The much-awaited Mahindra ‘Born Electric’ vehicles are finally revealed on the 75th Independence Day of India. The company announced that the five upcoming electric vehicles will be sold under two brands – the XUV and the BE. All five are designed in Mahindra’s design HQ in the UK and could be sold globally.
All five electric SUVs will be built on the just-revealed INGLO (Indian Global) platform, created in association with Volkswagen! The MEB (Modular Electric Drive Matrix Battery) platform of Volkswagen is the base from which the INGLO platform is created. This is a skateboard platform, as is common for electric cars built from the ground-up. It was announced that the platform will use Blade and Prismatic electric batteries, will offer fast charging, 60-80 KWH battery capacities depending on the model and sub six second acceleration times.
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As far as drivetrains go, there will be both rear wheel and all wheel drive options, and power will range from 228 BHP to 282 BHP for the single motor variants, and 335 BHP to 389 BHP for the all wheel drive variants. As these are early days, these figures might be subject to change as the vehicle development progresses, however.
Two electric vehicles to be built under the XUV sub-brand name will be called the XUV.e8 and XUV.e9.
The all-new sub-brand, BE, will have three vehicles under it – the BE.05, BE.07 and the BE.09. BE here stands for Born Electric.
Mahindra said that the BE.05 and the BE.09 will be SUVs. The third under the BE brand, the BE.07, will be a three row vehicle with SUV design elements.
Authentic yet futuristic, the XUV range are iconic brands taken to a whole new level. For those who have the passion to live life beyond boundaries while making a difference. #BornElectricVision #mahindra @Mahindra_Auto pic.twitter.com/tAD9AyzOMx
— Mahindra Born Electric (@born_electric) August 15, 2022
Which will be launched first?
The first out the factory will be the XUV.e8 in December 2024. Now that might be disappointing news to most of us, but all-new electric car development can be a very complicated thing when done right. The second will the XUV.e9 which will make its appearance only in April 2025.
The XUV.e8 though looks almost like the XUV700 itself but with electric car design elements. See a video featuring the car below.
The BE electric cars will take even longer, so will see them only towards the fag-end of 2025 and early 2026.
Bold, evocative, exhilarating, and intuitive – BE will push the boundaries of expectation. For those who want to define their life’s journey and be who they want to be. #BornElectricVision Know more: https://t.co/mMLOj5msA1 pic.twitter.com/smwPqExNXL
— Mahindra Born Electric (@born_electric) August 15, 2022
The XUV.e8 will be inspired by the design of the super-popular Mahindra XUV700. Mahindra has said that the dimensions of the vehicle will be as follows: Length 4740mm, width 1900mm, height 2762 mm. The e8 will also get an all-wheel drive option.
The second vehicle, the XUV.e9 will have a coupe-like design and will be even longer with 4790mm length, 1905mm width and 1690mm height. Those of you who remember the Aero concept at the 2016 Auto Expo will find the look familiar! The same AWD option would be available here too as with the e8.
The BE brand and its more dramatic designs
While the earlier two will have the familiar Mahindra and the XUV design language, here the company departs from that. Looking at the photos, there is little that we can call signature Mahindra design elements.
The BE.05 has a dramatic and bold design, and Mahindra says it will be a sports electric vehicle. The dimensions are 4370mm length, 1900mm width and it will be 1635mm tall. Wheelbase will be 2775mm. The BE.05 will come in the market only in 2025 though – and if we go by the history of car launches in India, dates announced so far in the future are not really final – and there might even be further delays. We sure hope not, though.
The BE.07 has dimensions as follows. Length 4565mm, width 1900 and height 1660 mm. Wheelbase will be 2775 mm. The marketing-speak along with the reveal said this – “Designed to offer a first-class experience, with versatility, configurable profiles and curated multi-sensory experiences.” While that might sound confusing, we think this might mean an electric SUV with cutting edge features of its time. So all current much in demand features plus a bunch of unknowns. We are fine with that!
No information on the BE.09 is available at the moment. Mahindra leaves us hanging with this – “A head turning SUV grand tourer with a chiselled design, dynamic roof and solid stance. Allowing four passengers a first-class experience.” This, we guess, is very much on the drawing boards in reality as its introduction is too far into the future.
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