Mahindra has reiterated its plans to add more safety equipment to its Scorpio following its zero-star safety rating from ANCAP, and it intends to have the updated vehicle retested.
CarExpert understands the updated vehicle will arrive in the second half of 2024.
“We at Mahindra are committed to our promise of safety and are working towards meeting unique safety regulations and these requirements for Australia as part of our product mid-cycle update,” said a company spokesperson.
It flagged back in April such an update was coming, and also said it planned to have the vehicle tested by ANCAP after this update.
ANCAP, however, ended up purchasing Scorpios first and had them tested.
The updated Scorpio needs to launch no later than March 1, 2025, the date autonomous emergency braking – a feature the SUV currently lacks – will be mandated on all new vehicles in Australia.
This requirement is called Australian Design Rule 98/00 – Advanced Emergency Braking for Passenger Vehicles and Light Goods Vehicles. As the name suggests it mandates the standard fitment of autonomous emergency braking which can apply the brakes if it detects an imminent forward collision.
The Scorpio is the last vehicle in the VFACTS mid-sized SUV segment without AEB.
It’s unclear what other equipment Mahindra will add with this mid-life update.
It lacks any active safety technology like lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, despite these features being standard on the Mahindra XUV700.
ANCAP also criticised the Scorpio for its lack of an airbag between the two front occupants, curtain airbag coverage for the third row, and seatbelt pre-tensioners for the second and third rows.
The vehicle also lacks a driver monitoring system, safe exit warning or rear occupant detection, while the seven-seat version offered in New Zealand sticks with a lap belt for the rear centre occupant. Only the six-seat version is offered here.
The Scorpio, introduced in 2023, is the first body-on-frame SUV offered by the Indian brand in Australia.
Called the Scorpio-N in India, it’s sold there alongside the older Scorpio Classic, which was never offered here.
It’s similarly sized to the XUV700, but where that model is a front-wheel drive unibody crossover, the Scorpio is a four-wheel drive body-on-frame SUV.
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