2011 Mahindra Scorpio (estimated base price $19,500)One thing that's mostly missing from the American SUV market is a diesel-powered SUV. And one thing that's completely missing (since Jeep retired the diesel-powered Liberty) is an affordable diesel SUV.
That's the angle India's Mahindra Motors is hoping to play up with its Scorpio, a medium-compact-sized (about the size of a Toyota RAV4) four-door/five-passenger 4WD SUV equipped with a 2.6 liter turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine. The Scorpio's mill produces in the neighborhood of 300 lbs.-ft. of torque, which is comparable to the output of a large V-6 or small V-8, while delivering a consistent 20-something miles-per-gallon average fuel economy. That would be a significant improvement over the mid-low teens posted by similar real-deal 4WD SUVs equipped with V-6 or V-8 gas engines.
The very high torque output at low engine speed (peak output is realized at appx. 1,800 rpm) is ideal for serious off-roading, or fording through heavy snow. It also gives the Scorpio a best-in-class tow rating of 5,000 lbs. For comparison, the current Jeep Liberty (non-diesel) has a max tow rating of just 3,500 lbs., which is about the same as many mid-sized front-wheel-drive cars.
Downsides are that Mahindra's a new face in the US and dealers will be few and far between for the first few years.
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