Mahindra XUV500 vs Skoda Octavia

What's the difference?

VS
Mahindra XUV500
Mahindra XUV500

2018 price

Skoda Octavia
Skoda Octavia

$39,590 - $59,990

2025 price

Summary

2018 Mahindra XUV500
2025 Skoda Octavia
Safety Rating

Engine Type
Diesel Turbo 4, 2.2L

Turbo 4, 2.0L
Fuel Type
Diesel

Premium Unleaded Petrol
Fuel Efficiency
6.7L/100km (combined)

7.0L/100km (combined)
Seating
7

5
Dislikes
  • Underwhelming safety
  • Steering that requires plenty of guesswork
  • Cheap-feeling interior

  • Floaty ‘Comfort’ mode
  • Drinks premium unleaded
  • No 12V outlet in cabin
2018 Mahindra XUV500 Summary

Just in case attacking Australia's crowded SUV market with a virtually unheard of Indian brand wasn't a high enough hurdle to leap over, Mahindra had made its task even harder - think a Bollywood version of Mission Impossible - by launching its XUV500 SUV here with a diesel engine (which nobody wanted) and a manual gearbox (which few could even remember how to use). 

Fortunately, it fixed one of those issues late in 2016, finally adding an automatic transmission to the line-up. And now, at long last, it's fixed the other.

This, then, is the petrol-powered XUV500 SUV. And, on paper at least, it's the most sense-making Mahindra to date. 

For one, it's a ferociously cheap way into a new seven-seat SUV. For another, it's pretty well equipped, even from the base level. There's a long warranty, an equally long roadside assistance offering, and there's capped-price servicing, too. 

So, should the mainstream SUV players be looking over their shoulders?

Spoiler alert: no.

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2025 Skoda Octavia Summary

Where were you in the year 2000? Cowering in a dark corner, hoping the Y2K bug wouldn’t wipe out civilisation as we knew it? Or, confidently on the front foot, shopping for a new car to transport you and your family safely into the next millennium?

If it was the latter, the most popular options back then were hatchbacks, sedans and wagons. The Ford Falcon, Holden Commodore, Mitsubishi Magna and Toyota Camry were at the height of their powers and the term ‘SUV’ was largely confined to North America, describing off-road outliers like Jeeps and Range Rovers.

Brands from Mazda to Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot, Volvo and heaps of others all offered family-friendly wagons alongside their sedan counterparts.

Fast forward a quarter of a century and we’re in a world of SUVs and utes, with the traditional ‘station wagon’ almost consigned to history. But Skoda is keeping the wagon dream alive with its mid-size Octavia sedan (liftback) and wagon.

And the subject of this review is the just-arrived, 2025 model year iteration of the flagship Octavia RS, designed to combine functional pragmatism with smile-inducing performance. Let’s check it out.

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Deep dive comparison

2018 Mahindra XUV500 2025 Skoda Octavia

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