Mahindra Mania: SUV Waiting Periods Stretch Reality, Thar, XUV700, Scorpio/N Seek Customer Patience
Mahindra SUVs Waiting Period – Mahindra reported its highest ever SUV sales in July 2023 clocking a 30 percent growth on a YoY basis and 11 percent MoM. High demand for its SUV lineup that includes the Thar, SUV700 and Scorpio/N has led to a waiting period of over 6-15 months for certain variants, while the company currently sits on a backlog order of over 2.8 lakh units. This figure is set to grow as there are also over 48,000 Mahindra SUVs being booked each month.
The XUV700 has seen immense success in the Indian markets and reached a milestone of 1 lakh unit sales in 20 months and currently has around one year waiting period. Its base trims MX and AX3 have the least waiting period of around four months while top-spec AX7L has maximum waiting of around 9 months. This is as compared to an earlier waiting period that stretched to over a year. The reduction in the waiting period is due to the fact that Mahindra has boosted production of the XUV700. Numbers set to go up from 6,000 units to 10,000 units a month by March 2024.
Mahindra Scorpio/N, Thar, SUV Waiting Periods – Patience on Wheels
Mahindra Scorpio marked its highest monthly sales in July 2023. Scorpio N, available in five trims of Z2, Z4, Z6, Z8 and Z8L sees most of its variants having a 1 year waiting period. Of the Scorpio lineup, that includes the Scorpio Classic and Scorpio N, open bookings now stand at 1.17 lakh units while combined production capacities currently stand at 14,000 units per month. In July 2023, the Indian Army placed an order for 1,470 units of the Scorpio Classic, deliveries which will be undertaken in a phased manner.
The company also currently has over 68,000 open bookings for Mahindra Thar which increase at the rate of 10,000 new orders each month for the 2WD and 4WD versions. The 2WD waiting period is currently at 15 months while the 4WD has a lower waiting period of 5 months. Mahindra now gears up for launch of Thar Electric SUV on 15th August 2023 at an event to be held in South Africa
New Mahindra Bolero Neo+ Launch – Battling for Balance
High demand is also seen for Mahindra Bolero and Bolero Neo of which the company has over 8,400 pending orders as on date. Production currently stands at 9,000 units each month that allows for the shortest waiting period in the Mahindra SUV lineup.
Mahindra is now set to introduce the new Bolero Neo+ in September 2023. It will be positioned below the Scorpio Classic in the company lineup and will have seating capacity of 7 and 9 persons. Sales are targeted in Tier II cities. Alongside this upcoming launch, Mahindra is also set to introduce the updated XUV300 compact SUV with sales set to commence from early 2024.
