Despite the fact that many automakers are trying to exit the small pickup truck market, India’s Mahindra & Mahindra will soon enter the U.S. market with a small pickup being its lone offering. That offering — dubbed the Appalachian – will be available for U.S. consumers to see at the upcoming SAE Congress in Detroit, Michigan.
And if a diesel-powered small pickup truck from India wasn’t interesting enough, the Appalachian on display will actually be a diesel hybrid. While it remains unclear if Mahindra will sell a diesel hybrid version of the truck in the U.S., if the project got the green light, it would be the first and only of its kind on the U.S. market.
But when the Appalachian does hit the U.S. market in 2010, it will be powered by a 2.2L diesel four-cylinder, good for about 150 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque.
Pricing for the Appalachian is expect to start in the low $20,000 range, with the hybrid option — if it ever makes it to our shores — adding about a $5,000 premium.
