Mahindra XUV500 AT vs Hyundai Creta AT comparison

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Automatic cars are in vogue these days. And with more and more buyers warming up to the idea of clutchless comfort, carmakers are going ahead and specifying all their cars with automatic gearboxes. The first SUV maker to identify this niche was Mahindra. The company launched the Scorpio AT back in 2008 but it’s the recently launched XUV500 AT that has got us excited. A few months ago, we drove the XUV500 AT and were quite impressed with it. We liked it so much that we even recommended it over its manual counterpart. But is it good enough to take on what Hyundai calls ‘the perfect SUV’? Is the Creta automatic really that good?

On paper, the XUV dwarfs the Creta with its relatively large size, two additional seats and bigger 2.2-litre diesel motor. The Hyundai, however, is more affordable as it costs Rs 1.57 lakh less. It is more car like and though it comes with a smaller 1.6-litre diesel, real-world performance is unlikely to be down on the XUV. So, which car is better – the XUV500 or the Creta? Does the Mahindra give you more for more or is the Hyundai the better car pound for pound?