Well loaded and looks the part.

Just as the engine is a most un-Mahindra-like but welcome attribute of the Scorpio, its interior and equipment levels mirror similar lines of thought. Open the door and you wonder whether you are peeking at a Mahindra or an international SUV. The choice of fabrics for the seats, the texture and shade of the dashboard plastic and the door pads radiate a feelgood factor hitherto absent in a Mahindra vehicle. Even the design is contemporary and that is a major advance but then nothing else would have done. Raiding parts bins of previous partners is good as long as the partner tolerates this exercise and so one sees gear - meters, switches, vents - from various Fords - present day Ikon and consigned-to-the-past Escort crop up in tasteful measure in the Scorpio’s cabin.

The Scorpio's interior comes across like a whiff of fresh air, It is turned out well from both aesthetic and ergonomic points of view though fit and finish could have been just that shade better. The resulting airy ambience in the cabin is most welcome. Driving position (above right) is great with fine optimisation of steering and pedals for reach. But the seats lack under-thigh support and are hopeless in holding the driver in place - even when belted tight - during directional changes. Maybe one could factor in some side support, so useful for a vehicle which has a tendency to rock and roll. Meaty steering wheel hightens the sense of occasion(right) but for a vehicle which is new, even if one raids a former partner's ancillary bins, one should effect a modicum of visual change. No point in having everyone talk about Ikon clocks and switches and...

The driver’s environ is a great one and here Mahindra has got it dead right. The seating position is great, the pedals are at a comfortable reach and the steering wheel easily at hand. I have some fetish for steering wheels being just right and such and I must confess that the meatily rimmed job with the pierced texture is one of the best on any Indian automobile. The stalk switches are contemporary while the central console impresses in the switchgear for the air con. The air vents play their part but their swivel angles seem mighty clipped. The gear lever falls to hand superbly as does the hand brake which is now shrouded by a classy console. The door pads mirror the feelgood theme as do the door handles and door openers plus the grab handle for the front passenger.

The seats look sporty and inviting but lack thigh and side support. Given the Scorpio’s rockin’ and rollin’ when driven through the sweepers, they are unable to hold the driver and front passenger firmly in place. Mahindra says that it has devised them for the Indian physique; heck no one told us that we are un-Indian in our physical make-up and only stumbled onto this fact thanks to the handy fine print in the publicity blurb extolling the virtues of the Scorpio’s seats.

There are no issues with head and leg room in front but at the rear, you have to live with scraped knees. Leg room is OK if you are a dwarf but for a majority of normal Bharatvasis the inadequacies so inherent in keeping the same wheelbase for ages seems to have reared its head. Mahindra should have worked on this if only to give decent room to those who want to make the transition from C-segment saloon to SUV. The way the space is proportioned at the rear, it seems par for the course for those making the grade from a Marshal to a Scorpio. The third row of seats is an emergency one at best again with the knees having to bear the brunt. But it is not all that bad because Mahindra has sensibly allowed for folding seats not only to facilitate good entry and exit but also to afford loading space should one need it.

Thank heavens the air con helps to keep one cool under the collar, be it driver or back bencher.