M&M to develop more sub-4 metre passenger vehicles

After a successful debut in the compact car segment with Verito Vibe, utility vehicle maker Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) is developing other smaller vehicles in the sub-4 metre range and on the lines of the Vibe, Pawan Goenka, President of Automotive and Farm Equipment Sectors at M&M told CNBC-TV18 Ronojoy Banerjee. Currently, the company is working on small petrol engines along with Ssangyong Motor Company, said Goenka.

The current slowdown in the automobile industry as a matter of concern. The company’s sports utility vehicles (SUVs) sales have seen a dip of 17 percent due to increase in the excise duty, he said. Also read: Transport minister approves draft quadricycle norms The Indian automobile industry saw a 6 percent jump in SUV sales with lower excise duty. Goenka saw the government’s approval of the pilot project on electric vehicles as a positive sign for M&M. The company is keen to make electric mobility practical in India for which the truck models; Geo and Maxximo were nearly ready in the electric versions, he said.  The transport ministry recently had approved draft norms for making quadricycles which were seen as positives for automobile companies like M&M and Bajaj Auto. Currently, the company does not have any product that qualifies as a quadricycle. No decision has been taken on it yet, he says. It will take about 2-3 years to have a quadricycle ready, he said.