Mahindra Bolero ‘Attitude’ delivers on its name

It’s been 10 years since Mahindra & Mahindra reworked its Armada SUV into a more civil machine. The company renamed its off-road machine the Bolero at that time, and since then, the beast has found favor with the police, military and regular citizens who need a little off-road prowess in their daily commute. To celebrate the nameplate’s 10-year anniversary, Mahindra has rolled out a new 2011 version of the truck, complete with one very interesting exterior design. From the looks of things, the truck has all of the necessary goodies for tackling the trails of India, including a wicked light bar, a Mahindra logo-shaped snorkel, tow loops and yes, even a pick-axe.

According to Mahindra, the Bolero is the best-selling SUV in India. The truck sold 70,554 units last year, becoming the first SUV to break the 70,000 barrier in India in the process. It’s easy to see why. We love this thing almost in spite of ourselves. It looks like a mad scientist somewhere cooked up the DNA of a Hummer H2, Jeep Wrangler and a Land Rover Defender only to come out with this Tonka truck. Hit the jump for one very entertaining press release.

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Report: Mahindra introduction to U.S. ‘indefinitely delayed’

We apparently won’t be seeing any Mahindra trucks on U.S. roads any time soon. The company has announced that it has no date in mind for its American introduction, and that as of right now, its progress into this market is indefinitely delayed. The hangup resides in an ever-growing legal battle between the Indian company and its almost-was importer here in the States, Global Vehicles USA. As you’ll likely recall, GV USA claims that Mahindra improperly terminated its contract with them earlier this year, noting that the automaker now wants to sell vehicles directly to U.S. customers instead of going through a middle man.

Mahindra, meanwhile, says that it doesn’t want to get into a “war of words” with its former importer. Also, the company has made it clear that it still wants to break into the American market. How exactly it plans to do so is still somewhat murky, however.

In the meantime, Global Vehicles USA has filed an injunction in federal court claiming breach of contract and urging the court to bar Mahindra vehicles from entering the states in the future.

One thing’s for sure, this mess has yet to completely unravel, and none of it bodes well for the availability of inexpensive diesel-powered pickups in America.

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