A comprehensive review from an owner

I'm a big fan of 'big SUVs'. In the 2015 market, we had the options of Fortuner and Endeavour as the go-to SUVs. But then these would have be too expensive for me. So I decided to go for the XUV. We got the car in the Volcano Black colour on a Friday evening and the rituals of owning a new car were done. At the time this was the W10 version, renamed as W11 now. Riding the XUV in the front seat is a joyful experience, and so is driving. The monocoque chassis makes it much more enjoyable than driving a Fortuner. At the back seat though, the chassis turns into a villain. Bumps and potholes easily intrude into the cabin. The design of the headrest at the rear is also absolute rubbish as it's angled towards the front. Mahindra should take inspiration from Harrier's headrest and bring it in the next gen XUV500. Third row is a fair experience. When it comes to looks, the XUV is unmatched. It has managed to stand the test of time all these years, though it's starting to get a little dated. Performance is like that of an underdog. You do not expect much from the 140HP engine, but it actually gives the 170HP Compass a run for it's money. Service is by far the worst experience on the XUV. Our regular dealer scrapped their tie up with M&M and this problem was not addressed by the parent company. Ideally, M&M should've assigned a new dealer to the customer, but this wasn't the case and we were directed to another dealer once we reached our original dealership. Maintenance costs though are very low, with one service costing a little over 3k. Spare parts are also available easily, though dealers lie about their availability. I would like to mention that a Toyota is a much better choice for service and maintenance. Overall I think the XUV500 is just a decent option now in 2019, since the Hector, Seltos and Harrier are here. It remains to be seen if Mahindra brings in a wonder in 2020, with the next gen XUV, like it did in 2011.