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| The plucky Thar has inspired a cult following of bundu bashers. |
As a transporter, I have long been a fan of the Mahindra
Scorpio for being a bakkie that gives the most Newtons for the lowest price in
SA.
There is, however, a lot more to this Indian vehicle builder
than strong, cheap bakkies.
Mahindra is the world’s best-selling tractor brand; it has
been competing – and winning – in the Formula Electric Grand Prix as well as
the Motor3 motorbike races; it launched the first 125 cc diesel scooter for
India; and in the San Francisco., it has developed an electric moped for the
student
market.
market.
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| The GenZe is aimed at Generation Zee, who scoff at owning cars. |
Race-tested
All Mahindra’s vehicles, from its the big tractors to its tiny
moped, form part of the Indian dynasty’s
vision to chase “a clean and green future”.
Like all car builders, Mahindra proves its models on the
race track.
In the Formula E, Mahindra Racing is one of ten teams – and
the only Indian team – to compete in the FIA Formula E Championship. The team
is currently in third place, behind Renault in first , followed by Audi in
second.
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| Mahindra is third, behind Renault and Audi, in the Formula E. |
Mahindra was the first – and so far only – Indian team to
participate in the FIM MotoG World Motorcycle Racing Championship Series since
2011, where South Africa’s world champions Moto3 rider, Brad Binder, got his
first break on a Mahindra bike.
The company also competes in the rough, where it’s Thar has
a cult following of hard-core 4x4 enthusiast who go bundu and desert bashing in
these Jeep-lookalikes, and on farms, it is well known for not just selling
tractors, but enabling farmers with services that range from exporting produce
to finance.
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| The Bolero, as used by real artisans. |
Artisans swear by the Mahindra bakkies.
We stopped a few of these Mahindra workhorse owners to ask why
they seem so happy, and the short answer is “excellent value for money”.
Paul Parsons, who services and repairs garage doors, gates
and fences all over KZN, told me, “for their price, these Indian-built workhorses
are stunning”.
The entry-level Bolero Scorpio with a dropside load bin with
its 2,5 NEF TCI turbo diesel engine has a recommended
retail price of just under R164,500, which means a new one will cost R144 733
after the VAT has been claimed back.
New, the long-proven engine makes 74 kW at 3 800 rpm and
238 Newtons from 1 800 rpm. On India’s slow roads, the Bolero pickup is built
to carry 1 250 kg but in SA it is licensed to load 1 025 kg.
Parsons admitted the power can be more for the 1 025 kg
payload, which he often uses to the maximum, but when empty, his Bolero drives
in the fast lane.
“It is simply my best workhorse bakkie ever, and I’ve had
them all,” he said.
He is now onto his third Bolero and his current one has
250 000 on the odo. “I’ve replaced the clutch for five and half, done the
brakes and a silicone house which cost about R300.”
Electrical contractor Quintin Hodge, who operates Elecquick
in Msunduzi, had fitted a canopy and a roof rack to his nine-year-old Bolero,
which still has the same Peugeot engine with its after market turbo fitted to
it for South African buyers. He said he only operates in Msunduzi and would
have liked a little more “oomph” up the steeper hills going to Howick, but he
has made peace with the mulish pace from his workhorse.
Hodge said the only problems in his Bolero after almost a
decade of hard use are door handles that don’t handle, a broken brake cable a
while back and broken water pump about six months ago.
His secret for such longevity from an intercooled-turbo
known for melting the aluminium heads?
“I go out each morning, reach through the window to start
it, then go back in and have a cuppa while the engine warms up for a few
minutes. You can’t just start and rev an old diesel the way some okes do.”
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| Mahindra's farm services go well beyond supplying tractors. |
Unsung hero of a little car
In South Africa, the cheapest Mahindra is the KUV100, an
unsung hero of a little car designed for families with tight budgets on rough
roads. Selling for under R150k, the
KUV100’s 2-litre engine delivers its 115 Nm of torque at a low of 3500 to 3600
rpm, making it a very easy drive in city traffic or over slow dirt roads, where
its 170 mm ground clearance makes short work of stones and holes.
Its interior is as hard and plasticky as one can expect in this
price range, but the standard air conditioning is designed to cool even India’s
hot humid weather, and its 3 Year / 100,000 km warrantee and three year
of 50k service plan are as good as that of, say, Toyota.
The design lines of all Mahindra’s dare to be different,
imitating the crouch of a leopard about to pounce, down to the lights that
resemble the tear ducts of the spotted cat.
These lines look radical on the big XUV 500, an SUV that
adds to the local value for money reputation started by the Scorpio.
Mahindra&Mahindra has been active in South Africa’s
automotive market for 12 years, and it quietly sells around 4000 bakkies and
sports utility vehicles a year to drivers who know a value for money when they
see it.
(First published in the Maritzburg Fever.)
