Indian SUV-maker Mahindra and Mahindra launched its first electric SUV, the XUV400, for a starting price of Rs 15.99 lakh, ex-showroom. Just two days have passed since then, and the SUV’s top rival the Tata Nexon sees a price drop of nearly Rs 85,000 depending on the variant.
The new prices for the Nexon EV come with absolutely no changes to the equipment list. However, Tata has also added a new XM trim to the Max lineup of Nexon EVs. The base variant of the Nexon EV, the Prime XM which was priced at Rs 14.99 lakh now costs Rs 50,000 less at Rs 14.49 lakh. The added benefit of the Nexon EV is the sheer number of variants available, all of which have seen price cuts at a minimum of Rs 31,000. The top-spec variant, the Max XZ+ Lux is now priced at Rs 18.99 lakh, Rs 85,000 less than its original price. The new entry-level trim in the Max lineup starts at Rs 16.49 lakh. An entry into the Max lineup previously meant a starting price of Rs 18.34 lakh.
The base variant starting at Rs 15.99 lakh and powered by a 34.5 kWh pack gets two charger options and a range of 375 km in total. The top-spec XUV400 EL on the other hand is powered by a 39.4 kWh battery and a single 7.2 kW charger option, is priced at Rs 18.99 lakh and gets a total range of 456 km.
Tata Motors has also added range to the Nexon EV Max. Thanks to a software update to the SUV, the range for the Nexon EV Max stands at 453 km, (un)surprisingly close to the Mahindra XUV400 claimed range. For context, the EV Max’s maximum range was initially 437 km. There are no physical upgrades to the battery pack, so existing owners of the Max will also be able to benefit from the updated software. The EV Prime, however, receives no new updates.
According to Tata, prices have been reduced to reflect the government’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme. This scheme incentivises the manufacture of electric vehicles within the country. This could also be seen as a strategic move to further undercut the XUV400’s prices at the entry level while bringing the top end down to match. So far, Tata Motors has been dominating the compact SUV EV space unrivalled. The entry of the Mahindra XUV400 will shake things up for certain, but the real competition to watch for will be in sales of the top-spec variants of either car.
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