We know Mahindra and Mahindra for its rugged and tough SUVs, but what we don’t know is that the company has a hatchback up its sleeves; and sources suggest, it is just around the corner. The Indian automotive giant is contemplating to add a hatchback to its portfolio, and this one is based on the Verito sedan.
Now, we all know that the Verito sedan launched a while ago did not do fairly well in the Indian market. There are plenty of big fishes with better packaging and aggressive price tag in the D segment sedans. However, there is one segment in the market that certainly draws volumes, and Mahindra is taking a shift to the hatches.
The Mahindra Verito-based hatchback is expected to break cover by September 2012, which means Mahindra has finished the final testing of the hatch and is preparing a launch. This does come as a little surprise as there has not been a single scoop of spy image or rendering of the upcoming hatch.
Since Mahindra has not revealed any detail or prototype of the hatchback, axing the Verito’s boot seems like a practical approach. This will probably give it a sub 4 meter length, and ease in excise duty as implied by the government. So we can expect Mahindra to price the Verito-based hatch aggressively.
There is no word on the power plant option, and the Verito’s K9K, 1.5-litre turbo diesel unit seems unlikely for a hatch positioned below the Verito. Moreover, to benefit from the relieved excise duty, Mahindra will have to sport a sub 1.2-litre engine for the hatchback.
Although Mahindra has a pretty strong stance in the SUV segment, the automaker is making a shift to volume driven segment to improve sales. Having said that, Mahindra is also planning a Verito facelift in the upcoming months.
