New Delhi: Mahindra & Mahindra has, over the years, rolled out a range of engines that power its petrol, diesel, and CNG vehicles. It has also been electrifying its fleet lately and introducing born-electric cars with an all-electric powertrain. But what the manufacturer has so far stayed away from are hybrids and bigger, more powerful V8 engines. This seems to have bothered a few petrolheads, who posed the question to Mahindra Group chairman Anand Mahindra on X, and soon got an explanation.
Last week, when Anand Mahindra posted a video of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar handing over Mahindra electric vehicles to the Bhutan government under India’s Project Tied Assistance, an X user, Nitin Meshram, quickly questioned why Mahindra wasn’t investing in V6 and V8 engines or plug-in hybrids. Meshram also claimed that Mahindra hadn’t “invented anything that is an industry first.”
Addressing the user directly on X, Anand Mahindra clarified that the automaker doesn’t lack the expertise to develop bigger engines and that its decisions were shaped by the needs of the Indian consumers.
On the V8 and V6 engines, Mahindra said that “building them was never rocket science.”
“The real question was whether India needed more gas-guzzlers. We thought not”.
The industrialist also addressed the concern that the automaker wasn’t innovating enough, stating that it was Mahindra that unveiled India’s first diesel-electric hybrid passenger vehicle at the Delhi Auto Expo in 2006.
The concept hybrid variant of the Scorpio, however, was never made available to consumers. According to Mahindra, it was too early for hybrids back then.
“[We] didn’t commercialise it because the market simply wasn’t ready,” he wrote.
The Mahindra Group Chairman, who actively posts on X, was once again approached with a similar question: why doesn’t Mahindra make any V8s or V10s?
However, this time the request was quite blunt.
“Anand uncle, have been a fan of yours since I was a little kid. You’re probably going to be dead in 20 years. So why not die knowing that you made a really awesome V8 and V10 engine,” Pranesh Naidu asked.
He then proposed that a Scorpio with a small-block V8 engine under the hood would be great.
Also read: CNG cars are no longer just for taxis. Mahindra’s 3XO ZNG wants to make them fun
What are V6 and V8 engines?
In V6, V8 or V12, the number next to ‘V’ denotes the number of cylinders the engine has. The more the cylinders, the more power and torque the engine churns out, however, at the cost of fuel efficiency.
More cylinders also mean a heavier, bulkier, and more complex engine. Hence, most passenger vehicle manufacturers globally stick to 3- or 4-cylinder engines, which offer better fuel economy and are also easy to manufacture.
V6 or V8 engines, on the other hand, are reserved for high-end performance and luxury vehicles. Cars such as the BMW M5, Land Rover Defender, and Lamborghini Urus feature V8 engines. Besides greater power figures and a higher price tag, these V8-powered machines also produce a roaring exhaust note that has a fanbase of its own.