Mahindra Quanto’s substantial changes

Mahindra’s answer to excise benefits received by a sub 4-metre vehicle came in the form of a Xylo, that was cut-short to make a compact SUV and given the name Quanto. The Mahindra Quanto never got off to any start to say the least and turned out to be a rather disappointing offering from the Nashik based manufacturer. Much was expected from the Quanto in the sense that it was highly anticipated, but it failed to strike the right cord among private car buyers as the Quanto carried many of Xylo’s characteristics with it. After it was launched in 2012, the Quanto is now due for a facelift much like the Ford EcoSport, which was launched later.

The Quanto facelift has been snapped up on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, sporting a completely camouflaged body and a hidden front. This shows that majority of the changes would be made to the front end of the vehicle. Talking about the changes seen on the test mule, the front seems to be more flat now, much like that of the EcoSport. DRLs seem to find their way over the headlamps and the front air dam also seems to have grown much larger. Thus, the compact SUV is expected to feature many changes on the front bumper, grille and may even sport a stylish new bonnet design.

The side and rear profile does not seem to feature many changes as noticed on this particular test mule, but the rear may get a few changes. The interiors also do not feature many changes and remains to be based on the same boring beige colour but Mahindra is expected to add more equipment and updated styling, which might get inspired from the new well received Scorpio. Mahindra will also perform major upgrades to the suspension set-up for better stability and ride quality, which is a big negative point in the Quanto at the moment.

In terms of powertrain, the Mahindra Quanto facelift will continue with the same 1.5-litre, 3-cylinder diesel engine tuned to produce 100 PS of power and 240 Nm of torque with power being sent to the rear wheels via a 5-speed manual gearbox. The fuel efficiency is currently rated at an ARAI certified 17.1 km/l, which could see a marginal improvement. The compact SUV will continue to be offered in the 5-seater configuration with two jump seats at the back and is expected to launch in the festive season this year.