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-   -   Next-gen Mahindra Scorpio | Now revealed as Scorpio-N (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-car-scene/209211-next-gen-mahindra-scorpio-now-revealed-scorpio-n-125.html)

Ironically, the 4Xplorer monogram is absent in the black scorpion, which then means its a 4x2 one, and that makes me curious why it was chosen for off-road drive, that too, on mud and slush, where it is bound to fail. Another pointer to being 4x2 is if you watch closely on both cars, only the rear wheels are spinning, whereas, in 4x4, all of the wheels should spin, considering all the wheels are covered in mud.

I found it bigger than boot space of my Swift and definitely large enough to carry luggage of a long vacation tour of 4 occupants. As I didn't measure, refraining from stating statistical dimension.

Exactly my thoughts when a test mule was spotted with side facing seats recently. It must be that pre-production vehicle.

On other note, are any lower variants spotted during media drives? Interested to see the interiors of lower variants.

So, for all the criticism of ScorpioN, I shall say no vehicle is perfect.

Regarding ScorpioN -

1. Do I like the design? - Not much.

2. Do I even need a SUV? - Not really.

3. Is it feature rich? - Nope.

4. Am I a Mahindra fanboy? - Nope.

But, what choice do I have in price bracket?
Harrier, Creta, Seltos, Taigun, Kushaq, Virtus, Hector, Astor etc.

All of these are average to good products for the money they charge (totally personal opinions).

ScorpioN with his class leading engines, safety, tech and capabilities seems extreme value (again relatively)

Therefore, I am choosing a ScorpioN, even though a Taigun shall suffice for me.

Checked out the Scorpio-N at my local M&M dealer and came back with mixed feelings about it. Coming from German cars/CSUVs, some features/characteristics feel new while others feel like glaring omissions. Keeping that comparison detached as much as possible, here are some observations I would like to add.

Note - The display car was a Z8L Petrol AT

• As others pointed out, omitting Auto dimming IRVM is almost criminal at this date. However some aftermarket fix might be available for that.
• My biggest gripe with the car is its boot space - the tumble mechanism eats quite a bit into the otherwise generous boot space. A flat folding 700'esque mechanism would've been appreciated here.
• Lack of split folding option moderates practicality too.
• When tumbled off, the floor isn't flat. So packing-in suitcases, boxes and similar items would be annoying. Packing in your luggage for a longish trip would be a time-consuming affair for sure.
• When tumbled off, the seat did not seem to lock in place and a tether for fixing it in that position was unavailable. Essentially, when you've folded the seats down, it'll just keep moving and probably create a ruckus during the drive.
• In the third row, there are reading lamps on either side (missed in XUV700) as well as a charging socket. However there are no hooks or tethers of any kind to hang/latch your stuff onto.
• Interestingly, there is a single led license plate light for the XUV700. Thankfully such cost cutting measures haven't been employed for the Scorpio-N and it gets a proper pair of lights. Not that it matters a lot, still.
• No AC vents for the third row.
• Second row seats do incline, unlike what some journos mentioned in their review.
• One touch tumble for the second row seat works well - single handed operation.
• The side step is not an accessory, it's available by default on all variants. It's a solid metal part which felt sturdy, might double up as a rock slider.
• There is a plastic engine protection plate. The underbody cladding/protection needs to be inspected. XUV700 has its brake lines and other wiring routed underneath exposed even on AWD variants. Cut costs where one does not see, huh Mahindra?
• Seat height adjust is missing for front passenger's seat. Stupid omission. Might become a deal breaker if your partner is about 5ft tall.
• Lumbar support adjustment is apparently available across variants and is not limited just to Z8L.
• Memory seats & welcome ingress is missing vis-a-vis XUV700 (or even my 7yo Yeti)
• Another stupid omission - No height adjustable seat belts.
• Bonnet is heavy - absence of hydraulic lift makes it more evident.
• Z8 4x4 MT apparently gets R17 steel wheels with a cover - On a 20+ lakh car!!!
• 4x4 variants' customers will have to make do with a single cup-holder at the front while 4x2 owners get a couple. rl:
• Steering adjustable for rake only? Seriously in 2022?!
• Auto up & down windows with anti-pinch only for the front doors.
• The center console is raised like in premium cars - lends the SUV's interiors a premium feel apart from aiding ergonomics.
• Stowage spaces inside the car is sparse for its size. Cooled glovebox is too shallow to be of utmost utilization.
• Both front doors get request sensors. XUV700 gets it only on the driver's door.
• There's a nifty phone holder pocket embedded within the back pockets of the front seats. Er, simply clever?
• Speaking of, the headliner is a premium feeling soft fabric one.
• Middle row gets an independent blower control. Read in the spec sheet that Z8 & Z8L get a separate A/C unit for the rear. Should aid faster cooling of the cabin in the absence of third-row or B-pillar vents.
• Tire size on the Z8L is 255/60 R18 All-season (which the SA tried to pass off as A/T). For reference, XUV700 gets 235/65 R18 and Thar gets 255/65 R18.

These are indeed very glaring omissions and ergonomic issues in the SUV.

We have 2012 Scorpio and it has side facing rear seats and once folded you can tuck it with help of a velcro aided strap.

Even if i were to remove the rear seat to creat a boot space the floor isn't flat.

Space provided in Side door pockets, armrest and glovebox is laughable but, this is case with our current Scorpio as well. Mahindra was serious when they said they want to keep Scorpio DNA. lol:

As much as i love ScorpioN and will definitely book it the boot space is concerning, i am thinking of ways in which i can make it flat.

My other option is XUV700 AX5 (AX7 is out of budget) which too despite costing 20 lacs OTR is missing out on features like powered folding ORVM, auto AC, cruise control, driver side auto up/down window, reverse camera and telescopic adjustment steering. All these features are pretty basic in 2022 and are present in my current car. :Frustrati

I am now confused between XUV 700 AWD and Scorpio N. I mainly need an SUV for highway drives, touring and mild off-roading. Currently I have a Skoda Yeti 4x4 and I do at least one Himalayan tour per year with 6k+ kms. A winter Ladakh is next on plan. In some of theses places, I feel need for low rage gear box - specially when I am off-road smelling my clutch burning in tricky places.

My decision depends on below two important factors-
1. Ride quality - I think XUV will have advantage here being a monocoque chassis with independent suspension. Waiting for TeamBHP review to give verdict on Scorpio N ride quality.
2. Off-road capabilities - Now Scorpio N will have clear advantage here with low range gearbox and MLD. But what I am not sure is how big is that advantage over XUV’s AWD that has automatic with torque converter. This is again in the context of mild off-roading.

I'm also in a very similar postion. My shortlist is tata safariAT, toyota crysta GX AT, XUV700 AT and ScorpioN AT.
All in diesel, ofcourse. Additional 2 seats are for limited occasional use only.
Crysta is lagging behind due to its taxi image and lack of feature.
Final shortlist is boiling down to TATA Safari and ScorpioN. Safari is shortlisted for its superb plush ride quality, excellent auto gearbox, huge ground clearance, ventilated seats and terrain mode function. Only downer are infotainment system, heavy steering & driver knee hitting central console.
ScorpioN scoring points in many front as we all know like interior, power, RWD with BoF and terrain mode functions. Only doubt for ScorpioN is its ride & handling. Let's see how much Mahindra has improved it on that front.

It is a tough decision.

Hello! Fellow Yeti 4x4 owner here and I understand your predicament.

Based on my experience of driving a close friend's XUV700 across states, I feel that unless you'd regularly do mid to hard core off-roading, XUV700 would fit your bill better. It's a very well mannered highway cruiser - does stupid speeds effortlessly with the safety net of ADAS, AEB, etc., I'd presume much better than the Scorpio-N with it's penta links and locomotive style derived Watt's linkage. :)

Where the 700 would triumph over the Yeti is in its ground clearance and breakover angles. That's good enough to tackle most off-road situations. You can refer to abirnale's ownership review, he takes the car to places which are often classified 4x4 territory. If you opt for the A/T, it would be a walk in the park. Again, speaking from experience.

It's probably not worth buying a car that you wouldn't feel at home in say - 90% of the time, for that one Winter Spiti trip. Just my two cents.

I think you are probably not aware -
The laden Ground clearance for Safari is just 143mm, which is too low for a SUV.

To give you a fair idea VW Virtus, a Sedan has 145mm laden GC.
Also, I think Safari is quite underpowered.

I am not pushing ScorpioN here (Infact lesser the interest, better for me as a potential buyer).lol:

On road safari doesn’t feel underpowered. 170bhp 350nm seems enough for on road application. Also safari puts down the power very well.

A "slightly?" disappointing news for prospective ScorpioN buyers-
Doesn't seem like Mahindra is providing price protection on the ScorpioN



It says clearly on the website

Thanks for the sharp observations. To my mind, the 17 inchers are a good thing as it'll raise sidewall height; ergo softer side. Don't care much about high speed handling/cornering etc. My use case is mostly broken roads of rural Himachal, so all extra padding is welcome.
We need a spacious 4×4/RWD 5 seater with a flatter,less busy second row ride quality than the current Scorpio, which somehow always gives me the nauseating "ripples on water's surface/quivering jelly" kinda sensation on the rear bench on the move ; the third row seat is anyways going to come off the vehicle. Hope a test ride settles this favourably.
My chances of convincing the competent financial authority at home would've been so much brighter if only M&M had decide to put on a navy blue shade & any other name than Scorpio. No offense to any owners here but in our neck of woods the Scorpio moniker does carry some baggage:disappointed
OT: do people prone to motion sickness fare better in vehicles with panoramic sunroofs as compared to no sunroof ? Any users with personal experience on this?

I totally vouch for auto dimming IRVM being an essential feature, more so in car of this segment. I have this on my 12+ year old Pajero, and got so used to the convenience that when I had to manually flip it on my other car, it felt strange. In India, where people drive with high beams on most of the time, an auto dimming IRVM makes a much more stronger case for itself.

Mahindra is not revealing many details of lower trims. Suddenly a thought came to my mind that it’ll be a very bad push strategy of Mahindra if they still retain those old style third row side by side seats in lower trims of Scorpio N to force prospective lower variant buyers to end up buying higher trims.

They have already done this by not offering alloys in even W8 MT.