last week, Mahindra demonstrated a crash test of the upcoming 3XO to Australian media at its newly developed crash testing facility at Chennai in India, to showcase the vehicle's structural rigidity and real-world crashworthiness. This test was conducted to 2026 ANCAP protocols with a moving barrier. According to the company, the 3XO is composed of 30 per cent high-strength steel, 10 per cent ultra-high-strength steel and five per cent advanced high-strength steel. The rest of the vehicle is cast in mild steel. As a comparison, the current generation Nissan X-Trail is made up of around 35 per cent high-strength steel. "In the real world, this is a five-star car," said a Mahindra spokesperson after the 3XO crash test. "You can immediately see the structure is intact. The most important thing is the structure, so you don't see any deformation inside the cage. And the occupants are intact. The airbags are intact." Responding to CarExpert about whether the brand has a desire to develop cars to meet ANCAP requirements, the Mahindra's president of Automotive Technology & Product Development, Velusamy R, said the company is more focused on developing cars to meet actual crash requirements rather than ticking boxes. "I'm not very sure we are struggling on safety, but I would say we may be struggling to meet one of the regulations of the safety [for ANCAP]," Velusamy R said. Mahindra says the 3XO has been designed for the following set of tests: Vehicles coming to Australia will be fitted with Level 2 advanced driver assist systems (ADAS), including: The Mahindra XUV 3XO is set to land in Australia in the coming weeks to compete against the likes of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and other popular small SUVs. Although Mahindra will not voluntarily submit an example of the vehicle for ANCAP testing, given the high sales volumes in the small SUV segment there is a good chance the XUV 3XO will be tested by ANCAP regardless. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from: Mahindra says its imminent new XUV 3XO small SUV will meet all of the crash requirements to keep its occupants safe in the real world, but it has not been tuned to ANCAP's specific requirements. Having ran afoul of ANCAP's safety assessment standards with its vehicles in the past, notably for reasons such as crushing the barrier in which the Mahindra Scorpio crashed into (in other words, being too safe for its own occupants and not prioritising other vehicles on the road), the 3XO is likely to suffer a similar fate if ANCAP performs its own tests. With the XUV 3XO already having scored 29.36 out of 32 for adult occupant protection and 43/49 for child occupant protection in local NCAP testing, and the fact Mahindra expects it to achieve similar results in Global NCAP testing, the Indian automaker is no doubt looking to establish the small SUV's real-world safety credentials regardless of whether it falls short of ANCAP's box-ticking requirements. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Last week, Mahindra demonstrated a crash test of the upcoming 3XO to Australian media at its newly developed crash testing facility at Chennai in India, to showcase the vehicle's structural rigidity and real-world crashworthiness. This test was conducted to 2026 ANCAP protocols with a moving barrier. According to the company, the 3XO is composed of 30 per cent high-strength steel, 10 per cent ultra-high-strength steel and five per cent advanced high-strength steel. The rest of the vehicle is cast in mild steel. As a comparison, the current generation Nissan X-Trail is made up of around 35 per cent high-strength steel. "In the real world, this is a five-star car," said a Mahindra spokesperson after the 3XO crash test. "You can immediately see the structure is intact. The most important thing is the structure, so you don't see any deformation inside the cage. And the occupants are intact. The airbags are intact." Responding to CarExpert about whether the brand has a desire to develop cars to meet ANCAP requirements, the Mahindra's president of Automotive Technology & Product Development, Velusamy R, said the company is more focused on developing cars to meet actual crash requirements rather than ticking boxes. "I'm not very sure we are struggling on safety, but I would say we may be struggling to meet one of the regulations of the safety [for ANCAP]," Velusamy R said. Mahindra says the 3XO has been designed for the following set of tests: Vehicles coming to Australia will be fitted with Level 2 advanced driver assist systems (ADAS), including: The Mahindra XUV 3XO is set to land in Australia in the coming weeks to compete against the likes of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and other popular small SUVs. Although Mahindra will not voluntarily submit an example of the vehicle for ANCAP testing, given the high sales volumes in the small SUV segment there is a good chance the XUV 3XO will be tested by ANCAP regardless. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from: Mahindra says its imminent new XUV 3XO small SUV will meet all of the crash requirements to keep its occupants safe in the real world, but it has not been tuned to ANCAP's specific requirements. Having ran afoul of ANCAP's safety assessment standards with its vehicles in the past, notably for reasons such as crushing the barrier in which the Mahindra Scorpio crashed into (in other words, being too safe for its own occupants and not prioritising other vehicles on the road), the 3XO is likely to suffer a similar fate if ANCAP performs its own tests. With the XUV 3XO already having scored 29.36 out of 32 for adult occupant protection and 43/49 for child occupant protection in local NCAP testing, and the fact Mahindra expects it to achieve similar results in Global NCAP testing, the Indian automaker is no doubt looking to establish the small SUV's real-world safety credentials regardless of whether it falls short of ANCAP's box-ticking requirements. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Last week, Mahindra demonstrated a crash test of the upcoming 3XO to Australian media at its newly developed crash testing facility at Chennai in India, to showcase the vehicle's structural rigidity and real-world crashworthiness. This test was conducted to 2026 ANCAP protocols with a moving barrier. According to the company, the 3XO is composed of 30 per cent high-strength steel, 10 per cent ultra-high-strength steel and five per cent advanced high-strength steel. The rest of the vehicle is cast in mild steel. As a comparison, the current generation Nissan X-Trail is made up of around 35 per cent high-strength steel. "In the real world, this is a five-star car," said a Mahindra spokesperson after the 3XO crash test. "You can immediately see the structure is intact. The most important thing is the structure, so you don't see any deformation inside the cage. And the occupants are intact. The airbags are intact." Responding to CarExpert about whether the brand has a desire to develop cars to meet ANCAP requirements, the Mahindra's president of Automotive Technology & Product Development, Velusamy R, said the company is more focused on developing cars to meet actual crash requirements rather than ticking boxes. "I'm not very sure we are struggling on safety, but I would say we may be struggling to meet one of the regulations of the safety [for ANCAP]," Velusamy R said. Mahindra says the 3XO has been designed for the following set of tests: Vehicles coming to Australia will be fitted with Level 2 advanced driver assist systems (ADAS), including: The Mahindra XUV 3XO is set to land in Australia in the coming weeks to compete against the likes of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and other popular small SUVs. Although Mahindra will not voluntarily submit an example of the vehicle for ANCAP testing, given the high sales volumes in the small SUV segment there is a good chance the XUV 3XO will be tested by ANCAP regardless. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from: Mahindra says its imminent new XUV 3XO small SUV will meet all of the crash requirements to keep its occupants safe in the real world, but it has not been tuned to ANCAP's specific requirements. Having ran afoul of ANCAP's safety assessment standards with its vehicles in the past, notably for reasons such as crushing the barrier in which the Mahindra Scorpio crashed into (in other words, being too safe for its own occupants and not prioritising other vehicles on the road), the 3XO is likely to suffer a similar fate if ANCAP performs its own tests. With the XUV 3XO already having scored 29.36 out of 32 for adult occupant protection and 43/49 for child occupant protection in local NCAP testing, and the fact Mahindra expects it to achieve similar results in Global NCAP testing, the Indian automaker is no doubt looking to establish the small SUV's real-world safety credentials regardless of whether it falls short of ANCAP's box-ticking requirements. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. Last week, Mahindra demonstrated a crash test of the upcoming 3XO to Australian media at its newly developed crash testing facility at Chennai in India, to showcase the vehicle's structural rigidity and real-world crashworthiness. This test was conducted to 2026 ANCAP protocols with a moving barrier. According to the company, the 3XO is composed of 30 per cent high-strength steel, 10 per cent ultra-high-strength steel and five per cent advanced high-strength steel. The rest of the vehicle is cast in mild steel. As a comparison, the current generation Nissan X-Trail is made up of around 35 per cent high-strength steel. "In the real world, this is a five-star car," said a Mahindra spokesperson after the 3XO crash test. "You can immediately see the structure is intact. The most important thing is the structure, so you don't see any deformation inside the cage. And the occupants are intact. The airbags are intact." Responding to CarExpert about whether the brand has a desire to develop cars to meet ANCAP requirements, the Mahindra's president of Automotive Technology & Product Development, Velusamy R, said the company is more focused on developing cars to meet actual crash requirements rather than ticking boxes. "I'm not very sure we are struggling on safety, but I would say we may be struggling to meet one of the regulations of the safety [for ANCAP]," Velusamy R said. Mahindra says the 3XO has been designed for the following set of tests: Vehicles coming to Australia will be fitted with Level 2 advanced driver assist systems (ADAS), including: The Mahindra XUV 3XO is set to land in Australia in the coming weeks to compete against the likes of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and other popular small SUVs. Although Mahindra will not voluntarily submit an example of the vehicle for ANCAP testing, given the high sales volumes in the small SUV segment there is a good chance the XUV 3XO will be tested by ANCAP regardless. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from:
The Advertiser
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Advertiser
Next-gen Mahindra Thar-like vehicle confirmed for Australia
While Mahindra states that it cannot produce the current-generation Thar and Thar Roxx in sufficient numbers to meet demand in its domestic Indian market, let alone Australia, it has promised that a next-generation off-road vehicle like the Thar is in development for our market. Speaking to Australian media in India last week, Velusamy R, the president of Automotive Technology and Product Development at Mahindra, stated that current local demand for the Thar is almost double the company's production capacity. "Demand is now 12-13,000 per month in India, [but] our production is hardly 7-6000, roughly," Velusamy R said. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "We also thought [demand for] the three-door Thar might come down after introducing the five-door, however, it didn't come down. Still, there is enough market for three-door Thar, and the capacity for three-door is still fully occupied." While he ruled out the current model for our market, Velusamy R confirmed that a new vehicle that will be very similar to the Mahindra Vision Thar.e concept (pictured here) unveiled in South Africa in August 2023 will be coming to Australia. "The name can be different, but what you saw in South Africa, you will get it in Australia" Although the Mahindra Vision Thar.e is a fully electric off-roader concept that looks nothing like the combustion-powered Thar revealed in 2020, the version heading to Australia will be available with internal combustion engines as standard, and potentially hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains as well. It is unclear whether a fully-electric version of the model will also head to our market, but it seems unlikely. The current-generation Thar, which controversially resembles a Jeep Wrangler, has its origins in the original CJ-series Jeep, which the company had been producing under license since the 1940s. The Stellantis group, which owns Jeep, has gone out of its way to stop Mahindra from bringing the current Thar to our market in the past. Back in 2021, Mahindra was issued a "cease and desist" request from Stellantis following its plans to bring the Thar to Australia, with the American company stating that it would "pursue all available avenues to stop Mahindra from continuing to make misleading and deceptive representations in relation to our Jeep brand, pass off their Thar as a Jeep Wrangler and infringe our design rights". Given that Mahindra says the concept is very close to what the production model will look like, the new model heading to Australia in the coming years will appear very different to the Wrangler, which means Stellantis won't have to worry about it offending the 724 Australians who bought a Wrangler in 2024. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from: While Mahindra states that it cannot produce the current-generation Thar and Thar Roxx in sufficient numbers to meet demand in its domestic Indian market, let alone Australia, it has promised that a next-generation off-road vehicle like the Thar is in development for our market. Speaking to Australian media in India last week, Velusamy R, the president of Automotive Technology and Product Development at Mahindra, stated that current local demand for the Thar is almost double the company's production capacity. "Demand is now 12-13,000 per month in India, [but] our production is hardly 7-6000, roughly," Velusamy R said. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "We also thought [demand for] the three-door Thar might come down after introducing the five-door, however, it didn't come down. Still, there is enough market for three-door Thar, and the capacity for three-door is still fully occupied." While he ruled out the current model for our market, Velusamy R confirmed that a new vehicle that will be very similar to the Mahindra Vision Thar.e concept (pictured here) unveiled in South Africa in August 2023 will be coming to Australia. "The name can be different, but what you saw in South Africa, you will get it in Australia" Although the Mahindra Vision Thar.e is a fully electric off-roader concept that looks nothing like the combustion-powered Thar revealed in 2020, the version heading to Australia will be available with internal combustion engines as standard, and potentially hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains as well. It is unclear whether a fully-electric version of the model will also head to our market, but it seems unlikely. The current-generation Thar, which controversially resembles a Jeep Wrangler, has its origins in the original CJ-series Jeep, which the company had been producing under license since the 1940s. The Stellantis group, which owns Jeep, has gone out of its way to stop Mahindra from bringing the current Thar to our market in the past. Back in 2021, Mahindra was issued a "cease and desist" request from Stellantis following its plans to bring the Thar to Australia, with the American company stating that it would "pursue all available avenues to stop Mahindra from continuing to make misleading and deceptive representations in relation to our Jeep brand, pass off their Thar as a Jeep Wrangler and infringe our design rights". Given that Mahindra says the concept is very close to what the production model will look like, the new model heading to Australia in the coming years will appear very different to the Wrangler, which means Stellantis won't have to worry about it offending the 724 Australians who bought a Wrangler in 2024. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from: While Mahindra states that it cannot produce the current-generation Thar and Thar Roxx in sufficient numbers to meet demand in its domestic Indian market, let alone Australia, it has promised that a next-generation off-road vehicle like the Thar is in development for our market. Speaking to Australian media in India last week, Velusamy R, the president of Automotive Technology and Product Development at Mahindra, stated that current local demand for the Thar is almost double the company's production capacity. "Demand is now 12-13,000 per month in India, [but] our production is hardly 7-6000, roughly," Velusamy R said. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "We also thought [demand for] the three-door Thar might come down after introducing the five-door, however, it didn't come down. Still, there is enough market for three-door Thar, and the capacity for three-door is still fully occupied." While he ruled out the current model for our market, Velusamy R confirmed that a new vehicle that will be very similar to the Mahindra Vision Thar.e concept (pictured here) unveiled in South Africa in August 2023 will be coming to Australia. "The name can be different, but what you saw in South Africa, you will get it in Australia" Although the Mahindra Vision Thar.e is a fully electric off-roader concept that looks nothing like the combustion-powered Thar revealed in 2020, the version heading to Australia will be available with internal combustion engines as standard, and potentially hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains as well. It is unclear whether a fully-electric version of the model will also head to our market, but it seems unlikely. The current-generation Thar, which controversially resembles a Jeep Wrangler, has its origins in the original CJ-series Jeep, which the company had been producing under license since the 1940s. The Stellantis group, which owns Jeep, has gone out of its way to stop Mahindra from bringing the current Thar to our market in the past. Back in 2021, Mahindra was issued a "cease and desist" request from Stellantis following its plans to bring the Thar to Australia, with the American company stating that it would "pursue all available avenues to stop Mahindra from continuing to make misleading and deceptive representations in relation to our Jeep brand, pass off their Thar as a Jeep Wrangler and infringe our design rights". Given that Mahindra says the concept is very close to what the production model will look like, the new model heading to Australia in the coming years will appear very different to the Wrangler, which means Stellantis won't have to worry about it offending the 724 Australians who bought a Wrangler in 2024. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from: While Mahindra states that it cannot produce the current-generation Thar and Thar Roxx in sufficient numbers to meet demand in its domestic Indian market, let alone Australia, it has promised that a next-generation off-road vehicle like the Thar is in development for our market. Speaking to Australian media in India last week, Velusamy R, the president of Automotive Technology and Product Development at Mahindra, stated that current local demand for the Thar is almost double the company's production capacity. "Demand is now 12-13,000 per month in India, [but] our production is hardly 7-6000, roughly," Velusamy R said. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. "We also thought [demand for] the three-door Thar might come down after introducing the five-door, however, it didn't come down. Still, there is enough market for three-door Thar, and the capacity for three-door is still fully occupied." While he ruled out the current model for our market, Velusamy R confirmed that a new vehicle that will be very similar to the Mahindra Vision Thar.e concept (pictured here) unveiled in South Africa in August 2023 will be coming to Australia. "The name can be different, but what you saw in South Africa, you will get it in Australia" Although the Mahindra Vision Thar.e is a fully electric off-roader concept that looks nothing like the combustion-powered Thar revealed in 2020, the version heading to Australia will be available with internal combustion engines as standard, and potentially hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains as well. It is unclear whether a fully-electric version of the model will also head to our market, but it seems unlikely. The current-generation Thar, which controversially resembles a Jeep Wrangler, has its origins in the original CJ-series Jeep, which the company had been producing under license since the 1940s. The Stellantis group, which owns Jeep, has gone out of its way to stop Mahindra from bringing the current Thar to our market in the past. Back in 2021, Mahindra was issued a "cease and desist" request from Stellantis following its plans to bring the Thar to Australia, with the American company stating that it would "pursue all available avenues to stop Mahindra from continuing to make misleading and deceptive representations in relation to our Jeep brand, pass off their Thar as a Jeep Wrangler and infringe our design rights". Given that Mahindra says the concept is very close to what the production model will look like, the new model heading to Australia in the coming years will appear very different to the Wrangler, which means Stellantis won't have to worry about it offending the 724 Australians who bought a Wrangler in 2024. MORE: Everything Mahindra Content originally sourced from:
West Australian
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- West Australian
New ute is Mahindra's 'number one dream program'
The Mahindra Pik-Up is the model on which the Indian automaker built its reputation in Australia, but production ceased in the last few months and the brand's new global ute is now well into its final development stage, having undergone testing of more than 600 test mules over several years. Having spotted the camouflaged new ute around Mahindra's testing and development centre at Chennai in India last week, CarExpert spoke to Velusamy R, the president of Automotive Technology & Product Development at Mahindra, about the current status of the vital new model. 'It is the number one dream program for us right now. It's being run with a separate team, a dedicated team,' said Velusamy R. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now . 'Last time [he addressed media in 2024] I said I am starting the engineering. This time I'm telling you I'm starting the development. In fact, it's well into the development.' According to Velusamy R, Mahindra's new ute will be built on the same 'Mahindra Glide' platform as the Thar-Roxx, which in the new Thar application has independent double-wishbone suspension up front and penta-link suspension with a Watt's link at the rear. 'It's coming out of that platform, the latest generation, generation four. Of course, you know our diesel engines and you know our gasoline engine. You know the automatic transmission that we have, manual transmission that we have. All of them [will be available].' In the Thar-Roxx, the platform is capable of 650mm of fording depth and impressive approach and departure angles, which will likely carry over to some extent for the new ute. While confirming the availability of a diesel automatic for the new ute, Velusamy R ruled out any electric variant of the new Mahindra Pik-Up. 'No, not quite. It needs a different architecture,' he responded in regards to development of a hybrid ute from Mahindra. 'As in, you can't use the architecture, but I think those who do not have a good diesel engine, they do a hybrid gasoline, but it's very expensive. But we think a good diesel engine with an automatic gearbox is the best for a pickup.' Mahindra engineers came to Australia last year to benchmark a variety of best-selling utes, which the company says has helped shape development of its own ut development program. The company says it has been developed to meet global safety crash test requirements, including those of ANCAP, and that it will be the first Mahindra product to be developed for global markets ahead of the Indian automaker's domestic market. The new ute will likely make its first public appearance later this year, before arriving in Australia sometime in 2026. MORE: Everything Mahindra
West Australian
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- West Australian
2025 Mahindra XUV 3XO will have five-star safety for ‘the real world', not ANCAP
Mahindra says its imminent new XUV 3XO small SUV will meet all of the crash requirements to keep its occupants safe in the real world, but it has not been tuned to ANCAP's specific requirements. Having ran afoul of ANCAP's safety assessment standards with its vehicles in the past, notably for reasons such as crushing the barrier in which the Mahindra Scorpio crashed into (in other words, being too safe for its own occupants and not prioritising other vehicles on the road), the 3XO is likely to suffer a similar fate if ANCAP performs its own tests. With the XUV 3XO already having scored 29.36 out of 32 for adult occupant protection and 43/49 for child occupant protection in local NCAP testing, and the fact Mahindra expects it to achieve similar results in Global NCAP testing, the Indian automaker is no doubt looking to establish the small SUV's real-world safety credentials regardless of whether it falls short of ANCAP's box-ticking requirements. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now . Last week, Mahindra demonstrated a crash test of the upcoming 3XO to Australian media at its newly developed crash testing facility at Chennai in India, to showcase the vehicle's structural rigidity and real-world crashworthiness. According to the company, the 3XO is composed of 30 per cent high-strength steel, 10 per cent ultra-high-strength steel and five per cent advanced high-strength steel. The rest of the vehicle is cast in mild steel. As a comparison, the current generation Nissan X-Trail is made up of around 35 per cent high-strength steel. 'In the real world, this is a five-star car,' said a Mahindra spokesperson after the 3XO crash test. 'You can immediately see the structure is intact. The most important thing is the structure, so you don't see any deformation inside the cage. And the occupants are intact. The airbags are intact.' Responding to CarExpert about whether the brand has a desire to develop cars to meet ANCAP requirements, the Mahindra's president of Automotive Technology & Product Development, Velusamy R, said the company is more focused on developing cars to meet actual crash requirements rather than ticking boxes. 'I'm not very sure we are struggling on safety, but I would say we may be struggling to meet one of the regulations of the safety [for ANCAP],' Velusamy R said. Mahindra says the 3XO has been designed for the following set of tests: Vehicles coming to Australia will be fitted with Level 2 advanced driver assist systems (ADAS), including: The Mahindra XUV 3XO is set to land in Australia in the coming weeks to compete against the likes of the Chery Tiggo 4 Pro and other popular small SUVs. Although Mahindra will not voluntarily submit an example of the vehicle for ANCAP testing, given the high sales volumes in the small SUV segment there is a good chance the XUV 3XO will be tested by ANCAP regardless. MORE: Everything Mahindra
West Australian
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- West Australian
Next-gen Mahindra Thar-like vehicle confirmed for Australia
While Mahindra states that it cannot produce the current-generation Thar and Thar Roxx in sufficient numbers to meet demand in its domestic Indian market, let alone Australia, it has promised that a next-generation off-road vehicle like the Thar is in development for our market. Speaking to Australian media in India last week, Velusamy R, the president of Automotive Technology and Product Development at Mahindra, stated that current local demand for the Thar is almost double the company's production capacity. 'Demand is now 12-13,000 per month in India, [but] our production is hardly 7-6000, roughly,' Velusamy R said. Hundreds of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now . 'We also thought [demand for] the three-door Thar might come down after introducing the five-door, however, it didn't come down. Still, there is enough market for three-door Thar, and the capacity for three-door is still fully occupied.' While he ruled out the current model for our market, Velusamy R confirmed that a new vehicle that will be very similar to the Mahindra Vision Thar.e concept (pictured here) unveiled in South Africa in August 2023 will be coming to Australia. 'The name can be different, but what you saw in South Africa, you will get it in Australia' Although the Mahindra Vision Thar.e is a fully electric off-roader concept that looks nothing like the combustion-powered Thar revealed in 2020, the version heading to Australia will be available with internal combustion engines as standard, and potentially hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains as well. It is unclear whether a fully-electric version of the model will also head to our market, but it seems unlikely. The current-generation Thar, which controversially resembles a Jeep Wrangler, has its origins in the original CJ-series Jeep, which the company had been producing under license since the 1940s. The Stellantis group, which owns Jeep, has gone out of its way to stop Mahindra from bringing the current Thar to our market in the past. Back in 2021, Mahindra was issued a 'cease and desist' request from Stellantis following its plans to bring the Thar to Australia, with the American company stating that it would 'pursue all available avenues to stop Mahindra from continuing to make misleading and deceptive representations in relation to our Jeep brand, pass off their Thar as a Jeep Wrangler and infringe our design rights'. Given that Mahindra says the concept is very close to what the production model will look like, the new model heading to Australia in the coming years will appear very different to the Wrangler, which means Stellantis won't have to worry about it offending the 724 Australians who bought a Wrangler in 2024. MORE: Everything Mahindra
