MG Motors India has just revealed the price for their latest launch, MG Astor. The MG Astor is launched at a special introductory price of Rs. 9.78 Lakh, while the top end turbo variant goes upto Rs 16.78 Lakh( ex showroom). Making it the most affordable urban SUV in its segment, rivaling directly with the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Skoda Kushaq & Volkswagen Taigun.
The Astor comes with a personal AI assistant and Autonomous (Level 2) technology, which are both a segment first feature.
The Astor is offered in four variants, the base level trim-Style, Super, Smart and the top of the line-Sharp.
The most anticipated variant is the ADAS variant which has autonomous driving technology. However, MG Motors has not revealed the prices for the ADAS variant yet.
MG motors seems to be charming the urban SUV users, as they claim that the Astor, will deliver an ownership cost of just 47 paise per kilometer, if driven for a lakh kilometer in it’s life. That’s not it, MG India, in collaboration with Car Dekho, a used car selling platform, is promising a 60 % assured buyback after three years on the ex-showroom price.
The Astor is only offered with two choices of petrol engine, a 1.3 Litre turbocharged and a 1.5 litre Naturally aspirated engine. The turbo petrol kicks out an amazing 140 Hp and 200 Nm of torque, which is punchy enough for a mid size urban SUV. However, the Naturally aspirated engine produces a humble 114 Hp and 144 Nm of torque.
The Naturally aspirated 1.5L engine will be offered with a 5 speed manual or a CVT automatic gearbox whereas the turbo petrol will only be offered with a 6 speed torque converter automatic gearbox.
The only drawback that can be seen from the first impression of the Astor, is the missing diesel engine. The sales figures of all the midsize urban SUV, translates into consumer’s preference for a diesel engine, mainly looking out for the cost of driving, but with almost no difference in the prices of Diesel & Petrol, we might see a change in this trend.
