The Indian market has been gaining strong momentum in recent years, with an increasing number of the population heading to dealer forecourts.
But while India’s people have typically ridden on the backs of motorbikes (with their families in tow), the new, younger consumer is more interested in high-riding yet compact SUVs. Cue Honda’s latest concept to cater to this new consumer: the Vision XS-1, unveiled at the Delhi auto show earlier this week.
The Vision XS-1 is based on the company’s M/M (man maximum, machine minimum) concept, which embodies the Japanese carmaker’s philosophy to maximize space for occupants and minimize that required for mechanical components. As such, the Vision XS-1 was designed to cater to buyers with larger families, with three rows of seats wrapped in a compact exterior shell.
Honda says the Vision XS-1 is a “human-centered design” created to represent not only the company’s creativity in designing compact vehicles for globally expanding markets. The large opening sliding doors (and the omission of a central B-pillar) optimize ingress and egress, whilst the exterior design gives the vehicle a sense of sportiness not typically found in larger people-carriers.
Although there are no plans to produce the car at the moment, Honda is wisely keeping a close eye on the burgeoning Indian market.
