Mahindra unveils their Mahinda Global Pik Up Concept
Cape Town, South Africa: Mahindra hosted us with international dignitaries and media at the “Futurescape” event in the beautiful Lourensford Wine Estate. The Futurescape was an Auto and Farm show, where Mahindra was sharing its vision to go global. The event was significantly hosted on the 15th of August 2023, India’s Independence Day. The Farm show was limited to the Agricultural stakeholders, where Mahindra showcased its latest product offerings for the farming market.
The Auto show of the Futurescape event allowed Mahindra to share its global market share, where they revealed that India (where Mahindra is from) is now the 3rd largest Automotive market in the world. Mahindra also announced its good revenue market share in the SUV as well as the Light Commercial Vehicle segments.
Mahindra also shared its “Global Ready Products” as part of the vision, which includes global “best in segment” powertrains, safest SUVs for the masses, head-turning designs and class-leading technologies from their global Automotive manufacturing/assembly plants. The vision for Mahindra is to expand into potential new markets like the UK and Europe.
Mahindra treated us to a special reveal of the production version of the rugged-looking new Global Pik Up concept, which is set to conquer every terrain.
Quick facts:
- Next-generation diesel engine from Mahindra
- Raised suspension; all-terrain tyres; side steps; snorkel; roof rack
- Modern LED taillights
- A 4WD system with four selectable drive modes (Normal, Grass-Gravel-Snow, Mud-Rut, Sand)
The potential markets of scale for the new Global Pik Up are ASEAN, Australia, India, South Africa, and South and Central America.
The show stopper of this event was the reveal of the new Mahindra THAR.e concept electric SUV, which embodies Mahindra’s electric vision and the new era of mobility.
Quick facts:
- High-energy density battery. Lithium Ferrous Phosphate (LFP)
- New Inglo modular SUV platform
- Seamless edge-to-edge display
- Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS)
Dolby Atmos with 10-speaker Harman Kardon sound system
New identity
Mahindra is ready to compete in the electric vehicle space and that has brought in some new and exciting innovations. This includes the new Mahindra Electric SUVs badge and the Inglo modular platform, which sees the brand going into partnership with Volkswagen and Valeo (French global Automotive Supplier).
BE EV SUV
The cherry on top at the Futurescape event was the live view of the new Mahindra BE.05 electric SUV concept. Unfortunately, no one was allowed to capture this model (all our phones were temporarily confiscated) as it is still under development
Conclusion:
The international launch and reveal of Mahindra’s latest technological developments and mobility solutions in South Africa is an assuring statement of the importance of the South African market for the brand. South Africa also serves as a gateway for the rest of Africa and other markets. Although specific dates were not communicated yet about the launch of some of these products in the local market, it is sure going to get very exciting in the Automotive space for Mahindra.
The current line-up of SUVs and bakkies (XUV, Scorpio...etc.) have made Mahindra to be the fastest-growing brand in South Africa according to the Naamsa 2022 stats.
