Mahindra has begun shipping the ABS equipped Bolero to its dealerships across India. The Mahindra Bolero ABS is the safest version of the MUV built, and is meant to comply with tighter safety norms under the Bharat New Vehicle Safety Assessment Program (BNVSAP) regime. The exact pricing details of the Mahindra Bolero ABS are yet to be revealed. We expect a modest upward revision in prices thanks to the addition of ABS. The Bolero has traditionally suffered from weak braking/wooden brake feel. The addition of ABS is expected to make hard braking under emergency conditions a lot more safer on the MUV. Also, ABS will shorten braking distances in the wet and allow the driver to steer the vehicle around obstacles even under hard, emergency braking. Overall, buyers of the Mahindra Bolero will be pleased at the new safety feature addition.
Youtuber Ujjwal Saxena, who has shared these images, will soon upload a video showing the upgraded, 2019 Mahindra Bolero ABS in detail. The video should give us details as to whether Mahindra has also added other key safety features such as a driver airbag, speed alerts, reverse parking sensors and passenger seatbelt reminder. Notably, all these safety features, in addition to ABS, are now mandatory on all cars sold in the Indian market under BNVSAP norms. More stringent safety provisions will come into place later this year, and next year. So, Mahindra, like other automakers in India, will have to equip its best selling vehicle – the Bolero – with all the mandatory safety features for it to sell in India.
For nearly 2 decades since its introduction in 2001, the Bolero has consistently been Mahindra best selling vehicle. The MUV does around 7,000 monthly units on an average. It is Mahindra’s bread and butter offering in rural and semi-urban markets across India. It is bought primarily as a people mover, with seating capacity of up to 9 adults. A rugged build, bomb proof reliability, high fuel efficiency and low maintenance costs are the hallmarks of the Bolero, and the biggest reasons why the Indian market laps up with dated but highly effective design. The Bolero is likely to get a major redesign in 2020, to meet the upcoming Bharat Stage 6 emission norms and also new safety norms under BNVSAP.
The MUV is currently offered with 2 engine options: a 1.5 liter-3 cylinder twin scroll turbocharger equipped diesel engine with 70 Bhp-195 Nm and a 2.5 liter-4 cylinder M2DICR turbocharged diesel engine with 63 Bhp-180 Nm. Both engines get 5 speed manual gearboxes as standard and drive the Bolero’s rear wheels. The BS6 norms will see Mahindra upgrading one or both of these engines with emission control equipment, which is expected to push up prices of the vehicle. So, pre-2020 is the best time to buy the Bolero for buyers looking to beat the price hike.
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