India's 10 Best SUVs of 2012

 SUVs are a combination of cargo and passenger cars. With sleek designs, sheer weight and size, they are popular for many years with buyers due to their off-road capabilities. Listed below are the popular SUVs in India. Check them out!

Renault Duster

Renault India following the trend of the Indian car market has announced the price hike for its recently launched top selling SUV, Renault Duster. The price hike is going to be effective from the month of October and will range from 30, 000 to 40, 000 across India. Renault Duster was launched with an introductory price of Rs 7.19 lakh for its base variant and received an amazing response with clocking in over 20,000 bookings. The diesel variant houses a 1.5 litre, dCi, K9K diesel and boasts of a fuel efficiency of 20.45 km per litre (ARAI figures) which is going to see a price hike of 40, 000 while the petrol variant which is powered by a 1.6 litre engine churns our 104PS and gives a fuel average of 13.24 Km per litre prices are going to be raised by 30, 000.

Mahindra XUV 500

Mahindra XUV 500, the Cheetah inspired SUV’s AWD (All Wheel Drive) variant is soon going to be out for grabs. Mahindra and Mahindra the utility vehicle giant has opened the bookings for the Mahindra XUV 500 AWD with an amount of 40, 000. Mahindra XUV 500 previous bookings figure reached 32,000+ bookings in June and 25,000+ bookings in February this year, the company is expecting no less this time. In all the fun and frolic, the one thing that puts a set back to the happy atmosphere is the fact that the customers may have to wait for as long as 2-3 months before deliveries start taking place. Mahindra XUV 500 have already proved its worth in the market and the AWD option can further amplify XUV 500 position in the market against its arch rivals like yet to launch Tata Safari Storme,Tata Aria and old players like Toyota Fortuner and Ford Endeavour.

Volkswagen Touareg

Volkswagen India loves to surprise its consumers and this time the German auto major has soft launched the Touareg SUVwith a price tag of  58.5 lakh however the sales will start this year end. The new Volkswagen Touareg is powered by 3.0-litre V6 TDI engine that comes coupled with 8-speed automatic transmission, which churns out a maximum power of 241.6bhp at 3800-4400rpm.The fuel efficiency of this vehicle is 12.08kmpl (ARAI Certified). Volkswagen Touareg features 4 corner air-suspensions with electronic shock absorption control, Cruise Control, Auto Hold, Electrically adjustable lumbar support for front seats, Automatic headlamp activation with ‘Coming home’ and ‘Leaving home’ function and Park distance control. The competition for the 2012 Volkswagen Touareg is heavy and the major challengers here comprise of Land Rover Range Rover Evoque and Mercedes Benz R Class but, hopefully, the car will be able to outshine all of them.

Audi Q3

Following the footsteps of Honda India, the German auto major Audi too has announced a hike in prices for its luxury compact SUV, Audi Q3. The price hike can be anywhere between 1 percent to 3 percent and the rise in prices is going to get effective from the next month i.e. October and will affect both the low end as well as the high end variant. The current prices of Audi Q3 are tagged at 26.21 lakh. The reason of this price rise is cited with the devaluation of rupee and economic upheaval that the Indian economy is facing. Audi India is still sure to reach the sales target of 8000 cars by the end of this year and claims that Audi Q3 is going to be the sales driving car as right after its launch the sales figure of Audi Q3 reached 1000 mark. Audi at present is the luxury segment SUV topper with models like Audi R8, Audi R8 Spyder, Audi RS5 and Audi TT Coupe.

Mahindra Quanto

Mahindra India has expanded its utility vehicle portfolio with the launch of Mahindra Quanto aka Mini Xylo which is tagged at a price of 5.82 lakh. This compact SUV is launched in four guises namely Mahindra Quanto C2, Mahindra Quanto C4, Mahindra Quanto C6, Mahindra Quanto C8.Mahindra Quanto is the first sub four meter SUV in the segment yet can easily seat 7 people. This compact SUV is powered by a 1.5-litre, 3-cylinder, twin-turbocharged CRDi diesel engine which is christened as mCR100 in Mahindra’s language. The engine comes coupled with a five-speed manual transmission gearbox, and this amalgamation is able to churn out the maximum of 100bhp power and 240Nm of torque. What grabs the attention is the mileage figure of this compact SUV which is claimed to 17.21kmpl as Mahindra has given the vehicle a twin scroll turbo engine which is the smallest turbo engine in the world and explains the high mileage figure. If this was not enough to lure the buyers, the company has added features like ABS, 2 Air bags, reverse park assist, micro-hybrid start-stop technology plus the top end variants Quanto C6 and C8 are adorned with features like Drive seat height adjust and Integrated Audio system. 

Ford Endeavour

Endeavor has been great success in India. Outfitted with advanced features and stylish looks, the car is among the best SUVs in India. The overall length of Ford Endeavor is 5060 mm, with width of 1788 mm and height of 1826 mm. Its 2953 cc engine delivers maximum power of 156 PS (115Kw) at 3200 rpm and maximum torque of 380 Nm (38.7 kgm) at 2500 rpm. It comes in two versions in Indian auto market, Ford Endeavour 2.5L 4x2 and Ford Endeavour 3.0L 4x4. Ford Endeavour 3.0L 4x4 comes with power windows, power door locks, power steering, air conditioner, anti-lock braking system, cup holders, immobilizer, rear wash wiper, alloy wheels, central locking, steering adjustment, tachometer, child safety locks, front fog lights, rear defroster, leather seats, FM radio and CD player. The Ford Endeavour is priced at  17.1 lakh to 19.74 lakh.

Mahindra Scorpio

Scorpio has turned out as a winner since its launch. The first SUV by Mahindra was designed for international market. It has bagged many esteemed awards and its sporty looks and off-road capacity has given played an important role in the success. It has overall length of 4430 mm, overall width of 1817 mm and overall height of 1975 mm. Scorpio's fuel economy has made it hot favorite among India buyers. The 2179 cc engine delivers power of 118PS at 4000rpm and torque of 290Nm at 1800rpm. It is packed with features like power windows, power door locks, power steering, alloy wheels, tubeless tyres, central locking, steering adjustment and tachometer. Keeping in mind the safety issues, it has anti-lock braking system and immobilizer. More and more features are added to the SUV to keep the excitement and buyers intact. The new variation branded as Scorpio Gataway was well appreciated by SUV buyers. Scorpio is priced at 8.13 lakh to 12.12 lakh.

Mitsubishi Pajero

With commanding presence on road, Pajero is a hard-core off roading SUV. It has 4755 mm length, with 1755 mm of width, 1900 mm height. And wheel base of 2725 mm. Its 2835 cc engine offers power of 118.6 at 4000 and torque of 29.8 at 2000. The SUV is well equipped with power windows, power door locks, power steering, folding rear-seat, alloy wheels, tubeless tyres and steering adjustment. Though it looks rugged it comes with safety features like anti-lock braking system and driver and passenger airbags. Mitsubishi Pajero would cost you for 20.64 lakh to 20.64 lakh.

Toyota Fortuner

The Famous Toyota Fortuner has a length of 4695 mm, width of 1840 mm and height of 1850 mm, with wheel base of 2750 mm has ground clearance of 225 mm. The 2982 cc engine of the car delivers power of 286PS at 3600rpm and torque of 650Nm at 1600rpm. It has various features like power windows, power door locks, power steering, traction control, anti-lock braking system, driver air-bags, passenger air-bags, alloy wheels and child safety locks. It comes in colours like grey mica metallic, super white, light blue metallic, silver mica metallic and black mica. The SUV will cost you around 20.24 lakh to 20.24 lakh.

Chevrolet Captiva

Chevrolet Captiva comes with a sleek design with 4660 mm length, 1870 mm of width and 1755 mm height. The car comes with 1991 cc engine that delivers power of 150 PS at 4000 rpm and torque of 320 Nm at 2000 rpm. The car both safety and comfort features like anti-lock braking system, traction control, driver air-bags, passenger air-bags, immobilizer, alloy wheels, central locking, steering adjustment, tachometer, child safety locks, front fog lights, leather seats and power seats. It's available in colors like granada black, kandinsky red, linen beige, poly silver and pearl white. Chevrolet Captiva costs around 18.83 lakh to 20.55 lakh.

Source : http://www.siliconindia.com/news/life/Indias-10-Best-SUVs-nid-131628-cid-51.html