Mahindra XUV3XO News

I recently had a Mahindra XUV 3XO as a long-term test vehicle, and the primary take-away I had from it was more carmakers should just keep things simple. Australia is spoiled for cheap cars at the moment, whether it’s the popular Chery Tiggo 4, MG3 or BYD Atto 1, but with the rise of these new-age rivals from China has also come a collection of annoying trends. It doesn’t matter whether it is cost cutting disguised as minimalism, often resulting in touchscreen-dependence, or overbearing safety systems designed to ace maximum safety scores, either way it’s all a pretty terrible user experience. Increasingly you’re left without a choice if you’re on a tight budget, forcing you to choose between a car that has a long list of annoyances, or spending $5,000 - $10,000 more for something a bit more palatable from a more traditional automaker. This is also because once-favourites, which embraced simplicity (sometimes to a fault), such as the previous-generation Mitsubishi ASX and Suzuki Baleno have been forced into discontinuation. This is where the Mahindra XUV 3XO comes in. Having recently driven plenty of other newer and more technologically impressive vehicles as long-termers, including the Geely EX5 and Cupra Tavascan, I was expecting to find the Mahindra a bit of a relic as I surveyed its antiquated interior aesthetic, full of gloss plastics and comparatively modest screens. This modest light SUV, which costs $26,990 drive-away in the top-spec AX7L form I had, is based on an older platform dating back to when Mahindra owned Korean automaker SsangYong, and remains full of that brand’s switchgear and hardware. And yet, I took to this car instantly, and really enjoyed its no-nonsense approach the whole time I had it. The somewhat old-school look comes with a glorious array of buttons for everything. There is a dial for volume perched on the front of the multimedia screen. The screen itself doesn’t interfere with the driving, by simply working and having basic, easy to understand menus. Apple Carplay connectivity is wireless, but no-nonsense, and the home screen has a big shortcut button for it, so you can’t get lost or stuck jabbing at a tiny shortcut on a huge screen. The digital dash is simply laid out, shows logical information, and even sticks to a familiar and functional two-dial layout theme.   It’s hardly the screens I’ve experienced in new age rival cars. Whether it’s the confusing sub-menus of Cherys, the digital instrument cluster looking like accounting software in MGs, or the home screen being laid out like a laptop in the Geely EX5, which all make it less functional when you’re on the move. If you’ve driven any new-age car you would have been annoyed half to death by a litany of poorly calibrated systems. Euro automakers calibrate their vehicles the best, having had to deal with the no-mercy approach of EuroNCAP for decades. Volkswagen Group cars, Mercedes and BMW are all stellar examples of largely well sorted active safety kit, but you’ll pay for the pleasure. Brands from China seem to aim for maximum safety score over user experience, with an array of deal-breaking annoying bings and bongs, overbearing lane keep assist systems and frustrating driver-monitoring tech. Most reviews for these cars involve a long list of caveats and instructions for how to turn said systems off. They are getting better. Many Chinese brands now have software shortcuts to make this infuriating process a bit more user friendly, but a system turned off is one the car may as well not have. Our affordable Mahindra again, just works. It has lane keep assist, auto braking, adaptive cruise control and a blind spot camera in place of the usual blind spot monitor system. I doubt this car would perform well to today’s ANCAP testing procedure. Its version of these driver aids are old and it doesn’t have the latest in driver monitoring tech. Then again, I didn’t once feel the need to dig through a complicated sub-menu in the touchscreen to turn anything off. 2026 Mahindra 3XO is mechanically simple, too The simplicity even extends to the drivetrain. The six-speed torque converter auto just works. There is no droney CVT automatic, which ruins the drive experience, or glitchy dual-clutch automatic that is terrible to use in stop-start traffic. The little turbo engine is passable, albeit a bit thirsty. The Mahindra XUV 3XO really is part of a dying breed of straightforward no-nonsense cars. It has its own issues, which you can read more about in my long-term chapters of this car. In terms of a checklist for things I actually want in a cheap combustion car in 2026, it's one of a surprisingly tiny number of cars that actually ticks most of them.

Mahindra has historically never publicly shared information regarding its Australian new vehicle sales figures, but it has given us a glimpse of how it fared during 2025. Last year the Indian carmaking giant sold a total of 4653 new vehicles, which is up 11.6 per cent year-on-year. This makes Mahindra the 29th best-selling brand in Australia, outselling Renault (4569 sales), KGM (4116 sales), Cupra (2830 sales) and Jeep (1585 sales). The brand hasn’t provided a model-by-model breakdown of its sales, but it now offers a total of three SUVs in Australia. Its latest edition was the XUV3XO small SUV, which launched in mid-2025. Mahindra claims its introduction increased overall sales by 42 per cent. The Mahindra XUV3XO is still tied for Australia’s cheapest SUV with the Chery Tiggo 4 and GWM Haval Jolion at $23,990 drive-away. Earlier in 2025 Mahindra launched a model year update for the Mitsubishi Outlander and Nissan X-Trail-rivalling XUV700, which saw it receive an all-black interior trim as standard, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and ventilated front seats with memory on the flagship AX7L trim. Thanks to run-out offers the XUV700 is now priced from $35,990 drive-away for the AX7 trim and $38,990 drive-away for the AX7L trim. This makes it Australia’s cheapest seven-seat SUV. Just before the end of 2025 the Indian carmaker detailed a major safety upgrade for its Scorpio large body-on-frame SUV. It now receives a range of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) functionality that are claimed to be “designed for Australian roads and conditions”.   These include autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control with stop and go, front vehicle start alert, lane departure warning, lane-keep assist, lane centring, traffic sign recognition, forward collision warning and automatic high-beam. The pre-update Scorpio went without all of the aforementioned safety features and notably received a zero-star ANCAP safety rating back in 2023 due in part to this. It’s unclear when or if Mahindra plans to retest this updated model. Other new features in the 2026 Mahindra Scorpio Z8L+ include an electric park brake with auto hold, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, as well as ventilated front seats. A seven-seat configuration is now standard with the six-seat configuration featuring second-row captain’s chairs getting the axe. Despite these changes, pricing for the Scorpio for the new Z8L+ trim has only risen $2000 over the pre-update Z8L range-topper. It’s priced from $48,990 drive-away.

Mahindra has thrown the covers off the electric version of its ultra-affordable 3XO small SUV in its Indian home market.

The Mahindra XUV 700 may soon be history, with a revised – and renamed – version on the way sooner than you might expect. Ushering in fresh styling, a massive interior upgrade and a host of other modifications underneath, the newcomer will likely be badged the XUV7XO, adopting the company’s updated alphanumeric naming strategy first seen when the XUV 300 morphed into the XUV3X0 small SUV last year. Launch timing for Project W616 has yet to be confirmed, but overseas reports are predicting a debut sometime next year, which augers well for a release in Australia during 2027.

The Chery Tiggo 4 has been Australia’s cheapest SUV for a while now, but its crown has been snatched by an Indian-made rival. Mahindra has confirmed its new XUV 3XO starts from $23,490 drive-away for the entry-level AX5L thanks to an introductory pricing offer until August 31. This makes this Indian light SUV cheaper than the Chery Tiggo 4, Hyundai Venue, Kia Stonic and MG ZS, among others. The flagship XUV 3XO AX7L also starts from $26,490 drive-away thanks to that same introductory pricing offer until August 31. After this date, the drive-away pricing of the entire XUV3XO range goes up by $500. A full pricing table is at the bottom of this story. All variants are powered by a 1.2-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine that produces 82kW of power and 200Nm of torque. This is mated to an Aisin-sourced six-speed torque-converter automatic transmission with drive sent to the front wheels only. Claimed combined fuel consumption is 6.5L/100km, according to ADR testing, and there’s a 42L fuel tank that requires a minimum of 91 RON unleaded petrol, though 95 RON premium unleaded is recommended. Measuring in at 3990mm long, 1821mm wide and 1647mm tall with a 2600mm wheelbase, the XUV 3XO has a turning circle of 5.3 metres and a kerb weight of around 1400kg. Inside there’s 368L of boot space with the rear seats upright. All versions of the XUV 3XO also offer five seats as standard. Like other Mahindra models, the XUV 3XO is covered by a seven-year, 150,000km warranty with seven years of roadside assistance. There’s also seven years of capped-price servicing totalling $1994, or $284.85 per service. As standard the entry-level Mahindra XUV 3XO AX5L comes with 16-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels, 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, 10.25-inch touchscreen multimedia system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, six-speaker sound system, dual-zone climate control, electric park brake with auto-hold, keyless entry and push-button start, leather steering wheel and gear selector and black cloth upholstery. Moving up to the AX7L adds a black-painted contrast roof, 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels, LED front fog lights, panoramic glass sunroof, seven-speaker Harman Kardon sound system, 65W USB-C charger, cooled glovebox, black synthetic leather upholstery, and synthetic leather on dashboard and door trims. Standard safety equipment includes autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warning, lane-keep assist, lane centring, adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition, rear parking sensors and a reversing camera. Stepping up to the AX7L gets you a surround-view camera, blind-spot view camera, and front parking sensors. Available exterior colours include Everest White, Galaxy Grey, Tango Red and Stealth Black. The latter isn’t offered on the flagship AX7L trim and is instead replaced by Citrine Yellow.

Mahindra has modified its crash-testing procedures as well as safety specifications of all future models coming to Australia, to factor in regional requirements, essentially “doubling up” on the processes and expense.

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.