Mahindra has launched the new 2012 Xylo facelift. The company has improved the MPV in key areas, offering a wide range of options to the buyers, in terms of both engines and variants. Gone is the rather plain looking front, replaced by something you won’t mind looking at. The influence from the Mahindra XUV500 shows, which is a good thing. The old Mahindra Xylo was always known to be give passengers a feeling of swinging but Mahindra has managed to improve this on the new Xylo. There is not a drastic change and don’t expect the Xylo to hanlde like a car just yet.

Step inside the 2012 Mahindra Xylo and it iwll be difficult to notice anything new. The company claims that door handles are now sturdier and there are more cubbyholes for storage. The top of the line E9 variant gets two-tone brown interiors along with leather upholstery. A new gear lever also features on the Xylo. The Xylo’s centrally mounted multi-information display now offers more data and the MPV now boasts of audio controls on steering wheel and a cruise control system.

Debuting on the new Mahindra Xylo is the quick and powerful mHawk engine, which also does duty in the Scorpio. A new E9 variant gets this new engine, along with more bells and whistles and is priced at Rs. 11.40 lakhs (on-road Mumbai). The Mahindra Scorpio VLX is priced at Rs. 11.55 lakhs, so we can expect some cannibalization between the two, specially since the Scorpio is more sought after vehicle. The Mahindra Xylo 2.2 produces 120 BHP of peak power at 4000 RPM and 280 Nm of peak torque at 1800 RPM. This might just be marginally more than the mEagle powered Xylo and the difference can’t be made out immediately. Yes, the turbolag is minimal.

Handling of the Mahindra Xylo has improved but there is still a bit of body roll present in the car. Mahindra has re-caliberated the dampers and suspension bushings. There was some vibes and clatter filtering into the Xylo’s cabin, probably due to the fact the test vehicle was brand new. A new 5-speed manual transmission (5MT-320) takes care of cog duties and felt little notchy. This gearbox is yet to debut on the Scorpio and is expected any time soon. The gear knob does vibrate quite a bit though. The EPS is quite well calibrated but the brakes continue to give the spongy feel.

The voice command control deserves a special mention for functioning quite well. Mahindra has applied for a patent and using your voice you can control the headlamps, fog lamps, wipers, doors, etc. The system works surprisingly well and since it was developed by Mahindra, there is no issue of misunderstanding Indian accent. We believe the E6 variant will still be the most popular variant of the Mahindra Xylo, which might not have undergone major mechanical changes but looks so much more pleasing and easy on the eyes. The Xylo continues to offer fantastic value and practicality, making it the choice for those looking for an MPV on a budget.

With inputs from MotorBeam Special Correspondent Mohit Soni.

Mahindra announced its plans to launch 6 new vehicles this year. One of these is the mini-Xylo compact MPV, which has been on test all over the globe. The Mahindra Xylo Compact MPV will be launched by October and will be powered by a 1.2-litre petrol and 1.5-litre diesel engine. These engines are all new and will help the sub 4-metre Xylo in getting excuse duty benefits. The Mahindra Xylo Compact MPV is expected to start at a price of Rs. 5 lakhs, with the top end variant retailing at Rs. 7 lakhs.

The Mahindra Xylo Compact MPV will rub shoulders with premium hatchbacks like the Maruti Swift and Hyundai i20. Although the Xylo won’t have such good handling as its rivals, the car offers more space and more seating capacity too. The Xylo-mini will be available in both 5 and 7-seater versions (last row having opposite facing jump seats). Mahindra will offer features such as ABS, dual airbags, alloy wheels, double-din audio system, steering mounted audio controls and multi-information system on the compact Xylo. Will you consider the Mahindra Xylo compact over a regular B-segment hatchback?

Mahindra has just launched the 2012 Xylo Facelift. The company has upgraded the Xylo with updates to both the interiors and the exteriors. The Mahindra Xylo now looks modern and sees some influence from the XUV500 to its exteriors. The Mahindra Xylo sports 50 new changes and features including five variants powered by three engine options including the Scorpio’s mHawk engine. The 2012 Mahindra Xylo also boasts of a Voice Command Technology for Vehicle commands, enabling customers to control over thirty feature and actions.

The new Xylo will available in 5 variants – D2, D4, E4, E8 and E9 and will start at a price of Rs 7.37 lakhs (D2, BS4 ex-showroom Delhi). It will be available in 6 colours – Diamond White, Java Brown, Mist Silver, Fiery Black, Toreador Red and Rocky Beige. The interiors have undergone a upgrade too. The new variant E9 will be made available across India in a phased manner while other variants will be available at all personal Mahindra dealerships immediately.

The Mahindra Xylo E9 debuts, which uses the Scorpio’s engine, producing 120 BHP of power and 280 Nm of torque. The Xylo m-Hawk returns 14.02 kmpl and is mated to an all new 5-speed manual transmission. The rest of the variants (except the base variant) are powered by the same tried and test 2.5-litre mEagle engine which produces 112 BHP of power and 260 Nm of torque. This engine returns 13 kmpl. The base variant of the Xylo, which is targeted at the taxi market is powered by the mDI CRDe engine and produces 95 BHP of power and returns 14.95 kmpl.

2012 Mahindra Xylo Features

• New front grille
• Chrome accent
• New headlamps
• New front bumper with airdams
• New bonnet with integrated Mahindra Logo
• Roof rails and spoiler
• Pronounced wheel arches
• Body and roof decals
• Blacked pillars
• Chrome tipped body side molding
• New footstep with mudflaps for easy entry and exit
• Genuine Italian leather interiors
• New center console
• Glossy wood finish
• New 2 tone dashboard
• Sleek DDAS
• New inner door handles
• Convenient storage places
• Voice command technology (VCT)
• Blue drive system
• Cruise control
• Audio controls on steering wheel
• Intellipark reverse assist
• 2 Din audio system
• Surround cool dual AC
• Dual SRS Airbags
• Digital drive assist system
• Individual AC vents and lights for all 3 rows
• Flat bed seats
• Foldable snack trays
• ABS with EBD
• Extra stability technology (EST)

Mahindra has confirmed that it has no plans of launching the 4-wheel drive or automatic variant of the Xylo anytime soon. The vehicles which were spied were for the export market. Mahindra also announced six more vehicles to be launched this year. These could include the Verito CS, REVA NXR, SsangYong Rexton, Xylo Compact MPV, Stallio and Mojo.

Live pictures shot by MotorBeam Special Correspondent Mohit Soni.

The Indian utility vehicle manufacturer, Mahindra launched its MPV, the Xylo years back in competition to the then ruling vehicle, the Toyota Innova. Though, the Xylo couldn’t obliterate the Innova completely from the market with its controversial looks, yet it did manage to grab some market share. Mahindra & Mahindra in an effort to increase its presence in the same segment, will be launching the facelifted version of the Xylo in the Indian market this month, probably on 8th February.

Before the official launch of the vehicle, however a Team BHP reader has managed to snap some close-up shots of the facelifted Mahindra Xylo at some dealer. The car was possibly up for some PDI Inspection or something similar which we anyways don’t care. From the spy shots, the facelifted Xylo does seem to have undergone many significant changes to it. At the front, the facelifted Xylo gets restyled headlamps, front grille and bumpers along with fog lamps. Personally, the odd faced older version has been taken care of and the facelifted Xylo looks better and sportier also.

The side profile however, is almost kept similar to the older version which might be to retain the loads of space it provides on the inside. At the rear, the Xylo also gets some minor modifications. Coming to the interiors, it looks neat and the dashboard well laid out. The roundish center console gets wooden inserts to provide a more upmarket feel to it. Overall, the visual snags in the older version has been mostly taken care of and more will be unraveled of this when we get to see it up, close and personal.

Pictures Source – Team-BHP

The Mahindra Xylo is going compact, as the company looks to enter the compact SUV segment, which is still in its nascent stages of development. We recently spotted the Xylo-mini undergoing its routine tests on the Mumbai-Pune expressway. Now this was not the first time the mini-Xylo has been spotted and its been all over India as part of reliability tests. The reason Mahindra is logging on some much distance on the Xylo compact is because the car features two all new engines. The 1.2-litre petrol motor and 1.5-litre diesel motor will make their debut and could find their way into the Verito CS (compact sedan) next year.

The Mahindra mini-Xylo has always been adorned with camouflage and thus no one has an idea how it would end up looking. This is when Zaid Muhammed stepped in and rendered the compact SUV, based on our recent spy shots of the car. The front resembles the Xylo facelift, while the side is sub 4-meters in length. Without the camouflage, the Xylo compact SUV looks quite good and would rub shoulders with the Premier Rio (its only competitor). Mind you, the Xylo-mini might be a vehicle similar to the Ford EcoSport but will cost atleast 30% cheaper than the Ford.

If there is a motorcycle which has been tested for the longest time before being launched, it is undoubtedly the Yamaha R15 Version 2.0. When it comes to cars, the same award should go the mini-Xylo. The Mahindra Xylo Mini, which is a 5-door hatchback has been under test for eternity now, with no signs of the camouflage shedding anytime soon. But finally it has. We spotted the 5-door Xylo at the Food Mall on the Mumbai-Pune expressway. The driver seemed to have taken a refreshment break, logging kms on the highway and generating vital data for the engineers.

As can be seen, the Mahindra Xylo-mini does not have the upgrades which the Xylo facelift will receive next week. The headlights are clearly visible and are straight out of the Xylo. So is the complete front. Mahindra will not call this hatchback by the Xylo name, like it has done with the Xylo pick-up, calling it the Genio. We don’t want to dwell much into the engines which will power the mini-Xylo but all new petrol and diesel engines are said to debut. These engines could be based on current engines which power the Xylo MPV, with altered cylinders and hardware.

What is still unknown is what exactly Mahindra has on its mind. The company has never been a manufacturer of small cars and has pioneered people movers like MUVs, MPVs and SUVs. The Xylo 5-door could very well be a compact SUV (the running boards suggest so) and not a hatchback, gunning straight for the Premier Rio and Ford EcoSport. Measuring a tad under 4-meters in length, the Xylo-mini has its spare wheel mounted on the tail gate and should be priced between the Rs. 5-7 lakhs range. The question is, will Mahindra be able to fend off the Multijet powered Rio?

Mahindra’s next launch will be the Xylo facelift, as the company has already updated its other models in recent times. This will be followed by the launch of the 5-door, mini-Xylo hatchback. The Xylo has not received any updates since launch, other than the usual special editions which Mahindra comes out with every once in a while. Now the 2012 Xylo facelift has already arrived at a few dealer stock yards and the production has already started and the launch is on the 8th of February. Although this update to the 2012 Mahindra Xylo is a not drastic, Mahindra has ensured that it has done significant changes to the MPV, after factoring in customer feedback.

The Mahindra Xylo Facelift sees a revision to the headlights, bumpers, grille, hood. These changes seem to have been inspired by none other than the company’s flagship model, the XUV5OO. Changes to the interiors would include addition of a few features along with beige interiors. The engines will be unchanged and power will come in from a 2.2-liter mEagle diesel engine which produces 112 BHP of power and a 2.2-liter DI diesel engine which produces 95 BHP of power. A new E9 variant of the Xylo could debut, which is likely to feature 4-wheel drive.

The time of the Mahindra Xylo facelift comes at a very right time, as Maruti Suzuki is almost ready to unleash the Ertiga MPV on its rivals. Looking at the growth in the MPV segment, we can expect Hyundai to put the Hexa Space into production some time soon, while the Nissan Evalia will see a launch by August 2012. The MPV segment is suddently seeing vast competition, even thoguh the first vehicle to enter was the Toyota Innova in 2005, which is not only the costliest but even the highest selling MPV in the country by a long margin for 6 years in a row!

Spy Pictures Source – Team-BHP

It is the time now for compact SUVs and MPVs. With all major auto manufacturers readying their products in these segments, how can the very own Indian utility vehicle maker, Mahindra & Mahindra be left behind. Mahindra already a good product in the MPV segment, the Xylo which has been doing decent numbers but they don’t have any compact SUV yet. Now, rumours are very strong that Mahindra wants to get into the compact SUV segment and for that, they are using the Xylo. Yes, it is going to be the Xylo, but a shortened one. Called Mini-Xylo, it will be below 4 metres in length to attract excise benefits and will be powered by a 1.5 litre diesel engine.

Targeted to be a 5 seater vehicle, the Mini-Xylo will be featuring the downsized version of Mahindra’s 2.5 litre CRDe engine. The downsizing has been done primarily by eliminating one of the cylinders and reducing the bore and stroke length of the existing cylinders. The third row will be eliminated and will be using the Xylo’s body-on-frame chassis. The Mini-Xylo has been undergoing development tests for some time and recently “Smashing Wheels” caught this car being tested. Tough heavily camouflaged, the silhouette of the car can be well related to the Xylo. Though exterior design features can’t be very clearly identified, but we believe the styling is going to almost similar to the current Xylo. The Mini-Xylo will surely get some sales volumes based on its practicality and affordable pricing.

Images Source – Smashing Wheels

Mahindra has seldom launched a product at the Auto Expo. Instead, the company uses the platform to showcase its existing portfolio and the upcoming products. Case in point is the Reva NXR, Ssangyong Korando and Ssangyong Rexton which will be unveiled to India for the very first time at the biennial event. The Expo is a great platform for automakers to launch new vehicles but Mahindra feels the buzz gets diluted due to the amount of new launches. Thus the Xylo facelift won’t make it to the Expo and will be launched around the 20th of January. The Xylo facelift has some minor tweaks to both the exterior and interiors and will be available in seven and eight seat configurations. The mini-Xylo on the other hand will only see a launch in April 2012, which is almost four months away!

The mini Xylo is based on the Xylo platform and will measure under 4-meter in length (to classify as a small car and attract lesser duties). It is a new concept, wherein a hatchback is also an MPV, since the mini-Xylo will be available with 7 seats (the last row will have 2 jump seats). Two all new engines will power the mini-Xylo, one being a 1.2-liter petrol motor, while the 1.5-liter diesel unit being a watered down version of the mEagle powertrain. What really sets the mini-Xylo apart from B-segment hatchbacks would be its 7-seats, high ground clearance and rugged looks. Expect a starting price of around Rs. 5 lakhs for the mini-Xylo.

Source – Hormazd Sorabjee via Twitter

Avid MotorBeam reader Rafi Ali Khan sent us this picture of the mini Xylo (codenamed U203) he spotted at the Mumbai Airport recently. Mahindra has been extensively testing the Xylo mini for quite some time now. The Xylo mini is the hatchback version of the Xylo MPV, chopped to under 4-meters in length to benefit from small car excise duties. This will be the first time Mahindra will enter this competitive segment, which account for more than 70% of car sales in India. But why would Mahindra bring the mini Xylo to Mumbai? Usually the company tests its future models around Nashik, Pune and occasionally in Ooty as well. With no launch in sight could the company showcase this product at the 2012 Auto Expo to gauge customer reactions? Or did the mini-Xylo visit Mumbai as is final destination before its official reveal?

The mini Xylo will get both a diesel and petrol heart. The diesel engine will be straight out of the Verito, while the petrol unit would be an all new 1.2-liter, 3-cylinder unit. Mahindra will offer the mini Xylo as a 5-seater but side facing seats could be offered to make this car a 7-seater. Prices are expected to start around Rs. 5 lakhs for the base model, while the top variant should cost around Rs. 7 lakhs (ex-showroom). The mini Xylo is set to create an all new segment when it goes on sale sometime in 2012. Till then we await more details from Mahindra on the mini Xylo.