Indian challenger brand to level up? Mahindra aiming to become a top 15 carmaker and outsell Suzuki, Honda, LDV, Isuzu and Renault in Australia by 2030

Mahindra has been in Australia for 20 years now, though over this time it has bubbled away under the surface primarily as a tractor brand and maker of rugged utes and SUVs.

Over the last few years the brand has had a product renaissance with the launch of the Scorpio and XUV700 SUVs.

It has also just launched its smallest vehicle ever in Australia, the XUV 3XO. This is currently Australia’s cheapest SUV thanks to an introductory pricing offer starting at $23,490 drive-away.

The brand currently doesn’t report sales in Australia, but over the last Indian fiscal year (April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025), Mahindra sold a total of 4185 vehicles in Australia. This makes it around the 30th best-selling brand in Australia.

Speaking to CarsGuide, Mahindra Automotive Australia general manager Ankit Taneja said the Indian carmaker is planning to level up vehicle sales over the next five years.

“We have set [an] ambitious goal for ourselves and we want to be a top 15 player by 2030,” said Mr Taneja.

“We really believe that we have the right to win as a manufacturer playing in the Australian market.

“Clearly Australia is one of the biggest ute and SUV markets, and Mahindra as a brand is very strong on both the ute segment and the SUV segment.

“There is a lot of consumer insights and product validation that happens in Australia.

“Australia for us is a very, very strategic market.

“Apart from that we have seen that there is a strong tailwind towards the growth of the emerging brands in this country.

“Consumers are ready to embrace newer brands who bring value on the table for the Aussie consumer.”

Based on the current running rate, Mahindra will need to sell around 20,000-25,000 vehicles annually to become a top 15 brand in Australia.

If the Indian carmaker achieves this goal, it could see it outsell brands like Suzuki, Honda, LDV, Isuzu and Renault.

One of the strategies the company is taking to achieve the sales target, besides introducing new products, is bolstering its dealer presence.

Historically, Mahindra’s dealers have been regionally focused, but over the last few years it has branched out in metropolitan areas.

It currently has a total of 70 dealers, with around 15 of these being in metro areas. In the next five months the company is expecting a further 10 dealers to sign on.

Looking to the future, Mahindra has a range of SUVs that just launched in India. It claims it’s currently prioritising these to launch in Australia.

The Indian carmaker also has a successor to the Pik-Up dual-cab ute in the works that’ll be based on the Global Pik-Up concept revealed in 2023.

It’s still unclear when this new ute will launch locally because it hasn’t been unveiled yet.