Mahindra - New great tow vehicle?

[Gerda, H]

Why oh why not here in the great US...

http://www.toyota.de/cars/new_cars/hilux/specs.aspx

A nice Toyota Hilux truck with the choice of two Diesel engines, each either with stick shift or automatic.... They CAN do it....

[Gerda, H]

BTW, 7.1L for 100km given for Hwy for the Hilux translates into 32.87 miles to the Gallon....

[Alan Rh]

A nice Toyota Hilux truck with the choice of two Diesel engines, each either with stick shift or automatic.... They CAN do it....

I was excited translating the German to English, and assuming that "out of town" means highway it gets 33 mpg. But it costs $38,000 for a base model four door 4x4 and 5 speed manual. The cheapest automatic, albeit with a larger engine, costs $47,980, and going up much higher for a deluxe model. I am sure they would cost less in the US due to lower transportation costs and no VAT, so I am purely guessing at reducing the price by 15% in the US.

[Raya]

I just went to read the review linked to above, and from the outside it does remind me of my first Toyota pickup (HiLux). Good times

I was really sorry to read that they are not going to offer the manual transmission here. Okay, an automatic for those who want it, but.... no manual at all?

For now I also think the fit/finish interior issues would keep me away. Now granted, the HiLux was not a "luxury" truck, and much of the interior was the more old-fashioned painted metal, but... it fit together. When they moved to a more car-like interior, again it fit together nicely.

But maybe this truck will improve, and maybe it will spur other makers to compete.

Raya

[Raya]

Why oh why not here in the great US...

http://www.toyota.de/cars/new_cars/hilux/specs.aspx

A nice Toyota Hilux truck with the choice of two Diesel engines, each either with stick shift or automatic.... They CAN do it....

Oh, Gerda, I just noticed this. "Why not" indeed! Why can't we get the cool stuff?

[Gerda, H]

Alan, cars in general are more expensive in Germany! Alone due to a high sales tax of 19% (or is it even more now, I don't know).

Raya, Toyota offers all sorts of really cool cars and trucks over there!! Also really cute little Diesel cars, very economic ones. I must admit, I also really like the Ford F-150 trucks, but once again, why not DIESEL?? Arrrrgh...

I read somewhere in the forums about the Mahindra a funny post: It is not wanted because it has not 8000 horse power and because it goes further than 8 miles to the gallon....

[Alan Rh]

Alan, cars in general are more expensive in Germany! Alone due to a high sales tax of 19% (or is it even more now, I don't know).

Very good. I should have looked before posting. Probably closer to 25% lower here in the US.

BTW - Patience with the F150. They are coming out with a 4.4 liter diesel. Considering past history, I am not optimistic they will favor gas mileage over pure power. But they might.

[Alf S.]

A person in another forum pointed out that way the bed sticks way out past the axles, the 4 door Mahindra would be terrible for pulling a fifth wheel. I asked if that would affect towing a trailer, but so far no answer. For me that makes the decision as to what model I get simple, but for some people I know that is a deal breaker.

Hi: Alan Rh... If I had to have just one vehicle and it had to be able to tow our 5th. wh.
I would choose a 4dr. pickup. With our shortbox GMC we have just enough clearance to turn 90* but only carry 3 pass. and one has to sit on the center console/armrest. With the fifth wh. hitch located over the rear axle, most ext. cab trucks don't have enough clearance to turn.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Andrew Gibbens]

Why oh why not here in the great US...

Yep, look at the Chrysler line-up in Britain - apart from a couple of high-end oddball models like the SRT-8, they only sell diesels - though to be fair these are European-made Chryslers from Austria:
Chrysler UK

The mpg figures (35mpg combined for the 300C) do need to be reduced by 20% for the bigger English gallon but in reality that can be ignored as Yurpeen driving is much more stop/start and less steady-state, so just read the mpg figures as if they were US ones.

Andrew

[Alan Rh]

I would choose a 4dr. pickup.

Hi Alf,

I guess I need to wait. I think the main thing is that I know I need to check things out before deciding. My S10 is a 2 door bench seat which was bad when my kids were young, but with one in college OK now. But I often wish I had something bigger.

And who knows, my wife may ultimately reject all of my finalists for an RV and decide she wants something else. That could change what vehicle I get.

[Joe Romas]

For those not aware of it Jeep offered a Liberty diesel in the US market in 2005 and 2006. It has a high tech 4 valves per cylinder 2.8L VM Itialian engine. They sold 14,00 US equiped models. I have gotten 20 MPG towing our 17' Casita Spirit Deluxe and average 24 mpg in the summer months on short trip city driving. But it was just an experment to see if Ladies who make up 80% of Liberty owners or drivers would buy them.

It is a very nice combination. A capable, not huge, SUV with a 5000# towing capicity that can get good mileage. Some owners report over 30 mpg highway.
The down side is chrysler! They used a robust automatic transmission but didn't do their homework (testing) and the torque converter is junk. Their answere was to reprogram the computers in them to reduce torque of the engine and changing the shift points to make the teansmission/torque converter last at least past the warranty period.

No wonder they are in such good shape.

They still produce Diesel powered Jeeps for non north American market with a even more powerfull engine and a power train to match.

Mahindra after WWII produced Jeeps under license form Willys. They are not new comers

Joe

[Joe Z]

Mahindra after WWII produced Jeeps under license form Willys. They are not new comers

Joe

I heard the same thing about the willy's a long time ago.... seems mahindra has the technology. Lets see where this goes and maybe the american companies will try to compete.
Joe

[GeorgeR]

This is a good site to see all diesels available in US for 2010. Small diesels are only available from VW/Audi and Mercedes. Dodge Sprinter is also Mercedes. I believe that EPA test for mpg is advantageous for Hybrids and disadvantageous or barely fair for diesels as real life data tends to show; Gas_Hybrid_Diesel_editorial. As an example EPA lists 1.9 or 2.0 VW/Audi TDI at 40-42 mpg on the highway and most folks report 45 to 50 mpg including myself. My record was set on the trip from Corvallis OR to San Francisco at 57 mpg driving at speed limits.

George.

[Raya]

For those not aware of it Jeep offered a Liberty diesel in the US market in 2005 and 2006... A capable, not huge, SUV with a 5000# towing capicity that can get good mileage.

One potential caveat on the Jeep Liberty: Chris and Cherie (who are members of this forum) towed their Oliver 16 with one for a couple of years, and were then faced with some frame failure (in the area of the hitch attachment, IIRC). They looked into having it fixed, but apparently the thought was that their load was just too much for the frame, and even if they had it repaired it would probably be an ongoing issue.

Now, I'm not sure what their all-up load is (they do full time), but many people would probably assume that they could tow a loaded-up 16-footer with a 5000# capacity. Perhaps they will chime in if they see this.

From what I've read they did really like the Jeep, aside from its just not being heavy duty enough to tow their Oliver 16 when loaded (over a period of time).

Raya

[Alf S.]

Hi: All... What concerns me about flooding the highways with more diesels is that the diesel particulate, the part that makes them belch black...is a known carcinogen!!! What will the ultimate cost of our quest for cheaper towability be??? More lung disease!!! I know VW had to re design their diesels and stop offering them for a while. I think about this when walking thru our bus garage at work with 10-20 busses running ready to be washed. Will I be able to enjoy my retirement dream of camping out in the fresh outdoors???
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Gerda, H]

Alf, the new diesels are far beyond the black cloud era. In modern diesel cars, black clouds are HISTORY!! I just came back from Germany, where most cars are diesels, and the sky is not black. You do not see a difference in the exhaust, and even barely smell a difference anymore. It is bluntly STUPID that those modern diesels are not offered here!

[Alan Rh]

Diesels emit far less CO2 than gasoline engines. For example:

http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/es034928d

[Scott S.]

I'm not in love with the looks of it. the power of a diesel interests me though. wondering how it would manage a Winnipeg Winter? maybe they should give me one to test for a few years just to work the bugs out?

[SherryNPaul]

I'm not in love with the looks of it. the power of a diesel interests me though. wondering how it would manage a Winnipeg Winter? maybe they should give me one to test for a few years just to work the bugs out?

Scott, if that works for you, I'd volunteer to test it one in Florida heat and humidity

[SherryNPaul]

Alf, the new diesels are far beyond the black cloud era. In modern diesel cars, black clouds are HISTORY!! I just came back from Germany, where most cars are diesels, and the sky is not black. You do not see a difference in the exhaust, and even barely smell a difference anymore. It is bluntly STUPID that those modern diesels are not offered here!

True, modern clean diesels are considered by many people to be as environmentally friendly as hybrids... without the additional battery recycling/disposal issue. My sister-in-law's VW diesel gets better mileage than rated, and you would not know it was a diesel unless you looked.
The real problem is, most people remember the belching diesels of decades ago, and are unfamiliar with the new diesel products. Ford's diesel Focus in Europe has a huge marketshare; if introduced here, I'm not sure many would choose to pay the premium, or even look at a diesel alternative, even with the huge savings in mpg.