[anjan_c2007]

Mod Note: Our Mahindra Bolero New Report has been taken live at this link. Please continue the discussion over on the new thread. Thanks!

Mahindra and Mahindra has played a speculative googly here by launching the TUV 300 as the Bolero Neo. Bolero sells the most amongst all Mahindras (52,763 units sold in 2020), while the TUV 300 hardly sold one hundred plus units a month (1701 units sold in 2020 ) since the last sales figures were revealed.

When the bike named as the Enfield 200 launched in the late 1970's and was not selling, Enfield India relaunched it as the Mini-Bullet to get a piggyback ride on the successful Bullet name in the early 1980's. This hardly propped up its sales and the company had to bite the dust, scrapping the 200 cc bike just a few years later.

The Bolero versus Bolero Neo link here :-

https://www.autocarindia.com/car-new...fferent-421396

While it may have the Bolero name on it, the Bolero Neo shares little with the standard Bolero. The Neo is essentially an updated Mahindra TUV300 rebranded to join the more popular Bolero family. The two SUVs also share little in common apart from using the same diesel engine in different states of tune. The Bolero Neo is also clearly the more upmarket of the two and aimed at a different clientele.

Common among the two Boleros are the X shaped front bumper, clamshell bonnet and the side body mouldings. The old Bolero continues with its age old features aimed at the mass urban and rural markets, while the Neo is a bit upmarket with the new generation Mahindra trappings and features. Both are sub 4 metre and both are powered by the 1.5 L mHawk. The mHawk75 powers the standard, while mHawk100 powers the Neo. Despite the different badgings, both engines still use the same basic 1.5-litre, three-cylinder turbo-diesel. The Neo features a variable geometry turbocharger (VGT) for increased power. The Neo’s unit delivers 100hp and 260Nm of torque, while in the old Bolero the engine develops 76hp and 210Nm according to Autocar India.

Despite being more affordable, the base model of the Bolero Neo is better equipped of the two with kit such as CBC, dual airbags, central locking and power windows – some of which are not available on the standard old Bolero according to Autocar India.

The prices are in the range of Rs 8.48- 9.99 L for the Neo (ex-showroom India) and for the old Bolero its Rs 8.63-9.61 L (ex- showroom, Delhi). Both are offering three variants according to Autocar India. Surprisingly, the old Bolero prices offered are city specific, while the Neo prices are for pan India, that appear to give it an advantage. In Pune however, prices for the Bolero start at Rs 8.41 lakh – placing it below the base Bolero Neo – with the difference in pricing going up to about Rs 58,000 for higher models according to Autocar India.

[CEF_Beasts]

I believe in rural markets, initially there will be interest in the product just going by the name Bolero, but later they will realise it is none other than the TUV300.

But in rural markets the kind of roads and everything else, they know the true blue Bolero can do whatever they throw at it but they will surely be sceptical of this Bolero Neo. They will only adopt it if someone experiments with the Neo, otherwise why change from the SUV that is serving them rightly so for many decades without problems and is tried and tested?

The Bolero Neo is surely lot more modern than the aged Bolero but ask any person up north in the mountains or rural India, everyone will pick the ubiquitous Bolero hands down because they swear by it!

And I believe the discontinued TUV300 Plus will make a comeback as the Bolero Neo Plus with added space and more importantly power, that will surely be something!

[Samba]

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

Mahindra and Mahindra has played a speculative googly here by launching the TUV 300 as the Bolero Neo. Bolero sells the most amongst all Mahindras (52,763 units sold in 2020), while the TUV 300 hardly sold one hundred plus units a month (1701 units sold in 2020 ) since the last sales figures were revealed.

From April 2020 the BS6 norm was implemented and the Tuv300 was not Bs6 ready. So the production of Tuv300 was stopped. That resulted in such poor sales figure.

If you consider the sales number of 2019, it was decent.

Am not in favor or naming the Tuv300 a Bolero Neo. They could have very well continued with the original name. Tuv300 always had its own fan following. It's the only sub4 meter body on frame suv and the cheapest one with decent comfort, power and handling.
Now the new one comes with a MLD as a standard fitment. This will make it great for venturing tricky road conditions too. On bad roads this car will anyday perform better than any sub4 meter FWD crossovers available today.

As a product it looks promising, I feel it will get more than decent market share. At this moment, even if I have to look for a touring vehicle in 10-12 lac range, the Bolero Neo will be a strong contender, but not the Bolero.

The Baleno sedan got average to poor sales figure, while the Baleno hatchback is a market hit. So at the end it boils down to the the product and its marketing strategy.

Even the new Safari got decent acceptance in the market, though its too early to comment on it now.

Similarly, the Bolero and Bolero Neo will have separate customer base.

[audioholic]

If they continue the regular bolero then people would still prefer that. Only if the Bolero in its original form is discontinued, then it would force the Bolero customer to look at the Bolero Neo and end up buying it. Otherwise, the Bolero Neo will bite the dust with many other Mahindra MPV experiments like Nuvosport, Quanto etc which never had a target market like the Bolero has even today. And personally, I have never digested the looks of the TUV or Bolero Neo especially from the side. Its like the design was born out of a Bolero crashing into a low lying tree branch and not being straightened after that And as that bend approaches the rear, it has been forcibly straightened by reversing the D pillar into the same tree branch. Here is the concept:

[needforspeed88]

On Road Price in Bangalore for N10 itself is 12 and a half lakh rupees, if you want MLD you need to go for N10 optional for which pricing is still not out.

People have to be first convinced that this vehicle will have no issues traversing muddy slushy terrain or tight uphil turns without the wheel spinning issue. The top end N10 optional, the only variant with MLD is going to out of reach for rural population.

If Mahindra had offered MLD as an option from base variant itself it would have been a wiser strategy keeping in mind it is mainly targeted towards semi urban or rural areas as an alternative to the original Bolero which is successful because of bullet proof reliability and simple mechanicals.

[abhishek46]

The TUV300 sold hardly ~1000 units per month in the year 2019, when it is on sale in pre-BS6 era.

The TUV brand, in my opinion got superseded & outclassed by the XUV300, especially in the urban markets.

Rather than mothballing a product in it's entirety, it makes business sense to re-launch/repackage it with a different identity.

The Bolero brand has immense pull in semi-urban/rural markets.

This TUV300 branded as Bolero Neo could indeed change the fortunes of the product.

Coming to the comparison with bullet vs bullet mini, this Bolero-Neo is by no means a 'Mini' product.
It is based on a rugged BoF platform from the Scorpio & has 25% more power and torque than the Bolero.
The dimensions are also more or less same as Bolero.
In my opinion, this can be called as the Big-Brother Bolero, as it improves upon the Bolero is all aspects.

[highwaypatrol]

I still don't get the idea behind branding a totally different car with an established brand name like Bolero. Infact M&M is not doing justice to the amazing service done by Bolero over many decades. What they could have done is redo the original Bolero with spruced up interiors to acceptable quality in fit and finish, independent suspension at the rear, AT options and few other creature comforts. Then they would have won many hearts not only in rural hinderlands, but the urban customers too. I reckon M&M lost their chance to revive the Bolero heritage.

[abhikb]

I feel what Maruti did by phasing out the famous 800 slowly through Alto 800, M&M is trying the same thing with the Bolero brand. There was a time when Maruti was selling 800 and Alto 800 side by side and ultimately phasing out the older one.

The existing Bolero power plus will require some efforts to keep it running and comply to the norms. With the Bolero Neo being much more premium at a similar price and offering the same advantage of Bolero power plus, the plan seems in place for Mahindra. Rather than replacing brand Bolero with Brand TUV doing the other way round will certainly help.

[sanchari]

There is already a Bolero Neo thread which is discussing the same issues. Can we merge this thread with the other one?

[YD14]

Will the Bolero neo sell? Yes. Will it outsell regular Bolero? No.

Bolero has three types of customers. The taxis, the government offices, and lastly the townspeople and villagers in the plains. The taxis won't switch to the neo because they want the cost to space (read perceived space, none of them takes a test drive) ratio to be the lowest.

However many of the buyers in the last two categories can make the switch as the neo fits their requirements, a rugged, spacious, and boxy-looking SUV. It is priced similar to the Bolero too. Remember their first choice is actually the Scorpio, a more modern SUV, but they buy the Bolero because of budget constraints.

[vj_torqueaddict]

I had mentioned in the other Bolero Neo thread that it might just get a second look from a potential Bolero customer. But that’s it. I did not elaborate as I did not feel it was right to digress from the thread there. Since this thread is a discussion about the strategy taken by MM, I am adding my 2 cents here.

TUV300 has always been selling side by side with Bolero at almost same price range, and Bolero has been outselling it. It’s because of the strong Brand pull of the vehicle. When I was purchasing Bolero BS6 the SA told me it was flying off the shelf without even test drives. Such is the pull. TUV300 although a great product it’s quirky design is a hit or a miss. Hence my reasoning that this too might not work. Need to see if people fall for the “bait of highest quality”.

[Pyrotek]

It is worth remembering that the Bolero was essentially a heavily reworked Mahindra Armada (arch rival of the Tata Sumo). Therefore, the case of the Neo is a case of history repeating itself in the modern Era. I think it makes great business sense. Sooner or later, the current Bolero has to be retired for crash safety reasons. Relaunching the TUV300 as the Bolero Neo will give them a head start in the process.

[Turbanator]

Can work well for Mahindra probably, fuel prices are at record high and we haven’t seen the peak yet. On my recent trips to pump, have seen multiple people now just getting a fixed fuel instead of tank full, self including. Not that it saves in anyway, just that people are actually feeling the pinch.

We have also seen that second generation of such home grown products usually is a better version of the earlier with less defects so maybe they wanted to start a fresh. Not a bad strategy.

[simplyself]

Mahindra with single stroke made the classic Bolero more appealing by rebranded launch of TUV 3oo as the Neo.

I have been seeing first reviews which mention newer generation chassis and suspension, more modern dash etc.

It is to be seen whether the Neo adds numbers on its own.

How I wish the 100 HP engine, atleast as an option, in the classic too.

Mod Note: Our Mahindra Bolero New Report has been taken live at this link. Please continue the discussion over on the new thread. Thanks!