Mahindra has big plans for the U321 MPV

Mahindra’s U321 MPV has been spotted road-testing on Indian roads. The car is all-new and is being developed by Mahindra's North American Technical Center. The U321 MPV will feature a monocoque body and will include a spacious three-row seating layout. This car will most probably be pit against the current segment leader, the Innova Crysta.

Mahindra’s share of the UV segment stood at 55.10 percent in 2011-12, and has now declined to 29.20 percent in FY'17 – that’s a year-on-year shrink of 8.7 percent. The company hopes that the U321 will help put it back on the growth track. The company announced, earlier this year, plans to invest Rs 1,500 crore at its Nashik and Igatpuri plants in Maharashtra to develop and manufacture the U321.

Pawan Goenka, managing director, Mahindra & Mahindra, said, "We have a two-point strategy. One is to focus on how to improve the product that we have on the ground today, bring attractiveness to the consumer and get some additional volumes. The second focus is on the upcoming products that would be launched during the year. We have one major product launch in 2017 and that is the U321. We expect it to become a high-volume driver and add to our numbers that we are doing today. Success finally comes down to the right product, brought at the right price and its positioning, and that's what we will work on. We are pretty confident we should see a turnaround in our market share this year."

Mahindra has its work cut out for – it is taking up the fight against a strong rival, Toyota’s Innova Crysta. This new MPV will be the company’s most significant launch this year and will feature the all-new, 1.6-litre mFalcon diesel engine, which will also power a slew of other future vehicles manufactured by the company.