India is coming
Indian auto giant Mahindra is launching a new all-electric sub-brand with which it aims to conquer the world: BE. The starting signal for BE is given with the three electric SUVs, the 05, 07 and 09. There will also be a second sub-brand that uses the same technology, but with a slightly more traditional look: XUV.
The Chinese are already scoring high in the EV field, but that other immense Asian country will soon be heard too; from India, Mahindra is competing with sub-brands BE and XUV. The brand new BE gets the most attention and is launched with three study models. All three are SUVs, with the somewhat uninspiring ‘names’ 05, 07 and 09. The numbers indicate how high the production versions will rank in the market.
The 4.37 m long BE.05 is a sporty design SUV with a sloping roofline, the 4.56 m long BE.07 is a more minimalistically designed SUV with more traditional proportions. Finally, there is the BE.09, again an SUV with a sloping roofline, but a lot sturdier than the BE.05. The BE.09 also has a somewhat more traditional front than the BE.05, just like the BE.07. To put it bluntly, the BE.07 and BE.09 seem to be different interpretations of basically the same model, where the BE.05 is clearly a slightly different design and somewhat smaller brother. The length of the wheelbase is the same at just over 2.77 m.
We also see clear differences in the interior images of the trio. The BE.05 has a modern designed interior, in which the instruments and infotainment are housed in one medium-sized screen. We say ‘medium’, because with the bigger brothers we see a really huge screen that takes up almost the entire dashboard. Not everything can be operated on the screen, because in the center tunnel you will also find a battery of buttons for, among other things, the direction of travel, driving modes and the various menus on the large screen.
There will be both rear and four-wheel drive versions of the various BE models. The rear-wheel drive versions are 231 hp to 286 hp strong, the four-wheel drive versions have an output of 341 hp to 395 hp. With the latter you should be able to jump from 0 to 100 km/h in about 5 to 6 seconds, depending on which model you have. Battery packs with a capacity of between 60 and 80 kWh will be available, which can be recharged with 175 kW charging capacity. Expected ranges and other technical details keep Mahindra behind for a while. It does report that the trio is on the new INGLO platform. A skateboarding platform for EVs.
The production version of the BE.05 will be launched in October 2025, the BE.07 will follow a year later. It is not yet known when the BE.09 will be released. Mahindra wants to become active worldwide with BE.
XUV
Anyone who prefers to use this technique in a slightly more traditional jacket earlier can also knock on Mahindra’s door for a model from another new sub-brand. That brand listens to the name XUV and we immediately get to see two study models. The XUV.E8 and XUV.E9 (from photo 12). With their respectively 4.74 m and 4.79 m length, they are a bit bigger than the BE models. The E8 is a relatively traditional full-size SUV, the E9 a sportier alternative. The XUV.E8 will be launched in December 2024, followed by the XUV.E9 in April 2025. Whether and when the BE and XUV models will come to Europe is not yet known.
The XUV.E9 (left) and the XUV.E8
.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl