2025 Mahindra 3X0 Reviews

Mahindra has confirmed that the long-awaited Thar will not be sold in Australia in its current form. The rugged, body-on-frame wagon was expected to arrive sometime this year in traditional three-door and extended-body five-door wagon guises.

Mahindra has finally confirmed that the Jeep Wrangler-style body-on-frame Thar as we know it will not be imported to Australia.

It’s EOFY time again!

The Mahindra XUV3XO has been approved for sale in Australia ahead of its imminent local launch.Measuring in at under 4.0m long, 1.8m wide and 1.6m tall, this light SUV will rival the likes of the Hyundai Venue, Kia Stonic, Mazda CX-3 and Toyota Yaris Cross, among others.According to government approval documents, this Indian-produced SUV has been approved for sale in three trim levels – AX3L, AX5L and AX7L.All three of these trim levels will be powered by a 1.2-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine producing 82kW of power and be mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.This means we’re getting the weakest of the engine options offered.In India there’s a more-powerful version of this 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol engine that produces 96kW/260Nm, as well as a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that produces 85kW/300Nm.None of the manual transmission option will be offered either.According to the approval documents, the XUV3XO has a tare mass of about 1400kg and has a braked towing capacity of 750kg. Payload is also about 400kg.There is little information regarding what separates the three trim levels, but the AX3L and AX5L get 16-inch wheels wrapped in 205/65 tyres, and the flagship AX7L gets 17-inch wheels wrapped in 215/55 tyres.All XUV3XO examples have MacPherson front suspension, however, unlike Indian versions of the XUV3XO which have torsion beam rear suspension, the Australian-specification versions are approved for sale with multi-link rear suspension.At this stage Mahindra Australia hasn’t confirmed pricing of the XUV3XO range, though it’s expected to start around $25,000 before on-road costs.Exterior features are likely to include single- and dual-tone paint, alloy wheels, LED headlights and tail-lights, rain-sensing wipers, a small rear spoiler and roof rails.Inside, the XUV3XO is likely to carry synthetic leather upholstery, twin 10.25-inch displays for the central multimedia display and digital driver’s display, keyless entry and push-button start.Safety features include six airbags, a surround-view camera, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), forward collision warning, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control, and lane departure warning.The Mahindra XUV3XO is a facelifted version of the XUV300, which was never offered in Australia.It’s built on the same platform as the KGM Tivoli (formerly SsangYong Tivoli), which was sold in Australia from 2018 to 2020, when stock of the then-current model dried up.

Mahindra will unveil its all-new XUV3XO compact SUV at the Melbourne Motor Show this weekend, along with a seven-seat version of its Scorpio four-wheel drive.At approximately 3990mm long, 1821mm wide and 1647mm tall, the XUV3XO is considerably smaller than its larger sibling, the Haval H6- and Chery Tiggo 7 Pro-rivalling XUV700.The XUV3XO will instead act as a rival to the Hyundai Venue and Kia Stonic, with pricing expected to start around $25,000, before on-road costs, where both of its competitors also reside.In return, expect three potential powertrain options consisting of two engines and three differing outputs, as is the case on its home market India.That includes two 1.2-litre turbo-petrol engine configurations capable of 82kW/200Nm or 96kW/260Nm, as well as a class-leading 1.5-litre turbo-diesel that delivers 85kW/300Nm.Both petrol and diesel variants are offered with the choice of an automatic or manual transmission, with a two-wheel-drive setup coming standard.Exterior features are likely to include single-tone and dual-tone paint, alloy wheels, LED headlights and tail-lights, rain-sensing wipers, a small rear spoiler and roof rails.Inside, the XUV3XO is likely to carry synthetic leather upholstery, twin 10.25-inch displays for the central multimedia display and digital driver’s display, keyless entry and push-button start.Safety features include six airbags, a surround-view camera, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), forward collision warning, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control and lane-departure warning.Mahindra hasn’t yet confirmed when it will launch the XUV3XO, though it is likely to arrive at some point in the second half of the year.No additional upgrades have been made to the Scorpio aside from the additional option of a seven-seat configuration, which bumps the price to $46,990, drive-away, for the Z8L, up $5000 from the six-seat Z8.Despite the price rise it still matches the GWM Tank 300, which is only available in five-seat configurations, on entry price. Additionally, it is $1410 less than the cheapest seven-seat Isuzu MU-X variant – the LS-M – which comes in two-wheel drive guise as standard.

Mahindra’s key mid-size seven-seat SUV has scored a slew of upgrades as part of a mild refresh for 2025.

Mahindra’s cut-price off-roader, the Scorpio, will miss the March 1, 2025 cut-off of for being imported to Australia without autonomous emergency braking (AEB).

What could be Mahindra’s most important new product has been spied.

Retro car design is having a moment. Again.Massive around the turn of the millennium, few endure today from back then (namely BMW’s Mini and the Fiat 500), as most (including the Volkswagen New Beetle, Chrysler PT Cruiser and Toyota FJ Cruiser) enjoyed only fleeting success at best, before fading away.Today, we’re lucky enough to experience the overtly nostalgic Nissan Z and Ineos Grenadier, but there are others that we may never see.Here, then, is a list of desirable retro vehicles available overseas that could make it big in Australia if given a chance.Blocked from sale in Australia by Jeep owner Stellantis, the Thar is a descendent of the original Willys Jeep, dating back to 1947 when Mahindra started manufacturing it under licence.While the styling leans heavily into that ancestry, the current iteration, launched as a two-door hardtop in India in 2020, is a stylish body-on-frame recreational vehicle, offering four-cylinder turbo petrol or turbodiesel choices, modern comfort/convenience features and serious 4x4 off-roader capabilities. Just like its American doppelganger.Based on the Scorpio 4WD’s underpinnings, the four-door Roxx wagon offshoot, meanwhile, only debuted in July last year, and is considerably more practical, as well as civilised.Both versions would undercut their Wrangler OG cousin by tens of thousands of dollars, underscoring Stellantis’ desire to keep Mahindra’s ‘jeep’ out of Australia.We understand that an evolved version of today’s U725-series Bronco that broke loose in North America in 2021 is set for an Australian debut sometime in the future. The question is when.Ford’s global CEO, Jim Farley, recently confirmed right-hand-drive production for the T6 Ranger/Everest-based off-roader, which is a handsome and well-proportioned reimagining of the crisp 1966 original.Fun fact: the nameplate managed to evade Australia until the F-150-based Bronco III was actually assembled here in the 1980s, using Falcon engines.With China a nearby sourcing opportunity thanks to partner Jiangling Ford Auto, Ford locally would have a serious weapon against the coming, formidable BYD Denza B5 and much-rumoured Toyota LandCruiser FJ-style 4WD wagon.Bring the Bronco on.You might be surprised to learn that, like the earlier Bronco, the world’s first mass-produced hatchback, the original Renault 4 (1961-1994), was also built in Australia for a brief period.It was ultimately too kooky and utilitarian for our tastes back in the 1960s, but the eight-million-selling French front-drive family car germinated the seed for what we know as the modern small SUV today.The reinvented R4 for 2025 retains its beloved namesake’s upright stance, friendly face, chunky detailing, slanting rear doors and interior versatility, but with modern SUV proportions clothing an advanced all-electric architecture shared with the closely-related (but more diminutive) R5 E-Tech expected in Australia at some point.That the latter nabbed the most recent European Car of the Year gong bodes well for the 21 Century R4.Despite a long production run that saw it topple the Ford Mustang in the US at one point, the 2008-2023 Dodge Challenger never made it to Australia due to being left-hand-drive only.A pity, but some consolation could come in the unlikely event of specialist Japanese manufacturer Mitsuoka breaking completely from tradition by exporting one of its magnificent creations, the M55.No, not a motorway, but a current-gen Honda Civic with a Challenger nose and a Datsun C110/240K-esque posterior. Preposterous… or the automotive lovechild you never knew you pined for?Unconvinced? Then keep in mind that today’s Civic remains one of our favourite small cars on the planet, period, so at least the M55 would drive brilliantly. Especially as it uses a turbo/manual powertrain combination.The strange and wonderful wizards at Mitsuoka strike again with the Buddy, a current RAV4 topped and tailed by a ‘70s Chevrolet Blazer-inspired bodywork.Available in hybrid powertrains, the modifications meld uncannily well with the venerable Toyota SUV’s mid-section, especially when the retro wheel covers and period-evoking colour palette options are selected.Narrowly missing out being our bestselling vehicle outright in 2024, today’s fifth-gen RAV4 is popular enough to justify Mitsuoka importing the Buddy to Australia.

There’s been a lot of noise recently about the influx of Chinese car brands coming to Australia.There’s been less of a focus on India, largely because, for now, there are far fewer Indian automotive manufacturers, particularly ones that operate internationally.One brand has been quietly toiling away for nearly 18 years now, and it could be about to step into the limelight.Indian giant Mahindra landed in Australia in 2007 through a private distributor before shifting to a factory-backed operation in 2011. In that time it has offered utilitarian models like the PikUp and Genio utes, and while you’d be hard pressed to find too many of them on city streets, there are plenty in rural and remote areas of Australia.Following the forgettable XUV500 family SUV that was discontinued in 2022, Mahindra shifted up a gear in 2023 with the arrival of the off-road focussed Scorpio SUV, followed by the more refined XUV700 medium SUV.The Scorpio was hampered by its shocking zero-star ANCAP crash safety rating, but has remained popular with off-roading enthusiasts.The XUV700 on the other hand has helped boost the profile of Mahindra in Australia. It is a genuinely solid budget-focussed offering in the competitive medium-SUV segment.Unfortunately Mahindra does not report its sales data through the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) and the company was not forthcoming with its latest sales figures.However, anecdotally, there are a lot of XUV700s on the roads, and you'll spot a few Scorpios and PikUps as well.It’s unlikely that Mahindra’s Australian sales would be anywhere near Chinese rivals like Chery or GWM, or even Korean rival SsangYong, but you can expect to see a lot more Mahindra badges in the supermarket carpark in the coming year.Mahindra is keeping mum on its plans for 2025, but there are two models that should hit Australian shores by the year’s end.The first new arrival is expected to be the smallest model in its line-up - the 3XO SUV. This model is a small crossover that will give Mahindra a competitor in the fiercely competitive compact SUV segment for the first time.Powered in India by either a 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, or a 1.5-litre turbocharged diesel engine, the 3XO is likely to face competition from light SUVs including the Mazda CX-3, Hyundai Venue and Kia Stonic.Once again, Mahindra is yet to officially confirm this model, but it is almost a certainty for Australia.The other possibility for 2025 (although it could push into 2026) is the replacement for the ageing PikUp ute. Previewed by the Global PikUp concept from 2023, the new ute will be underpinned by the same platform as the Scorpio and will be a much more modern workhorse than the old model.It is likely to be offered in single-cab and dual-cab bodystyles, and should come with a version of the 2.2-litre 129kW/400Nm turbocharged mHawk diesel unit used in the Scorpio. More engines are expected to be added down the track.This will give Mahindra a genuine alternative to the leaders in the pick-up segment, including the Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max/Mazda BT-50, as well as Chinese rivals such as the GWM Cannon, JAC T9 and LDV T60.Mahindra could also be on the cusp of entering EV territory, with its recently revealed BE 6e and XEV 9e models in line for an Australian debut. The company’s local arm told CarsGuide in November: "Mahindra plans a phased, calibrated international rollout of the Electric Origin series, starting with right-hand drive (RHD) markets. We will make announcements of launch at the appropriate time."The other model that could finally make it Down Under is the Thar. The Jeep Wrangler lookalike has been blocked from sale in Australia by Jeep’s owner Stellantis given its similar design to the American off-roader.A five-door version of the Thar - dubbed the Thar Roxx - debuted in August last year riding on a new platform, but it’s unclear if it will ever make it to Australia.