Mahindra spills details on its upcoming ute: Here's when you'll see the brand's new developed-for-Australia diesel dual-cab

Mahindra has made no secret of the fact that it's working on a new dual-cab ute which it will use to target some of Australia's favourites like the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger.

Now speaking to CarsGuide at the launch of the XUV700, we have more details on what to expect and when to expect it, thanks to the brand's President and CEO of Global Automotive, Veejay Nakra.

"We will have a truly global pick-up in Australia," he said as part of a presentation of Mahindra's near-term plans. "Not engineered for India, we will be coming to Australia for development."

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Like the XUV700 and Scorpio, the ute will have what Mahindra calls "Australian DNA" thanks to "significant" development and hundreds of thousands of kilometres spent testing in Australia.

"With the success we've seen in other markets so far - South Africa, New Zealand, Nepal, and here in Australia - we are reasonably confident of our scale-up plans," Nakra said. "There are markets in the world which are big pick-up markets ... Australia is critical. We're working closely with customers and dealers here to refine what we define that global pick-up as."

The focus for Australia is said to be hot-weather testing, and testing in off-road and desert environments, but what makes the Australian market so unique, according to Mahindra officials, is the towing, which will continue to be a big focus for the brand's local testing regime going forward.

These are all big promises. So, what will power it, what will it be called, and when are we likely to actually see it?

Narka referred to the brand's global combustion range consisting of the XUV300 (a SsangYong-based model which isn't planned for Australia), Scorpio, XUV700 and the Scorpio ute, confirming the new pick-up as sharing its platform with the just-launched Scorpio SUV as suspected.

As to the powertrain? "It's an ICE-based global pick-up," said Nakra. "We can evaluate all sorts of powertrains going forward, but it will start with diesel."

The new Mahindra ute is promising to be a more 'global' offering compared to the existing Pik Up.

The current Scorpio off-roader comes equipped with a 2.2-liter four-cylinder diesel engine producing 129kW/400Nm. It channels power primarily to the rear wheels via a six-speed Aisin automatic transmission with 4WD on-the-fly, as well as a selectable 4WD low-range mode and a standard locking rear differential.

As to what other powertrains might look like, petrol is certainly an option as petrol alternatives appear on the Scorpio SUV in other markets, but don't expect a hybrid as Mahindra is notably not keen on the technology for its global model - instead placing a heavy emphasis on its future BE fully electric sub-brand.

And finally, the arrival date of the 'Scorpio ute'? Nakra says he expects it will hit the Australian market by 2027, plenty of time for the brand to iron out its development process, as well as bring key updates to the Scorpio platform - the most important of which is active safety equipment which was notably missing from the SUV at its launch earlier in 2023.

So there you have it. The Scorpio ute is still a few years out, will focus on diesel, and will have a heavy emphasis on development for ute-heavy markets like Australia. One thing is for sure, Mahindra will have its work cut out for it, taking the fight to storied rivals like the HiLux and Ranger, and particularly an increasing number of low-cost rivals from GWM, LDV, and SsangYong. Watch this space.