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December 14, 2020 8:56 am

New Ford SUV Spied In China With 2021 Mahindra XUV500 Inspired Touchscreen

New Ford SUV in China – 2021 Edge. Credit – Autohome

Spied in China, 2021 Ford Edge SUV goes on sale early next year

A month and a half ago Ford unveiled the new Ford Edge which came with a handful of updates on the exterior but a host of new features inside the cabin. Now, images of a production-spec model’s interior have surfaced online and we just cannot ignore its resemblance with an upcoming Indian SUV.

Few weeks earlier, images of the interior of the upcoming new-gen Mahindra XUV500 were going around the internet. They showed a completely revised cockpit including a new dashboard layout. When compared with the images of the 2021 Ford Edge, one is left to wonder if indeed Mahindra took inspiration from the latest iteration of American crossover.

Similarities in design

For starters, dash of the new Edge is uncannily similar to the upcoming XUV500 with its horizontally placed dual-screen setup of infotainment system and instrument cluster. Earlier, we believed that Mahindra has taken inspiration from new generation Mercedes Benz cars but seeing the images we get an idea of their source of inspiration.

In addition, XUV500 seems to get a similar flat-bottom steering with mounted stereo and cruise control buttons. Also, the AC vents positioned below the infotainment screen look similar in shape. Even the round dials for the automatic climate control in XUV500 resemble the ones in Ford Edge.

2021 Mahindra XUV500 touchscreen. Image – SP Auto Tech

It is to be noted here that the Ford Edge SUV that has been spied in China is not the same which will come to India. For India, the new Ford SUV, codenamed CX757, is based on the XUV500. The new C-segment SUV from Ford whose images got leaked a couple of days ago, is also expected to get similar interiors like the 2021 XUV500.

While both Mahindra XUV500 and new Ford SUV will share the same underpinnings and powertrain options, their design is said to be very different from each other. Interestingly, both SUVs will be designed by Italian designing firm Pininfarina which is owned by Mahindra.

New Ford SUV For India – Render

Mahindra & Ford Joint Venture in India

In October 2019, Ford India ended its independent manufacturing operations in India and went into a partnership with Mahindra & Mahindra. This joint venture, in which Mahindra holds a 51 percent stake while 49 percent is held by the American carmaker, gives Mahindra responsibilities of handling operations of both brands in the country.

This means all future models of Ford in India will be developed and manufactured by Mahindra. Mahindra will utilise the production capacity of Ford’s facilities in India and Ford vehicles will use platforms and powertrains of Mahindra vehicles. Ford, although has retained its sales and marketing operations entirely.

New-Gen Mahindra XUV500 is expected to launch in mid-2021 after its launch this year was affected because of the outbreak of novel coronavirus. Ford C-segment SUV’s launch will succeed XUV500 later next and will rival the likes of Tata Gravitas, MG Hector Plus and Jeep Compass.