Indian maker Mahindra has its sights set on lucrative double-cab ute markets like Australasia and South Africa with an all-new Pik Up, just revealed at its annual FutureScape conference.
It's become tradition for the company to hold a big reveal every year on Indian Independence Day (August 15). Significantly, the conference was in South Africa for 2023.
The new ute is still technically a concept, with a final production model expected to appear in 2025. But Mahindra is very serious about taking on established makers like Ford and Toyota in key ute markets - part of its "Go Global" strategy to expand out of India (still the world's third largest new-vehicle market) and compete more convincingly on the international stage.
The XUV 700 and Scorpio SUVs were the first two new-gen models under this plan. Scorpio, just launched in New Zealand, lends its ladder-frame 4x4 platform and off-road technology to the new ute. So expect a relatively traditional but very tough truck, with a diesel engine, part-time 4WD with low-range and a Terrain Management System (TMS) similar to that used on Scorpio.
The garnish used on the concept also suggests Mahindra is keen to tap into the "lifestyle" ute market represented in NZ by the likes of the Ford Ranger Wildtrak and Toyota Hilux SR5 Cruiser and GR Sport.
Technical details are still scarce, but Mahindra & Mahindra automotive division president Veejay Ram Nakra - who unveiled the new ute in South Africa this week - spoke with a small group of NZ media in India this month about the new truck and the company's more global outlook.
"Until the recent past we've been largely a South Asia player, with some presence in sub-Sahara Africa. But the South African, Australian and NZ markets are now very important for us, and as part of this journey of expansion we've launched the XUV 700 and Scorpio.
"If you look at the kind of pickup offerings we've had globally, they have largely been derivative of what we've had for India," says Nakra.
This includes the current Pik Up offered in NZ of course, a rather idiosyncratic-looking light commercial based on previous generation Scorpio SUV (never sold in NZ).
"But this [new ute concept] is what I call a 'born global' pickup," says Nakra. "Inputs from Australia/NZ, South Africa, Latin America and South East Asia are all going into this."
While Mahindra has been very clear about its intention to invest heavily in bespoke electric vehicles - it also revealed a BEV version of its Thar 4x4 at Futurescape, on a version of its new Inglo platform - there is still an important role for traditional combustion-engine vehicles to play.
Mahindra expects up to 30 per cent of its vehicles to be BEV by 2030, leaving 70 per cent on petrol and diesel platforms.