Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 Vs Kia Seltos HTX — Which One To Buy?

Note 1: In this Mahindra Thar Roxx vs Kia Seltos comparison (MX5 and HTX variants), each of the two cars will follow a red (Mahindra Thar Roxx) and blue (Kia Seltos) colour scheme. In some cases, having a lower cost is better (e.g. fuel cost), while in other cases, having a higher cost is favourable (e.g. feature differences). Wherever the red car is at an advantage, the difference in the monetary value will be mentioned in red. When the blue car has the upper hand, in that particular cell, the difference will have a blue shade. Thus, the final result is easy for you to crosscheck by simply adding up the red and blue values to find out which one is a better option.

Note 2: This article is divided into 2 main sections — cost of ownership and upfront value. Within the total cost of ownership, we’ll compare:

• Upfront on-road price differences
• 5-year/50,000km maintenance cost
• 5-year/50,000km fuel cost

In the upfront value section, we’ll cover:

• Dimensions
• Engine and performance specifications
• Feature differences

The final verdict section will merge the values from each of the 2 main sections and present the recommendation.

Let’s start with the ownership cost section.

Total Cost Of Ownership (TCO)

The first step towards comparing the Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX total ownership costs is to start with their upfront cost.

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX — Price Comparison

The Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 costs Rs. 3,100 more than the Kia Seltos HTX. Once you factor in the on-road price, the price gap increases to Rs. 3,678, which might not be significant for you as a buyer. Let’s see how this gap widens or narrows as we progress.

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX — 5-year Maintenance Cost Comparison

Since the official maintenance costs of the new Mahindra Thar Roxx are not available, we have taken in the maintenance cost of the Scorpio-N given their similarity. According to the respective manufacturer’s periodic maintenance cost calculator, the Thar Roxx MX5 variant will cost around Rs. 46,200 to maintain for 5 years or 50,000km. For a similar usage, the Seltos HTX will cost around Rs. 19,500 to maintain. Thus the Seltos HTX gets an advantage of almost Rs. 27,000 over the Thar Roxx which may be significant for you.

*Estimates based on Scorpio-N

Also Read: Mahindra Scorpio-N Service & Maintenance Cost (10 Year/1 Lakh Kilometre)

Kia Seltos Service & Maintenance Cost (10 Year/1 Lakh Kilometre)

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX — 5-year Fuel Cost Comparison

Driving each of these cars for about 50,000km with an assumption of Rs. 90 per litre fuel cost will save you about Rs. 82,609 if you buy the Seltos. Of course, the real-world figures may be lower, but to keep things even, we’ve only used the ARAI mileage figures to arrive at these estimates.

Here, the Seltos offers superior mileage. The fuel cost difference between the two cars after driving them for about 50,000km will be around Rs. 82,000 in the favour of Seltos.

*Estimated

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX — TCO Comparison Summary

In the TCO (total cost of ownership) comparison, we found that the Seltos has an advantage over the Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 in terms of upfront cost. Seltos gains some points back with its superior fuel economy.

Also Read: Why Minor Scratches On Car Make You Angry? Grow YOUR Wealth!

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Upfront Value For Money

To estimate the upfront value for money of the Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX, we’ll first compare the dimensions and engine specs to find out which car offers better value for money.

Before we compare the features of the Thar Roxx MX5 vs Seltos HTX, we’ll first get the common features out of the way. Then, we’ll focus on the exclusive and unique features each of the cars offers to find out which one offers a better value for money.

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX— Dimension Comparison

The Thar Roxx is noticeably bigger than the Seltos. Its length, width, height are better than the Seltos, and wheelbase and ground clearance are significantly more. There isn’t much difference in the boot space however. The Thar Roxx MX5 has 18-inch wheels and the Seltos HTX has 17-inch wheels.

Due to its larger dimensions, and predominantly rugged exterior design compared to the Seltos, the road presence of Roxx is better and it looks like a car from a segment above. According to V3Cars size comparison tool, the larger dimensions and better road presence of the Roxx give it an advantage of around Rs. 1.72 lakh.

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX— Engine Specs Comparison

In terms of performance, the Thar Roxx has a bigger engine and is more powerful and torquier than the Seltos. According to V3Cars powertrain comparison tool, the Thar Roxx has an advantage of Rs. 11,600 over Seltos. While the Thar Roxx has significantly better power and torque output, it’s also much heavier because of its body-on-frame construction. So, in the real-world, you don’t experience a big difference in performance between the two cars.

*Estimated

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX— Feature Comparison

Let’s now compare the Thar Roxx MX5 features with Seltos HTX’s to first see what’s common for these two cars and then find out what unique features they each bring to the table.

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX— Common Features

The Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX offers the following common safety, infotainment and style features:

The following table lists out the common functional features of Thar Roxx MX5 and Seltos HTX:

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 — Unique Features

The following table presents the Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5’s unique features, which are not available in the Seltos HTX:

Kia Seltos HTX— Unique Features

Likewise, the Seltos HTX also has the following features, which aren’t available in the Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5:

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX — VFM Comparison Summary

In the upfront VFM section, the Thar Roxx MX5 beats the Seltos HTX by Rs. 77,000:

Now, let’s sum up the two main comparison headings and see which one offers better value and to what degree.

Mahindra Thar Roxx MX5 vs Kia Seltos HTX — Verdict

The Seltos HTX turbo wins the TCO section with the help of low maintenance and better fuel efficiency. In the upfront VFM section, the Thar Roxx gains a good lead with its massive road presence, but lags behind in the features department. Still, the Roxx MX5 ends up winning this round by Rs. 77,000.

In the end, the Seltos HTX turbo comes out on top delivering Rs. 36,000 worth of higher value making it the winner of this comparison.

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How To Get The Best Discount On Buying New Car (11 Tips)

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