Indian automaker Mahindra and Mahindra’s plans of selling pickups in the United States were long ago derailed by a still-raging legal battle between the company and its importer, Global Vehicles USA. However, a recent rumor suggests that the automaker could have a new scheme for entering the U.S. market that will obviate the need for a pesky importer altogether.
Mahindra Planet claims that Mahindra will begin assembling its diesel-powered T20 and T40 pickup trucks at a Navistar factory in northwestern Alabama starting in 2012. The site, which bills itself as “The Unofficial Mahindra U.S. News Source,” didn’t name its sources but also pointed to the longstanding connection between Mahindra and Navistar, an international commercial truck manufacturer.
The two companies jointly produce heavy trucks for the Indian market and have a working relationship that dates 1963, according to Mahindra Planet. Navistar has not commented on exactly what it will build at the Alabama plant, which it recently acquired, a stance that leaves the door open for speculation but certainly doesn’t prove anything, either.
Partnering up with Navistar, which Mahindra’s CEO did say earlier this year was a possibility, could make sense in that it would provide the Indian company with a proven distributor network for its trucks.
If (and that’s a big if) the rumor proves to be true, it could still be some time before Mahindra pickups are available for sale, as the company will need to submit a formal application to the EPA for federal emissions certification. Technically, Mahindra could file the paperwork by the end of this year to sell the pickups as 2012 models, but its far more likely to see them coming out as 2013 models.
References
1.’Revealed: U.S. Mahindra…’ view
