The compact SUV segment is gaining popularity in the Indian car market on full steam. The segment leader at present is the Renault Duster, which is enjoying massive volumes every month. To eat up its sales, Ford is struggling hard to localize the EcoSport, which will be launched finally in early June with an aggressive price. Mahindra is also planning to foray into the compact SUV segment with an all new product codenamed S101, which is being developed from ground up on a monocoque chassis.
The Mahindra S101, fully camouflaged, has now been spotted testing for the third time in a month. The latest spy pictures of the Mahindra S101 have been taken in Tirupur, Tamil Nadu. The test mule wears heavy camouflage with temporary headlamps and tail lamps. Unlike the Mahindra Quanto, the S101 appears to have a sporty stance with steeply raked windshield, high window line and curved down roofline. A tailgate mounted spare wheel is likely to be featured on the sub 4-metre SUV.
Expect the baby SUV to borrow some styling elements from the Mahindra XUV500. The interiors of the S101 are said to be designed in a way to accommodate six passengers. Mahindra is expected to offer the S101 with a transversely mounted 3-cylinder 1.5-litre diesel engine. The S101 is also expected with a petrol engine option of a 1.2-litre turbo motor, mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox. The Mahindra S101 sub-compact SUV is expected to hit showrooms during 2014 with a starting price of Rs. 5 lakhs.
Source – Motor Vikatan Facebook Page
