How does the new Mahindra Scorpio N fare against all of its accepted rivals?

Mahindra & Mahindra’s latest SUV, the Scorpio N, is one of a kind, mainly thanks to its architecture. Launched at a starting price of Rs 11.99 lakh, the Scorpio N is built on a ladder-frame architecture. Considering most SUVs in its class are built on a monocoque frame, the Scorpio has no direct rivals. But that’s not really what we look at when we are looking for a new car to take home. So in this article, we are going to compare the Scorpio N to what most would consider its rivals: the Hyundai Alcazar, the Tata Harrier and Safari, the MG Hector and the Hector Plus, as well as Mahindra’s own XUV700, because, why not?

Dimensions

There’s no point here in talking about the design of each of the SUVs. As you all know, they are all built like tanks, with fairly muscular looks that showcase a go-anywhere attitude.

However, each of them also have their own signature styling that will appeal to each person differently. What we can compare, however, is the dimensions of each of these cars. Right off the bat, the Scorpio is the widest and tallest SUV on the list. Against the new SUV’s 1,917 mm width and 1,857 mm height, the Tata Safari is the closest to the Scorpio N, measuring 1,894 mm and 1,786 mm in width and height, respectively. For the most part, the Scorpio’s length is about on a par with the rest of the list, measuring 4,662 mm. The longest SUV here is the MG Hector Plus with a length of 4,720 mm. Wheelbase, too, is nothing to sneeze at, coming in at 2,750 mm with the longest wheelbase of 2,760 mm belonging to the Hyundai Alcazar.

Powertrain

The new Scorpio gets both a petrol and a diesel engines to choose from and like in the XUV700, the Scorpio N’s diesel has two tune options. Starting with the petrol version, the Scorpio N’s 2-litre turbo unit is capable of 203 PS maximum power and 370 Nm of peak torque. This makes it the most powerful engine here, edging out the XUV700 which churns out 200 PS of power and a higher 380 Nm of peak torque. The Alcazar and Hector and Hector Plus, on the other hand, are powered by a 2-litre naturally aspirated engine and a 1.5-litre turbo petrol with a mild hybrid option in the case of the MG cars. The Alcazar’s unit produces 159 PS and 191 Nm while MG’s motor produces 143 PS. The Tata SUVs, however, do not get a petrol option (a petrol Harrier is reportedly in the works).

Moving on to diesel, it goes without saying that the Scorpio N’s base tune diesel produces less than the higher-spec engine. Both are 2.2-litre turbo diesels, the same as the one doing duty in the XUV700. The base variant on the Scorpio produces 132 PS and 300 Nm whereas on the XUV700 this number is 155 PS and 360 Nm. The Scorpio’s higher variant, on the other hand, produces 175 PS of power and 370 Nm when paired with the manual transmission and 400 Nm with the automatic. The Hyundai Alcazar, however, has the smallest engine, a 1.5-litre turbo-diesel that produces 115 PS and 250 Nm. The Tata cars and the MG siblings have identical 2-litre turbos that produce identical output numbers at 170 PS and 350 Nm. The XUV700’s 2.2-litre turbo is the most powerful here, pumping out185 PS of maximum power and 420 Nm when paired with the manual transmission and 450 Nm when paired with the automatic.

Features

Thanks to manufacturers competing for the top spot all the time, every new launch brings new technologies and features. There are a number of common features between all of the SUVs on this list. Things such as keyless entry, driving modes, connected car tech, push button start/stop, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay can be found across the range. However, there are differences and some unique features that only one or two of these SUVs have. Take, for example, the infotainment system—the MG Hector and Hector Plus feature the largest 10.4-inch display compared to the Scorpio N’s smallest 8-inch unit. The Scorpio N also has just a single pane sunroof while the others have a panoramic roof.

What the Scorpio does boast, however, along with the XUV700 is a 12-speaker Sony 3D surround sound system and dual-zone climate control. While all of the SUVs get cruise control, the XUV700 is the only one with adaptive cruise control. In terms of safety, the SUV’s entry-level variants all get the usual amount of standard equipment such as airbags, ABS, rear parking sensors, etc., but again, the top variants are where the differences lie. The XUV700, for example, gets seven airbags compared to six in the others. The XUV700 also gets a full suite of active driver safety features such as lane keep assist and auto emergency braking thanks to its ADAS integration.

Price

Considering what the Scorpio N has been upgraded from, it is obvious that it will be the cheapest in this comparison. At a starting price of Rs 11.99 lakh, however, the Scorpio N brings a lot to the table including great off-road chops and all the features you would want to see in an urban SUV. For now, Mahindra has only released pricing on the Scorpio’s manual variants, capping the top trim at Rs 19.49 lakh. Prices for the automatic and 4WD variants will be announced on July 21 and this will likely raise the top-trim price. The costliest entry-level SUV is the Hyundai Alcazar at Rs 16.44 lakh. The Mahindra XUV700, on the other hand, has the costliest top-spec variant at Rs 24.58 lakh.