Xev 9s - Pack Three - First time EV buyer - Experience in detail after 2250 KMs with it
Bought the Mahindra XEV 9e (9s) Pack Three in Nebula Blue from Hyderabad.
Completed ~2250 km and also finished the first free service (2,000 km / 2 months).
Coming from a Kia Seltos 1.5 Petrol, here are my honest observations after daily driving, highways, city traffic, and long trips.
First Impressions
This being my first ₹30L+ car definitely feels special.
Not going to lie — it’s also a bit of a brag booster among friends 😄
Almost everyone who sat in the car was immediately impressed by:
- the smoothness,
- instant acceleration,
- silent cabin experience,
- and overall futuristic feel.
The car genuinely feels premium and different from regular ICE SUVs.
Performance & Acceleration
The pickup is absolutely insane.
I had never experienced this kind of acceleration before. Even in Range mode, the car jumps from double-digit speeds to triple digits in just a few seconds. Highway overtakes are effortless.
- Range mode is capped at 120 km/h.
- In Race mode, it reaches 180 km/h extremely quickly.
But honestly, speeds above 180 km/h do not inspire confidence. I’m not sure if it’s mainly due to the suspension setup, but the car does not feel as planted as I expected at very high speeds.
Still, for regular usage, the smoothness + instant torque combination is addictive.
Suspension – My Real Experience
A lot of reviewers talk about the suspension, and yes, I do think Mahindra could improve it.
I created a custom mode with:
- Acceleration: Range
- Suspension: Race
But the behavior still feels a bit odd on uneven roads.
Interestingly, my issue is not front-back movement like many reviews mention. For me, it’s more of a side-to-side movement on rough patches and small road imperfections. You can actually feel yourself moving side-to-side in the seat.
That said:
- In Range mode, the suspension becomes extremely soft.
- Big potholes and speed breakers are absorbed very well.
- Unlike my Kia Seltos, I almost never feel a harsh “thud.”
So overall:
- Plain roads → very comfortable
- Low to moderate speeds → good stability
- Uneven patchy roads → noticeable sideways movement
- 180+ km/h → not confidence inspiring
Sound System – Surprisingly Good
I genuinely love the speaker system.
The 16-speaker setup sounds excellent after tweaking the equalizer a bit:
- good bass,
- nice cabin feel,
- immersive audio experience.
Definitely one of the highlights of the car for me.
But there’s one annoying issue:
After ending a phone call, the music suddenly blasts at a very high volume for half a second before normalizing.
It scares me literally every time.
My old Kia Seltos handled this much better by gradually increasing volume smoothly.
Software & Feature Observations (Bugs / Niggles)
There are definitely a few software bugs right now.
1. Android Auto Connection Issues
Sometimes wireless Android Auto simply refuses to connect.
I usually have to restart WiFi and Bluetooth on my phone to make it work again.
2. Seat Ventilation Bug
Occasionally, seat ventilation turns OFF after 1–2 seconds automatically.
Mahindra says this is fixed in the latest update. Need to test it more.
3. 360 Camera Failure (Scary One)
One time the 360 camera completely stopped working.
- Manual opening from the screen also failed.
- Had to park using mirrors only.
- Restarted the car after ~5 minutes and it came back normally.
Thankfully it happened only once, but honestly I got scared thinking the car had broken down.
4. Seat Memory Seems Inconsistent
I save my seat settings to Profile 1, but somehow it never feels exactly the same the next day.
Not sure whether:
- the profile system is buggy, or
- I’m just overthinking it.
But I end up adjusting the seat almost every time.
5. Regen Braking Defaults
I personally prefer L0 (no regenerative braking).
But every time the car starts, it defaults back to L1 automatically. Would love an option to save the preferred default.
6. Auto Emergency Braking (Most Dangerous Issue)
Lane centering and other ADAS features are actually pretty good.
But the automatic emergency braking can be genuinely dangerous in Indian traffic.
My recommendation:
- Either turn it OFF
- Or switch it to warning-only mode
Otherwise, I honestly feel someone might rear-end you someday because of sudden braking.
7. Custom Mode Does Not Save Properly
Another small annoyance:
Even though the car supports custom ride modes, it does not remember my preferred custom mode after restarting the vehicle.
Every single time I start the car, I have to manually:
- open drive modes
- select custom mode again
It’s only 2 clicks, but still feels unnecessary for a tech-focused EV.
8. Settings Are Too Deep Inside Menus
There are many useful settings I wish were directly accessible from the main “My Car” screen.
Instead, many options are hidden several layers deep inside settings menus.
Some actions take way too many clicks while driving or parked.
9. BYOD Features Need Improvement
The BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) feature is actually pretty cool.
The showroom quoted around ₹5k for their BYOD holder, but I found a phone/tablet holder on Amazon for around ₹300 and it works perfectly.
I successfully used:
- one extra screen in the 2nd row,
- one extra screen in the 3rd row.
Honestly, I even want to try running 4 screens someday just for fun 😄
But there are some annoyances:
- BYOD permissions have to be enabled every single time after starting the car.
- The option is buried deep inside settings.
- Takes nearly a dozen clicks to reach.
Would have been much better if it stayed enabled by default.
Sunroof Controls
Initially the sunroof controls were confusing.
But after watching a tutorial/manual video, it became much easier to understand.
There’s definitely a learning curve to some of the controls in this car.
Third Row Comfort
One thing that genuinely surprised me:
The 3rd row is actually usable.
My brothers who are around 5’8” and 5’9” were comfortable even during long trips.
That’s something I honestly didn’t expect from this kind of SUVdesign.
Real-World Battery Range
This is the part where expectations vs reality hit slightly.
What I’m Getting:
- Normal driving → ~375 to 400 km
- Race mode → ~250 to 300 km
I was expecting closer to 450 km in normal usage.
Maybe 450 is possible:
- in downhill/hilly terrain
- with heavy regenerative braking usage
But in my regular Hyderabad driving conditions, I’m not seeing that number.
Also, Race mode is mostly just for fun.
I honestly don’t see practical daily usage for it unless you’re on a very long empty highway.
EV Charging Infrastructure – The Bigger Problem
Honestly, the bigger issue is not even the car. It’s the EV ecosystem in India right now.
Problems I Faced:
- Many charging stations are faulty or non-functional.
- A lot of chargers show available in apps but don’t actually work.
- Around 80% of chargers are still below 60 kW.
- The remaining ones are usually around 90–100 kW max.
Infrastructure seriously needs improvement if EV adoption is going to increase properly.
Important Advice About Home Charging (Learn From My Mistake)
This is a BIG one for anyone planning to buy this car.
Do NOT blindly buy the 11 kW charger.
I made that mistake.
What happened in my case:
- I spent ~₹78k for the 11 kW charger.
- Then I found out my home electrical load was insufficient.
- Government approval/load increase process is slow.
- I’m still waiting for my sanctioned load to increase to at least 12 kW.
So right now, I’m forced to run the 11 kW charger at around 7.5 kW anyway.
Honestly, I could have simply bought a good third-party 7.5 kW charger for around ₹30k and saved a lot of money.
So please:
- First verify your home sanctioned electrical load.
- Then decide whether you really need the 11 kW setup.
Learn from my mistake.
Charging Apps Situation Is Also Messy
Another annoying thing:
There is NO single reliable app showing all charging stations properly.
I literally had to install around 15 different EV charging apps.
Out of those:
- maybe 5–6 apps are actually useful,
- and each one shows different chargers.
The EV ecosystem really needs a unified charging platform.
(If anyone wants, I can share the list of apps I currently use.)
Storage & Practicality
Front Trunk
Actually useful and well designed.
Rear Boot
Disappointing.
We genuinely struggled to plan a 10-day family trip because fitting all luggage becomes difficult.
Might eventually buy a roof luggage box.
Small But Funny Daily Niggle
I absolutely love the auto-unlock feature when I walk near the car with the key.
But it only unlocks the driver door.
So almost every time:
- I enter the car,
- my family stands outside awkwardly,
- then reminds me to unlock the remaining doors manually 😄
Would really love an option to unlock all doors automatically.
Accessories Situation
This was another disappointment.
The showroom had basically no accessories available and they themselves had no idea when stock would arrive.
I ended up installing accessories outside at Car Sonics, Hyderabad.
I was especially waiting for the privacy screen guard that hides the passenger display from the driver, but it wasn’t available.
Thankfully, the passenger screen honestly doesn’t distract me while driving because it’s not directly in my line of sight.
Overall Verdict After 2250 km
Despite the bugs, charging headaches, and suspension complaints, the XEV 9e still feels like a glimpse into the future.
The performance, smoothness, premium feel, tech experience, road presence, and silent cabin make the car feel genuinely special.
But Mahindra definitely needs:
- better software optimization
- suspension tuning improvements
- more polished ADAS calibration
- easier access to settings/UI shortcuts
And India seriously needs:
- better EV charging infrastructure
- faster chargers
- more reliable charging networks
- a unified charging app ecosystem
Still, every time I press the accelerator, I forget most of the complaints 😄
PS: I originally wanted to post this ownership review on Team-BHP, but unfortunately I never got access/approval there, so sharing my complete real-world experience here instead 😄