Torque is the day


On 5th May 2012, journalists were given a rare chance of being able to drive the Mahindra XUV 500 on the Buddh International Circuit (BIC), Greater Noida. The event, known as “Torque Day” was organised as a follow-up to the two XUV 500s that won at the Dakhshin Dare 2012 rally.

After quickly wrapping up breakfast, there was a quick round of Do’s and Dont’s to be followed on the circuit while driving. As a co-driver, I got my second hand feel of the car and its handling, but still I wasn’t sure until I got my own hands on the steering wheel.










In the second round, I got the feel of the car myself, as there was no co driver. Appearing as a puma from the front, the W8 XUV looks set to gobble up the roads, and teach all the other cars a lesson or two. However, the gear shift probably may need a smoothening, and the unique feature here is that Reverse gear is enabled by moving the lever forward!

Once started, the XUV lurches forward with the slightest of acceleration.  Considering a 2-ton plus weight, the vehicle was quite nimble with its handling. 140 bhp of power @ 3750 rpm was quite mind boggling when on the circuit. A certain amount of body roll happens when cornering at high speeds (70 kmph), but that is well expected of a vehicle of that size.

The Mahindra In-Car entertainment system is quite good, but the only problem is that there are too many buttons on the dashboard to choose from.  It is possible that such a high degree of user-friendliness may not go so well with some Mahindra seekers. Another possible deterrent could be the placement of the handbrake. In most cars, one is used to the handbrake being directly behind the gear lever, but here it is placed sideways, so it takes some time to get used to.

The AWD (All Wheel Drive) comes into play on this car, when you are either off road, or trying to corner too fast. Primary power comes from the front wheels, but when it detects that the vehicle is slipping off road, the other two wheels automatically come into play, and prevent the car from going off turf.
Due to immense driving pleasure, it was hard to give back the car, but I felt as though one just couldn’t get enough of it. But all good things must come to an end, and so did this drive!


Recent News update: A phenomenal response to the bookings of the new XUV500 has once again been generated! The bookings were opened on 8th June 2012, and Mahindra has already met numbers in excess of 7200.

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