A few days back we brought to you the first undisguised images of the Quanto, or what was commonly known as the Mini Xylo. Now Mahindra have released an official statement, affirming the ‘Quanto’ name and confirming a med-September launch.
The Quanto has been designed in house by M&M and is smartly packaged in sub-4 meter length on the Ingenio platform that it shares with the Xylo MUV. Derived from ‘Quantum’ the name Quanto has been chosen to exude a sense of power and space. M&M asserts that the Quanto will have all the traits of a tough Mahindra SUV, and will thus offer a distinctive advantage over hatchbacks and sedans. Mention of hatches makes us smack our lips, for the positioning of the vehicle may actually be as an alternative to hatchbacks, which means an extremely aggressive price tag. With Mahindra, we know its very possible.
Further cementing our views about aggressive pricing is Mahindra’s statement saying “The Quanto is a versatile SUV which combines the easy manoeuvrability and compactness of a hatchback with the rough-road capability and power of an SUV, suitable for weekend getaways, making it a ‘24×7’ car.” What those words essentially mean is that the Quanto is a go-anywhere machine for the masses – a positioning which would be bang on money in the Indian context.
The Quanto, according to the statement, has been developed after taking into account a lot of customer feedback and research at various stages of its development. At a sub-4 meter length, the Quanto will be the smallest SUV in Mahindra’s product portfolio.
Speaking on the Quanto, Dr Pawan Goenka, President, Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, “Customer centric Innovation has always been at the heart of any product development at the Mahindra Group. With theQuanto, Mahindra is aiming to fill a need gap in the Indian automotive market for a versatile and compact SUV. We are confident that with its unique value proposition, the Quanto will carve out a segment for itself in the market. The Quantowill cater to the needs of young urban India which enjoys an active lifestyle. We expect the Quanto to offer an exciting upgrade at a premium to customers who are otherwise looking for premium diesel hatchbacks or entry level diesel sedans”
Image source: team-bhp