More pickup trucks coming to India?
Pickups are touted to gain popularity in India in the coming years. This is thanks to the recent launch of the iconic Toyota Hilux here. The Hilux has quickly become a shining highlight of its segment. Over the years, the Japanese brand has re-engineered the Hilux multiple times to make it one hell of a beast when it comes to reliability and durability. Coming back to today’s topic, with a famous player now in the segment, we expect other manufacturers to bring their products to this arena. In today’s article, we will discuss four upcoming pickup trucks for India.
MG Extender
MG is the most likely to take on competition with the Toyota Hilux. The brand could launch the Extender in India. As a product, the Extender is based on the same platform as the Gloster, so it makes sense for MG to bring it to India. The Extender in global markets comes with a 2.0-litre diesel engine. In India, it could share its engine with the Gloster, which is a 2.0-litre diesel unit. However, since the Extender will be a purpose-focused vehicle, we expect it to come with the more powerful twin-turbocharged diesel unit which makes 215bhp & 480Nm of torque. A 4WD system is mostly expected to be a standard offering since the Hilux also offers it as standard. MG, similar to its other offerings is expected to load the Extender with multiple segment-first features as well.
Upcoming pickup trucks for India – Ford Ranger
Ford after its exit from India was planning to make a comeback by bringing its global cars to India via the CBU route. The brand was also planning to manufacture EVs in India. However, the brand has decided to axe the latter plan. Now, what happens to its plan of bringing global products via the CBU route is still unknown. Until there is some official confirmation, we expect the plan is still in the works. Keeping this in mind, we expect the first car that Ford could bring through the CBU route could be the new Endeavour. Post that, Ford could bring in its popular pickup, the Ranger, to India. The Ranger will be the perfect competitor to the Toyota Hilux, thanks to its established reputation as a brutal dune-basher. Established competitors are much needed in the segment for its quick growth.
GWM UTE
Great Wall Motors is yet to make a formal entry in India, but it has shown a strong commitment to our market. GWM will mainly be focusing on India as an SUV player, however one product that it could also bring is the UTE pickup. It will be the perfect way for GWM to showcase the capability of their rugged vehicles. In some global markets, the UTE comes with a 2.0-litre diesel engine that makes 163bhp & 400Nm of torque. Could this be the same configuration for India? Only time will tell. Do you think these numbers are enough to take on the Hilux?
Upcoming pickup trucks for India – Mahindra Scorpio Pickup
Scorpio needs no introduction in the SUV segment, but not many people know that Mahindra still sells the Scorpio pickup in South Africa. Mahindra did sell the ‘Scorpio Getaway’ pickup in India as well but decided to pull the plug after some years due to low sales. If the pickup segment continues its upward trend, Mahindra could bring it back. The lifestyle vehicle has already been spotted testing in India a while ago. Could Mahindra actually be bringing it back? Nothing can be said as of now, but if Mahindra is actually planning something like this, it would definitely price it very competitively to undercut most of the competition.
If you have car buying doubts click here to ask! Get the lowest price for car insurance here. For more such content stay subscribed to MotorOctane Youtube, Google News Facebook, and Twitter. Also, follow us on Flipboard and Reddit where we have a discussion community.
Comments