2022 Mahindra Scorpio Classic - First Look Review

Mahindra Scorpio Classic Exterior

On the front, the Scorpio Classic gets a fresh design for the bumper, fog lamps, new LED DRLs and a skid plate. However, the most eye-catching aspect of the car is its new grille with vertical slats and the new ‘twin peaks’ logo in the centre. Even the keyfob gets the new Mahindra logo.

The headlamp cluster with halogen projectors for low beam, halogen reflectors for high beams, cornering lights and the ‘eye-brow’ LED marker lights remain the same as before.

From the side, the only notable change is the new set of dual-tone, 17-inch machined alloy wheels.

Around the back, the first big change is the red vertical elements on either side of the rear windshield. These look like they are part of the tail lamp cluster and they will remind you of the old, first-gen Scorpio as they were removed in the 2nd-generation, 2014 model. This design decision was a nice touch to justify the Classic in the SUV’s name.

Other than that, you’ll notice the Scorpio Classic badging. The rest of the design remains familiar.

Mahindra Scorpio Classic Interior

Inside, once again, the car feels familiar but with some nice touches to improve upon the feel of the Scorpio. The first thing you’ll notice when you open the door is the beige upholstery with quilted fabric accents. The pattern and the fabric feel nice to touch.

The steering wheel has the same design as before but there are piano black inserts instead of silver accents. Similarly, the instrument console retains the older model’s design with tachometer on the left and speedometer on the right of the MID screen.

The centre of the dash highlights the new 9-inch touchscreen infotainment, which supports USB, aux and Bluetooth but doesn’t get Android Auto and Apple Carplay. Underneath the infotainment are the controls for auto AC. The rest of the interior design remains mostly the same as before.

The Scorpio Classic is available with the following 3 seating layouts:

• 2 + 2 + 3 (7 seats with captain seats in 2nd row and bench in 3rd row)
• 2 + 3 + 2 (7 seats with bench in 2nd row and jump seats in 3rd row/boot)
• 2 + 3 + 4 (9 seats with bench in 2nd row and 2 + 2 jump seats in 3rd row/boot)

For safety reasons, we recommend buying the Scorpio Classic with the 2 + 2 + 3 seat layout. In this setting, all passengers are facing forward and even the 3rd row occupants get seat belts. Moreover, getting in and out of the 3rd row is fairly simple and feels normal like an MPV instead of accessing jump seats through the side-swinging door in the rear.

With this seating configuration, you also get an armrest in all 3 rows. The 4 passengers in the first 2 rows get their individual armrests with the seats. The 3rd row occupants get a flip down centre armrest, which was also available in the older Scorpio. The more expensive Scorpio N and XUV700 don’t offer this feature for the 3rd row occupants. Even the higher-end SUVs like the Toyota Fortuner and MG Gloster don’t get this feature. So, up to 6 occupants in the Scorpio get a padded armrest.

What the 3rd row occupants are going to miss though are AC vents or a blower. Thankfully, with the captain seat configuration, the rear AC vent can throw some air to cool down the back benchers without any obstruction.

The Scorpio Classic uses the same platform and panels as the older Scorpio. So, the interior space also remains the same. To put it in plain terms, the cabin space is adequate at best and it’s not as spacious as you’d expect from an SUV of this size.

Mahindra Scorpio Classic Engine Specs - What’s New?

The Scorpio Classic uses the MHawk gen-2 engine, which is also available in the lower variants of the Scorpio N. It uses an all-aluminium block, which is 55kg lighter than the gen-1 engine and 14% more efficient because of low-friction coatings.

This engine makes 132PS of power at 3750rpm and 300Nm of torque between 1600 and 2800rpm. Both of these figures are slightly lower than the older model but, according to Mahindra, this engine still has plenty of torque at low RPMs. At 1000rpm, which is barely above idling RPM, the Scorpio Classic delivers 230Nm or 77% of its peak torque for easy drivability. On the positive side, the mileage figure is up by 2.02kmpl and now stands at 16.46kmpl, which is 2.02kmpl higher than the older BS6 Scorpio.

On the transmission front, it uses cable shift mechanism, which reduces the vibrations through the gear lever and reduces the gear lever throw and effort. If you thought that the old Scorpio’s dancing gear lever felt crude, then the Classic’s lever will make you feel at home with a very polished and car-like experience.

Mahindra Scorpio Classic Dimensions

In terms of dimensions, the 2022 Scorpio Classic is exactly as big as the older Scorpio. Length-wise, it’s a C-segment SUV but the rear-wheel drive and its ladder frame construction make it more robust and abuse friendly than unibody SUVs.

The ground clearance details aren’t available for the Scorpio Classic. Just like before, we expect it to have 209mm of unladen clearance from the axle without any under-body protection. It’s needless to say that you won’t have any clearance issues with the Scorpio Classic.

Variant-Wise Features - Mahindra Scorpio Classic 2022

The new Scorpio Classic has 2 variants to choose from — S and S11. Some of the notable features of the base S variant are:

• Halogen reflector headlamps
• LED tail lamps
• Black side cladding
• Black front grille
• 2nd row AC vents
• Leather upholstery
• 2 + 3 + 2 (7) and 2 + 3 + 4 (9) seat options
• Manual central locking
• 12V power socket
• Tilt steering
• Rear AC vents
• Power window switches on centre console
• Hydraulic struts for bonnet
• 17-inch steel wheels
• Standard safety features

The higher S11 variant adds the following notable features to the list:

• Chrome grille
• Halogen projector headlamps with eye-brow marker lights
• LED DRLs
• Fog lamps
• Body-colour side cladding
• Roof rails
• Rear spoiler
• Height-adjustable driver seat
• Steering-mounted controls
• Cruise control
• 2 + 2 + 3 (7) and 2 + 3 + 2 (7) seat option
• Power window switches on door panel
• Sunglass holder
• Rear washer wiper
• Rear defogger
• Remote central locking with anti-theft alarm
• Side foot step
• Premium quilted fabric upholstery
• All row centre padded armrests
• Auto door lock
• Cornering lights
• 9-inch touchscreen with USB, Aux, phone mirroring and Bluetooth
• Gear-shift indicator
• Auto AC
• Power mirrors (no power folding)
• Rear camera
• Machined 17-inch alloy wheels
• Silver skid plate

Mahindra Scorpio Classic - Exterior Colour Options

The Scorpio Classic retains the popular white and black exterior colour options along with red and silver. In addition, the 2022 Classic brings the grey colour option to bring the total to 5.

Recap & Verdict - Mahindra Scorpio Classic - First Look Review

The Scorpio didn’t establish itself as a city-dweller’s first choice as SUV buyers preferred the more polished and feature-rich XUV500 and now the XUV700. But the private or government security forces and rural buyers worship the Scorpio and the Classic gives us a few more reasons to love it.

The new grille with the new logo on the keyfob, exteriors and the steering remind us that we’re in a modern car. The tall red tail lamp accent on either sides of the rear windscreen also looks retro like the 1st gen Scorpio. Similarly, the large touchscreen and quilted fabric seats improve the ambience in the cabin.

On the mechanical front, the efficient gen-2 mHawk engine, improved cable shift gear lever and re-engineered suspension are welcome changes. It offers better low-speed comfort and less body roll for better handling at higher speeds. The Mahindra engineering team’s top officials tell us that if you’ve driven an older Scorpio, then you’ll notice the improvements more easily. And if you haven’t driven the old Scorpio, then it’ll feel a lot more welcoming and easy to drive even if you haven’t driven a body-on-frame SUV before.

It uses the same platform and panels as the old Scorpio. So, the cabin still feels smaller than it should considering the large exterior proportions and has just enough leg room. Some touchpoints like the inside door-unlock latch feel too basic for a car of this price. You might also miss some features like Android Auto and Apple Carplay connectivity, power-folding mirrors, LED headlamps and fog lamps, front parking sensors, telescopic steering, soft-touch cabin elements and a sunroof.

Even without these, we believe that the Scorpio Classic does enough justice to carry forward the Scorpio name with the new ‘twin-peaks’ logo. It offers enough changes to appeal even to buyers who live in the metros but frequently travel to and from their hometown. The changes aren’t drastic enough to turn off the buyers from the rural regions or smaller towns. If you like the idea of owning a large rugged SUV but want a more modern cabin and more features, there’s always the Scorpio N.

Also Read: 2022 Mahindra Scorpio N Diesel Variants Explained - Which One To book?

You can also watch the video to know more about the variant-wise features of the Scorpio N: