[RavenAvi]

After the TUV300, KUV100 and the NuvoSport, Mahindra & Mahindra have started working on their fourth compact SUV - which will be a smaller version of it's popular Bolero UV.

Slotted to lose 170mm from it's overall length to duck under the 4-meter mark, the wheelbase of this mini-Bolero will be the same as the regular UV but the shape will see reduced front and rear overhangs, with tweaked bumpers on both sides. Other than this, most of the body panels, dashboard, interiors and features are expected to be carried over from the regular Bolero UV.

When launched, the mini-Bolero is expected to come with the all-new 1.5L 3-cylinder mHawk diesel engine (which is also plonked in the TUV300 & the NuvoSport) in a 7-seater configuration, albeit the 1.5L diesel for the mini-Bolero will be tuned for better fuel efficiency and hence produce only 68HP, still a 5HP increase over the regular Bolero's 2.5L, 63HP oil burner heart.

The mini-Bolero is expected to be launched by August 2016.

(Bolero Special Edition pic used for representational purposes)

ACI

[jeepster]

looks like they are going to utilize the short hood design first seen on Maxitruck plus.

some Photoshop's using Maxitrucks nose.

with same wheel base.


with short wheelbase.

[shankar.balan]

This is a good move by Mahindra - much more so that the TUV300 and the KUV100 and the Quanto which has been re-christened as the NuvoSport but continues to be an uninspiring Top Heavy, over designed Ugly Duckling of a vehicle, and the heavily OTT over-designed and ugly new Scorpio and all the rest of the vague vehicles that they have been churning out these last several years.

However, they need to get all the following things right in this new Short Chassis Bolero.
1. Legroom and ergonomics in front (driver and passenger seats). We really badly need top quality under-thigh support in the Mahindra seats. All of their vehicles seem like they are designed for pygmies...
2. Height adjustable seats in front. The middle row seats need to be ergonomic and need to be able to move back and forwards as required. Front seats definitely need good legroom so the ergonomic studies have to be made on tall people.
3. Airbags
4. ABS
5. Powerful smooth and refined CRDe engine which makes at least 120BHP and some 300Nm of Torque.
6. Larger diameter wheels as well as fatter tyres with classic 5 - Fat Spoke Alloys with the Spare securely mounted on the TailGate...
7. Easy to modify in a modular manner - such as addition of snorkel etc
8. 4WD option
9. Hill Hold Control
10. Traction Control
11. Electronic Stability Program
12. Bright and good headlamps
13. Ergonomic Gear shift design
14. Re-configuring the gear box to give us a good short gear ratio in 1st and 2nd which will enable pulling power.
15. Split foldable rear seats
16. Removable rear seats so that it can become a wagon or a van type thing when required
17. Fit, finish and Finesse overall
18. Introduce this in a new petrol variant which can move fast.
19. Iron out all the kinks in this dated design to make it a strong, silent, modern Jeep.
20. They have to iron out the overall handling kinks in the Bolero too.
21. They must give it the same kind of 200mm or so, Ground Clearance and with the Body on Frame construction this could be the perfect jeep!
22. A retractable electric sun roof would be great, so that wildlife photographers and their ilk will immediately consider this vehicle.
23. Touchscreen with GPS and Bluetooth and all the rest of it - but the TouchScreen needs to be placed well on the dash. The Dash itself should be of flatter construction so as to be more utilitarian in nature.
24. Lastly they need to pay attention to their colour palette - offering this in Silver, Grey and Earth Colours like Dark or Jungle Green or Turf Green, Camo Brown/Beige etc will only UP the desirability quotient...

If all this can be achieved and then priced at around the 10 Lac mark for the top spec version, this will be an absolute runaway hit for the daily use plus leisure Mini-SUV market.
Frankly had I had the option of this kind of spec some 10 years or 12 years ago, I would have bought it like a shot.

I hope they are reading this - because they keep pouring out old wine in new bottles every now and then when they could do so much more and so much better...

Basically let them take inspiration from the Jeep Renegade and try to replicate the ideas there. Let them please NOT focus on stupid bling and stupid things like Chrome overdoses etc. Let them build something with simplicity and elegance and functionality rather than concentrate on their dam fool ideas on form and over-design! (Given the opportunity I will be glad to help them - even for free...)

And let them for heaven's sake not employ some dam fool designer who will KILL this with over design. They really need to understand "simplicity and elegance of design" as a core concept. (Like the old Original Bolero and Scorpio, which were plain, understated and anonymous, the way Jeeps ought to be.)

[Karthik Chandra]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

(Given the opportunity I will be glad to help them - even for free...)

Sir, you have already helped them giving 24 points. All they need to do is, go through these and execute

I'm impressed with Mahindra for the fact that they try to keep themselves busy with new products, only thing is that they need to ensure that the product is niggle free right from launch.

[i_see]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

However, they need to get all the following things right in this new Short Chassis Bolero.

On reading these points , I feel you are using the Skoda Yeti, Present Bolero & Scorpio as a templates for these recommendations

I totally agree with all the points you have mentioned, especially the ones I have quoted

If they do provide at least 75 % of these things, I will be the first in line to buy this Yeti - Mahindra version ( If they price it at 10 L, I do not even mind being Mahindra's beta tester/ guinea pig i.e. , early batch customer )

P.S points 9-11 are a must, at least for me
And a rigid body shell which gets at least 3-4 * in present day International NCAP test standards is an absolute must

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by i_see

On reading these points , I feel you are using the Skoda Yeti, Present Bolero & Scorpio as a templates for these recommendations

I totally agree with all the points you have mentioned, especially the ones I have quoted

If they do provide at least 75 % of these things, I will be the first in line to buy this Yeti - Mahindra version ( If they price it at 10 L, I do not even mind being Mahindra's beta tester/ guinea pig i.e. , early batch customer )

P.S points 9-11 are a must, at least for me
And a rigid body shell which gets at least 3-4 * in present day International NCAP test standards is an absolute must

I have written almost exactly these points to Mahindra's in 2005 - indeed that was via a letter to the Editor of Top Gear and Overdrive/ AutoCar - which was actually published.

Then there was this post of mine made in 2009 exhorting Mahindra to do something... http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...ml#post1291710


Yes, I guess you're right about the templates, but in 2005 there was no Yeti for me to compare with. However, the points mentioned above (most of them) are pure common sense from a long time user of utility vehicles, nothing else.

(I speak because we've had Jeeps most of our lives and always appreciated the value of an utility vehicle more than just a plain old car.)

Add high technology and engineering to simple common sense, and you can get an exceptionally talented vehicle!

[mallumowgli]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Basically let them take inspiration from the Jeep Renegade and try to replicate the ideas there. Let them please NOT focus on stupid bling and stupid things like Chrome overdoses etc. Let them build something with simplicity and elegance and functionality rather than concentrate on their dam fool ideas on form and over-design! (Given the opportunity I will be glad to help them - even for free...)

And let them for heaven's sake not employ some dam fool designer who will KILL this with over design. They really need to understand "simplicity and elegance of design" as a core concept. (Like the old Original Bolero and Scorpio, which were plain, understated and anonymous, the way Jeeps ought to be.)

You are a day-dreamer

The points mentioned by you better suits the TUV300 than the bare basic Bolero. And at 2L above the top version of TUV300, this should be a good choice

But this Bolero would be just a compressed form of the full size Bolero - and going by what they have been doing, it should be a 7 seater too!!

[S.MJet]

While I appreciate Mahindra's vision and effort to be a market leader in SUV segment but IMO they are stretching their dream a bit too far (or short) and seems to be in a bit of hurry.

Response that Nuvosport got and sales trend of TUV are proof enough to indicate that such shortcut moves are not sustainable plus it carries an unseen risk of loosing reputation over a period.

[GTO]

In terms of market performance:

Quanto = Flop
NuvoSport = Flop
KUV100 = Good (average of 4k / month)
TUV300 = Mediocre (dropped below 2k the last 3 months)

Instead of so many lacklustre launches with just 1 hit, Mahindra should focus all their resources on one mega car (example: EcoSport, Vitara Brezza or the in-house XUV500). Developing & launching new cars takes up a lot of resources. Rather than having a new car every 6 months, one blockbuster every 2 years would do better. Mahindra really went all out with the XUV500 - does anyone feel the same about the KUV100 or TUV300?

For instance, the TUV300 should have been launched with a more powerful diesel from day 1. Don't know why they didn't start with the Quanto's tune which was so much superior. Yes, they brought more power later, but it's difficult to shake off the initial 'under-powered' reputation. Sad, as the TUV300 is very competent otherwise. If only it had a better engine & AT from day one. The problems that AMT owners are reporting make it obvious that the car wasn't tested comprehensively prior to launch.

Don't spread yourself too thin, Mahindra. Between one outstanding car that has 100% of the engineering team's focus and three mediocre ones which are a little bit here & there, we all know which will perform better in the market.

Don't pursue that nth compact SUV. Instead, pursue excellence with just one.

Mahindra might be trying to emulate Maruti & Hyundai who grow their market-share with blistering new launches, but it has to realise that it doesn't have the engineering bandwidth (of Maruti & Hyundai) to develop so many cars together. Neither does it have any help from Japan & Korea.

[extreme_torque]

Perfect case of throwing everything at the wall and see what sticks. I am sure nothing will because competition is just too tough. I can't think of a way of making a cut short Bolero look good. As GTO said, why don't work on just one model and make it as good as they can and we know Mahindra can do it (XUV500).

[JediKnight]

Bolero has a certain square jawed old school charm to it. Some thing like a Royal Enfield Bullet of the SUV world.

I hope they don't destroy the original Bolero DNA : Bullet proof reliability, Ability to withstand abuse of the real Indian driving cycle, Fuel efficiency and ease of maintenance, old school Jeep looks.

The Bolero was never about features or finesse. It was about being tough as nails, it was being able to survive the worst the Indian roads throw at it. I don't want electronic nanies: hill hold, traction control et al. I want low down torque a true 4WD with low ratios.

It will be tricky to get the proportions right and still be under 4M. Lets see what Mahindra throws at us.

[mukul32]

Spotted this Bolero mule with a redesigned bumper doing the rounds in Nashik. The new bumpers, both front and rear, fit more flush on the body, which is obviously to save crucial millimeters in length, which would naturally be in wake of the new sub-4m model.
Notice how they've tried to cut the length by fitting in a thinner rear door handle, and using almost flat front bumpers. The rear bumper also juts out from the side, but not from the back.
This obviously was the full length car however, and the body looked untouched.
However, I wonder why run testing mules for such small cosmetic chop jobs? Even the interior was unchanged from the existing model. Or was that car also running the 1.5 liter mHawk?!

[amit_purohit20]

Originally Posted by mukul32

Spotted this Bolero mule with a redesigned bumper doing the rounds in Nashik. The new bumpers, both front and rear, fit more flush on the body, which is obviously to save crucial millimeters in length, which would naturally be in wake of the new sub-4m model.
Notice how they've tried to cut the length by fitting in a thinner rear door handle, and using almost flat front bumpers. The rear bumper also juts out from the side, but not from the back.

Yes I think you pointed out rightly. Present Bolero length is 4107 mm. With the short bonnet, flat bumpers and rear door handles they would have achieved a reduction of 107+5= 112mm. 5mm kept less for variation. You would notice that all compact sedans are of the length 3995 mm!

So this is the new Bolero with modified front and rear bumpers and rear tailgate handle and voila they achieved the 4 m restriction constraint. Thus they have reduced the excise/taxes on it and will certainly be a good thing if they pass this to the customer.

I was worried about Bolero loosing the charm because of the chop shop, but thanks god hopefully it will not be the case.

I had spotted this new bumper Bolero in VRDE, so most probably it was brought for certification.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by JediKnight

I hope they don't destroy the original Bolero DNA : Bullet proof reliability,
Ability to withstand abuse of the real Indian driving cycle, Fuel efficiency
and ease of maintenance, old school Jeep looks.

The Bolero was never about features or finesse. It was about being tough
as nails, it was being able to survive the worst the Indian roads throw at it.
I don't want electronic nanies: hill hold, traction control et al. I want low
down torque a true 4WD with low ratios.

Even the Big Bad Jeep Wranglers of the world - the originators of the 4WD utility runabout, have these "electronic nannies".

And the Finesse which the Jeep Wrangler brings to the table (despite being a Big Bad Beast descended from those old Willys MB's), is not to be scoffed at. Safety kit and ergonomics amongst them.

Saying that, there is virtue in having a purely mechanical Jeep rather than the new age ones with high dependency on electronics.

But the old Bolero and other Mahindra vehicles are sadly lacking in Ergonomics and sufficient Safety Kit etc.

On roads like ours in India, that is asking for trouble.

[Aroy]

The days when a diesel engine could be run without a battery are gone once pollution and efficiency parameters came into engine design.

There is no BS-III (forget BS-IV) engine that is not controlled by ECU, so electronics are unavoidable in today's world. It is just that barring a few Japanese brands, extra electronics (other than ECU, which miraculously is bullet proof in every car) is a major point of failure, hence the longing for an electronics free vehicle. There are a few Army Specialized Heavy Vehicles which are still of the old school, but that is all.

What most of us want is either bullet proof electronics for those functions that make life comfortable, or in case that is not possible an option to not have them.