Mahindra Duro scooter facelift spied in an ICB Exclusive; Launch could happen at the end of this month!

Team ICB’s roving eye in the sky is back at it again and this time around, it is the facelifted version of the Mahindra Duro powerscooter from Mahindra Two Wheelers that has been snapped up, doing in what appears to be the testing rounds, ahead of a launch date that could be slated for the end of this month. The Mahindra Duro first began life as the Kinetic Nova with a 113.5cc four stroke engine to boot and was Kinetic’s answer to the bestselling Honda Activa.

Mahindra Duro Facelift Spyshot

The Nova then became the “AAHO”(Advanced Acceleration & Handling Optimizer) scooter, when Kinetic plonked in a 135cc four stroke heart that made it a rorty performer although low fuel economy and Kinetic Engineering Limited eventually going under meant that the 135cc engine sank without a trace. When Mahindra took over Kinetic’s two wheeler division and renamed it Mahindra Two Wheelers, the Nova was resurrected as the Duro power scooter, albeit with the 125cc, 8 Bhp-9 Nm, engine borrowed from the Sym Flyte.

Sales of the Mahindra Duro though, have remained quite tepid to say the least. To infuse new life into the sales dud, Mahindra Two Wheelers have given the Duro a makeover that isn’t just skin deep. So, you get telescopic front forks replacing the unit link suspension that the Mahindra Duro originally came with. This major change is expected to give the Duro a much better ride and bad road handling capability.

Mahindra Duro Facelift Spyshot

Rattles too could be minimized if Mahindra Two Wheelers manages to make the suspension is absorbent enough to not transmit all the harsh vibrations of the road to the Duro’s ABS plastic body. Visually, the Duro also gets a new curvier headlamp, that does its bit to reduce the bulbousness of the Duro, and this is something that actually seems to be working. Finally, a new instrumentation console is the other change that the Duro will sport.

The engine though remains the same 8 Bhp-9 Nm, 125cc four stroke motor along with all other specifications of the current variants of the Mahindra Duro. Expect the facelifted Mahindra Duro to see a launch later this month. The big question still remains whether the Duro with the facelift, will have enough cred to challenge the likes of the Honda Activa, the TVS Wego and the Suzuki Access 125, which continue to outsell it by many times to one!

Share and Enjoy: