Autoblog

Truck shoppers hoping to grab a Mahindra pickup early next year are gonna have to wait a little longer. It seems the challenges of bringing an India-made vehicle to the U.S. are difficult, and the vehicles now won't go on sale in the U.S. before the fourth quarter of 2009.

Even though 324 dealers have signed up to sell the truck, few of them have actually built the needed facilities. That's not enough to keep Georgia-based Global Vehicles from going ahead with their plans to begin U.S. sales. But GV's CEO John Perez recenly spoke to Mahindra's global managing director Anand Mahindra who, according to Automotive News, said that no truck with his family's name on it was going to fail in the U.S. Mr. Mahindra plans to run a fleet of his company's vehicles over 3.2 million miles of U.S. roads before he'll be approve the trucks for sale here.

The plan is for the trucks to utilize a 4-cylinder diesel engine not yet approved by the EPA. But Perez says he has no fear their January application will have any trouble getting blessed.

While the trucks are getting some U.S. experience, Global Vehicles will continue to sign up new dealers, and hopes to have 450 by the end of 2009. The importer has a sales goal of 50,000 vehicles a year, though Mahindra says it could produce as many as 400,000 U.S.-bound trucks if demand is there. And if Mahindra's promise of 30 mpg holds true, there could be huge demand. If things go well, look for a diesel-powered Mahindra SUV to follow.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd, Pickuptrucks.com]

Despite assurances from top GM brass, every bidder for the troubled HUMMER brand appears to be removing itself from the rumormill. Considered one of the strongest suitors interested in the off-road marque, India's Mahindra is the latest brand to pull out of consideration. According to Vice Chairman Anand Mahindra, "There has been a lot of speculation. I want to say categorically we are not pursuing HUMMER." That sounds pretty definitive to us, leaving Tata Motors as the only company from India still reportedly interested. Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska has pulled his name out of the mix, as has China's Hunan Changfeng Motor Co. Until an official announcement is made, all of this is just speculation, but we have to wonder just how valuable the HUMMER brand could possibly be now that its sales have plummeted so far and so fast.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

General Motors is already having meetings with its dealers regarding all the possibilities for its HUMMER brand. According to reports, there are several companies interested in making a purchase of the military-inspired vehicles, though Tata Motors now appears uninterested despite earlier reports. One suitor is said to be Mahindra & Mahindra, the Indian company that plans on making a big splash entering the American market itself over the next few years. Just-Auto quotes an unnamed official at the company who says "Mahindra is very keen on acquiring the Hummer." Hmm... Isn't it interesting how one little word can change the meaning of an entire sentence. Anyway, Mahindra already produces a vehicle that shares an eerie resemblance to the original GI-spec HUMMER that it sells to the Indian military.

Currently, the vast majority of Hummer sales are made in the States, but Mahindra doesn't sound worried about that. "The U.S. market might not be able to afford their own HUMMER any longer, but India is a growing and strong economy. When Indians like something we go out and get it, no matter what the cost, because we know how to make it work for us," according to an unnamed source. Uh huh... good luck with that.

[Source: Just-Auto - sub. req'd]

While it might not be the prettiest girl at the prom, we're still extremely intrigued by Mahindra's upcoming diesel pickup for the American market. Up until today, we've been referring to the new truck as the Appalachian, though reports now indicate that it will drop that moniker. Apparently, the Indian company wants to highlight its own name in an effort to build some much-needed brand recognition in a market it has never played in before. For that reason, some sort of nondescript name made from numbers and/or letters is to be expected.

Mahindra's newly un-named truck will feature a new four-cylinder diesel engine produced just for the States with help from Bosch and AVL. Power output should hover around 150 horses, though torque is expected to be a massive 300 lb-ft. Coupled with what should be reasonable fuel economy from just 2.2 liters of displacement, we think that Mahindra's new pickup could re-ignite the compact pickup market in no time at all. At least one domestic brand might be thinking the same thing, as this spy shot indicates that one of Detroit's finest brought one over for testing.

[Source: PickupTrucks.com]

Click on the image above for pictures of the Brutale 910 R

Tata Motors, rumored to have been interested in purchasing a large chunk of Italian motorcycle maker MV Agusta, could have some competition. Another large Indian conglomerate, Mahindra & Mahindra may now be interested in a controlling stake in the storied company. According to India Automotive, the potential exists to gain instant traction in the global motorcycle market by picking up MV Agusta, and the Italian company could use the extra funds from a large and profitable company to release a new line of more competitive machines.

Volkswagen, are you paying attention to all of this? As we've previously reported, the German automaker has expressed interest in purchasing an established motorcycle brand, even going so far as to mention Ducati by name. MV Agusta would offer instant credibility and would be a rather easy entrance into the marketplace.

[Source: India Automotive]

Potential buyers interested in the upcoming Mahindra & Mahindra Appalachian pickup truck will get a sneak-peek of the new machine at the upcoming SAE World Congress, April 14-17 in Detroit, Michigan. The most interesting part of this news, though, is that the vehicle on display will sport a diesel/electric hybrid drivetrain, which could be the first and only such system sold in the U.S. The standard diesel Appalachian truck is expected to come with a 2.2-liter four cylinder diesel engine putting out between 140 and 150 horsepower along with 300 lb. ft of torque. Expected to sell in the low $20,000 range and be available in both two and four-door versions, Mahindra could potentially re-ignite the small truck market abandoned long ago by American automakers. With the hybrid option coming in at around $5 grand more, before any available tax credits are applied, we think that this upcoming Indian truck will make some waves here in the states when it goes on sale in 2010.

[Source: Diesel Forecast]

At least one of the bidders in the race to buy Jaguar and Land Rover has dropped out of the competition. Indian manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra apparently couldn't get the guarantees they wanted regarding powertrain supplies. With new limits on CO2 emissions expected to be enacted in the EU beginning in 2012, the ability of both brands to meet the standards with their larger vehicles poses a problem, as well.

The emissions issue may also be playing a part in Ford's decision to unload the companies and not keep any stake at all in them. Mahindra was really only interested in Land Rover, but Ford wants to sell the two companies as a package deal. Mahindra's Indian competitor Tata is still in the running and has lined up a technical support deal with Fiat if the sale goes through.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

India-based Mahindra & Mahindra is considering exporting its light utility vehicles to the U.S., perhaps as early as 2007. According to AutoWeek, the company is trying to establish a network of 200 dealers to sell its flagship Scorpio SUV.

Mahindra already exports the Scorpio to a number of countries, including Malaysia, South Africa, Russia, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal. In Europe, the car is known as the Mahindra Goa. This won't be the company's first exposure to the U.S. market - Mahindra USA opened its doors in 1994 to assemble and market the company's line of tractors.

The latest version of the Scorpio was launched earlier this year, and comes in seven- and eight-seat configurations, with either 2WD or 4WD powertrains. The standard powerplant for the Scorpio is a 2.6-liter common-rail turbodiesel, but the company is said to be adding a gasoline engine sourced from Renault, and a hybrid prototype is under development.

Reviews of the 2005 Scorpio suggest that its levels of performance and refinement were significantly below U.S.-market standards, but perhaps the 2006 version has addressed those concerns. In any event, you can expect the chunky SUV to carry a bargain-basement price.

[Sources: AutoWeek, Mahindra & Mahindra]