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Mahindra Bolero Neo Variants Explained - Which One To Buy?

The Mahindra Bolero Neo is the same old wine in a new bottle for the most part. It is, after all a TUV300 underneath with a mild touch up. But its locking rear differential has instantly put it on the top of the sub-4m SUV list with its off-road capabilities. The Bolero Neo is also the only sub-4m SUV you can buy with the abuse-friendly ladder frame chassis and rear-wheel-drive setup.

 

Mahindra Bolero Neo

The Bolero Neo is the only SUV in its class you would want to take with you for some off-road driving. With the locking rear differential, the Bolero Neo will have no trouble leaving its peers in the dust.

Bolero Neo

If the SUV-ness of the Bolero Neo is precisely what you were looking for in a sub-4m SUV, then this variant breakdown report should help you pick the right variant based on your feature preferences and budget.

Mahindra Bolero Neo Prices

The new Bolero Neo is available in 4 variants with a starting price of Rs. 8.48 lakh for the base N4 trim. The N8 cost Rs. 9.48 lakh while the N10 costs Rs. 10 lakh (ex-showroom). The top-spec N10 (O) variant is currently not on sale and Mahindra haven’t announced its prices either. We’ll update this article when the N10 (O) prices are available.

MAHINDRA BOLERO NEO | PRICES

EX-SHOWROOM DELHI  | AUG 2021

VARIANT

MANUAL

N4

Rs. 8,48,001

N8

Rs. 9,47,999

N10

Rs. 9,99,900

N10 (O)

Not Available


2021 Mahindra Bolero Neo N4 Base Variant Features

The Mahindra Bolero Neo’s N4 variant costs Rs. 8.48 lakh (ex-showroom).

The base variant of this SUV offers the following notable features:

BOLERO NEO N4 FEATURES

Safety

Functional

Style

Central Locking

Internally-Adjustable Outside Mirrors

Body-Coloured Spare Wheel Cover

Cornering Brake Control

All Power Windows

Bolero Side Cladding

Reverse Parking Sensors

AC with Heater

Black Door Handles

2 Airbags

Tilt Steering

Body-Coloured Bumpers

ABS

MID

Artificial Leather Upholstery

 

Engine Auto-Start/Stop

 


The base variant of the Bolero Neo looks very basic. It’s missing a music system, steering-mounted controls, power-adjustable outside mirrors and day-night inside mirror. We’d suggest you consider upgrading to a higher variant.

Mahindra Bolero Neo N4 vs N8 Variant Features

After the base, the N8 variant of the Bolero Neo costs Rs. 9.48 lakh, which is Rs. 1.0 lakh more than the N4. The notable additional features of the N8 variant are as follows:

BOLERO NEO N8 | FEATURES OVER N4

Safety

Entertainment

Functional

Style

Rear Washer and Wiper

Music-System with Bluetooth, USB, Aux

Wheel Arch Cladding

Wheel Covers

Rear Defogger

4 Speakers and 2 Tweeters

Manual Day/Night Inside Mirror

Spoiler

Remote Central Locking

Steering-Mounted Controls

Folding 2nd-Row Seat Backs

 
   

Side Food Step

 


The N8 variant of the 2021 Bolero Neo gets several must-have features like a rear washer, wiper, defogger, music system with steering-mounted controls, remote central locking, day/night inside mirror and wheel covers. However, it’s still missing some critical features like power-adjustable outside mirrors, front and rear centre armrests and chrome grille. For budget buyers, the N8 looks more balanced from a feature perspective. Although, it’s not a value-for-money option as its features don’t justify the Rs. 1.0 lakh price difference. Therefore, we’ll suggest budget buyers consider the N4 variant and accessorize it to suit your needs.

Mahindra Bolero Neo N8 vs N10 Variant Features

The N10 variant of the 2021 Bolero Neo costs Rs. 10 lakh before taxes, registration and insurance expense. The Bolero Neo N10 variant is only Rs. 52,000 more expensive than the N8. The notable additional features of the N10 variant are as follows:

BOLERO NEO N10 | FEATURES OVER N8

Safety

Entertainment & Functional

Style

Cornering Lights

Front Armrests for Driver and Front Passenger

Power Adjustable Outside Mirrors

Chrome Grille

Fog Lamps

Center Cabin Light

Height-Adjustable Driver Seat

LED DRLs

ISOFIX Child Seat Anchors

Second-Row Center Armrest

Follow-Me Headlamps

Alloy wheels

 

7-inch Touchscreen

Cruise Control

Light Grey Spare Wheel Cover


Even the N10 variant of the Bolero Neo lacks some essential features that we expect from a car at this price. For example, it’s missing an auto-AC, projector or LED headlamps, Android Auto and Apple Carplay for smartphone connectivity. Since this is a 7-seat car, we also expect it to offer rear AC vents at least for the second-row seats. It can greatly improve the cooling for third-row occupants. Even hatchbacks like the Hyundai Grand i10 Nios offer this feature.

Bolero Neo interior

The N10 variant not only justifies the upgrade over the N8 variant, it even justifies upgrading from the N4 variant.

Mahindra Bolero Neo N10 vs N10 (O) Variant Features

The price of the top-spec N10 (O) variant is currently not available, and neither is the N10 (O) variant itself. This variant will go on sale later. But, we know that this variant will only get 1 additional feature - a locking rear differential. This is what makes this SUV an SUV. Since the N10 itself costs Rs. 10 lakh, the N10 (O)’s price will breach the Rs. 10 lakh mark. Thus the top variant will become quite a bit more expensive for most buyers because of higher taxes. If you plan to go off-roading, then we would highly recommend waiting for the N10 (O) trim. For everyday city and highway use, though, the N10 will do just fine.

BOLERO NEO N10 (O) FEATURES OVER N10

Functional

Locking Rear Differential


2021 Mahindra Bolero Neo Variants - Which One To Buy?

The base N4 variant is pretty basic. The N8 offers a decent balance of features but it also offers poor value for money. Therefore, budget buyers should consider the N4 variant instead of the stretching to accommodate the N8. If you have the budget for the N8 variant, then you should skip it and jump straight to the N10 as it offers far better value than the N8 trim.

Bolero Neo

Right now, we don’t know when the N10 (O) variant will go on sale and how much it’ll cost. But when it comes to the market, we’ll update this article and our verdict.

MAHINDRA BOLERO NEO | RECOMMENDATION

Variant

VFM Rank

Price

Recommendation

N4

Rank 1

Rs 8,48,001

Suitable for budget buyers

N8

Rank 2

Rs 9,47,999

Not recommended

N10

Rank 1

Rs 9,99,900

Top recommended

N10 (O)

NA

Not Available

NA


2021 Mahindra Bolero Neo Engine Specs

The new Mahindra Bolero Neo 2021 is only available with a diesel engine, which makes 100PS of power and 260Nm of torque. While the demand is growing for petrol engines and automatic transmissions, the Bolero Neo stays true to the Bolero roots and offers neither.

It has respectable power and torque output for its class. However, the Neo is a ladder-frame car and much heavier than the front-wheel-drive monocoque cars. This extra weight will affect its torque-to-weight figures, everyday drivability and fuel efficiency figures.

MAHINDRA BOLERO NEO VS COMPETITION

DIESEL ENGINE SPECS COMPARISON

 

Bolero Neo

Bolero

EcoSport

Venue

Sonet

XUV300

Nexon

Displacement

1.5L

1.5L

1.5L

1.5L

1.5L

1.5L

1.5L

1.5L

Cylinder

3

3

4

4

4

4

4

4

Cubic Capacity

1493cc

1493cc

1498cc

1493cc

1493 cc

1493 cc

1497cc

1497cc

Drivetrain

RWD

RWD

FWD

FWD

FWD

FWD

FWD

FWD

Maximum Power

100PS @ 3750rpm

76PS @ 3600rpm

100PS @ 3750rpm

100PS @ 4000rpm

100PS @ 4000rpm

115PS @ 4000rpm

116PS @ 3750rpm

110PS @ 4000rpm

Peak Torque

260Nm @ 1750-2250rpm

210Nm @ 1600-2200rpm

215Nm @ 1750 - 2500rpm

240Nm @ 1500 - 2750rpm

240Nm @ 1500 - 2750rpm

250Nm @ 1500 - 2750rpm

300Nm @ 1500 - 2500rpm

260Nm @ 1500 - 2750rpm

Manual 

5-speed

5-speed

5-speed

6-speed

6-speed

--

6-speed

6-speed

Manual FE

17.29kmpl

16.75kmpl

21.7kmpl

22.7kmpl

24.1kmpl

--

20.1kmpl

22.44kmpl

Automatic

--

--

--

--

--

6TC

6AMT

6AMT

Automatic FE

--

--

--

--

--

19kmpl

19.7kmpl

22.44kmpl


2021 Mahindra Bolero Neo Dimensions

The Bolero Neo’s 184mm ground clearance may not seem like much until you factor in the ladder frame construction. This car can take a hit on its underbelly and shake it off like it’s nothing. The Neo’s 384-litre boot space is also respectably large. The fact that you can accommodate 2 extra occupants in a pinch also earns it a few extra points.

Bolero Neo

The Bolero Neo is about as wide as you’d expect any other car in this segment but it’s significantly taller for its class. Similarly, its 2680mm wheelbase is also far better than the rest of the sub-4m SUVs.

MAHINDRA BOLERO NEO vs B2-SEGMENT DIESEL SUVs

DIMENSIONS COMPARISON

 

Bolero Neo

Bolero

EcoSport

Venue

Sonet

XUV300

Nexon

Length

3995mm

3995mm

3998mm

3995mm

3995mm

3995mm

3993mm

Width

1795mm

1745mm

1765mm

1770mm

1790mm

1821mm

1811mm

Height

1817mm

1880mm

1647mm

1605mm

1642mm

1627mm

1606mm

Wheelbase

2680mm

2680mm

2519mm

2500mm

2500mm

2600mm

2498mm

Seats

7

7

5

5

5

5

5

Boot Space

384-lt

--

352-lt

350-lt

392-lt

257-lt

350-lt

Ground Clearance

184mm

180mm

200mm

190mm

205mm

180mm

209mm

Fuel Tank

50-lt

60-lt

52-lt

45-lt

45-lt

42-lt

44-lt

Tyre Size (Base)

215/75 R15

215/75 R15

195/65 R15

195/65 R15

195/65 R15

205/65 R16

195/60 R16

Tyre Size (Top)

215/75 R15

215/75 R15

215/60 R16

215/60 R16

215/60 R16

215/55 R17

215/60 R16


What Are The Colour Options for 2021 Mahindra Bolero Neo?

The 2021 Bolero Neo is available in the following colours:

  • Black
  • Silver
  • Solid white
  • Metallic white
  • Red
  • Beige (Off-white)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mahesh Yadav

Mahesh is a fan of compact, quirky and underrated vehicles that punch above their weight. Multix, Nano and Navi are his favorites.

1 Comments

  1. S Sandipan says:
    November 28 2023 22:43:59

    Please provide a comprehensive and updated 2024 review. Thanks!

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