Mahindra Xylo a sales success in Jan 2009

Utility vehicles major Mahindra and Mahindra is a reasonably good beginning to 2009 thanks to its recently launched Xylo MUV selling a whopping 1788 vehicles in a matter of just two weeks.

According to Mahindra, even as it sold 1788 units of Xylo in two weeks, as many as 4000 customers have booked the vehicles. Mahindra Xylo launch has been received with great enthusiasm, with dealerships across the country getting crowded with prospective buyers.

On our site, we have also seen some of the highest traffic levels during the launch of the Mahindra Xylo. Other automobile sites report the same thing. Mahindra’s value proposition always has its takers, despite guys like us complaining about the vehicle’s aesthetics. Priced lower than the market leader, the Toyota Innova, the Xylo nevertheless is a great performer on the road, and offers copious amounts of space that should make it a favorite for large families as well as the taxi trade.

Now, with demand for the Xylo picking up more than expected, Mahindra has been forced to boost production numbers. that Mahindra & Mahindra is also targeting 20 per cent of sales from overseas markets. The company, which saw sales decline in 2008 December, sold as many as 17,611 vehicles in January 2009. It may noted that it had sold 22,309 vehicles in January last year. Meanwhile exports of M&M vehicles saw 291 units go abroad in January, as against 1,425 units exported in the same month in 2008. Mahindra & Mahindra’s (M&M) domestic volume for January 2009 was 17,320 units, compared to 20,884 units in January 2008. The company plans to start export of the Xylo to South Africa in another three month’s time.

Company officials added that the company will then export the Xylo to ASEAN soon after the Brazil shipment is sent. Meanwhile, a left-hand drive version of the Xylo, which is being planned in a year’s time will be exported to Brazil, Chile, the West Asia region, and other African countries including Egypt. It would export completely knocked down (CKD) units to countries such as Egypt and Brazil. The company expects to repeat the success it has had with Scorpio, which proved to be a hit in the export markets. However, officials clarified that teh US market is not being seen as a potential for the current version of teh Xylo. In fact the company is in the process of designing a Xylo version for the US. Teh vehicle that is exected to be launched in India during the second half of 2010, will be shipped to the US. Mahindra and Mahindra, in the meantime, is also in the process of lining up a three more launches this year. A new SUV will follwo these models in 2010.