It isn’t easy to catch fancy of buyers in the mass segment, which is long dominated by Honda’s ace scooter Activa. More than that, this segment is preferred by customers looking for a daily commuter yielding healthy economy to save on their monthly expenditure on fuel. With all these things in mind and of course considering that pricing could not go beyond the affordable limit, Mahindra (a relatively new player in two-wheeler segment), spun off Gusto a couple of years ago. Touted as a global model, Gusto sports decent design although it is not very appealing but it is on par with other models in the volume segment. For power generation, it employs a 110cc engine mated to an auto tranny.
Being a global model it becomes necessary for Gusto to be well clad and Mahindra has tried its best to make the scooter look appealing. The design isn’t too clever, but it is built along the lines of usual scooters in the segment. Front gets aluminium faux panel featuring clear lens indicators, pseudo air vents and Mahindra logo. The head lamp is equipped on the handle-bar just like regular scooters get and modish rear mirrors too are equipped on the handle-bar. Flanks are suave, but then this is a usual view in most of the 110cc scooters. Rear is marked by a robust grab rail and a stylish tail lamp, the indicator and licence plate appear as a single unit which does not come out too well.
Mahindra Gusto Engine Specifications and Transmission
Gusto houses a 109.6cc, 4-stroke, air-cooled, M-TEC engine developing 8.0bhp at 7500rpm along with 9Nm at 5500rpm, the engine comes mated to a CVT.
Mahindra Gusto Features
Features like halogen head lamps with LED lamps, height adjustable seat, remote flip key, find me lamps, guide lamp, large tubeless tyres, instrument cluster with analog speedometer, fuel gauge, easy front kick and utility storage space etc are available on Gusto. The feature rich Gusto gets some of the segment best fitments absent in arch rivals such as Activa, Jupiter and Maestro. Frankly, Jupiter is the only model that gets tubeless tyres and telescopic suspensions with air springs, besides these features the model is bereft of rest of the above mentioned equipment.
Mahindra Gusto Performance & Mileage
The 109.6cc petrol engine is very frugal in nature and is claimed to deliver impressive fuel economy of 63.7kmpl. Suspension duties are carried out by telescopic air springs, which is not as firm as one would expect.
Mahindra Gusto Wheels & Tyres
The Gusto features large 12 inch tyres that vouch firmness even at high-speeds. These tubeless tyres not just provide stability on road but they are also vital from the point of view of safety.
Mahindra Gusto Competition
In the highly competitive 110cc scooter segment, Mahindra Gusto faces threat from a number of products such as TVS Jupiter, Honda Activa, Yamaha Ray and Hero Maestro.
Pros
Affordable pricing
Feature loaded
Excellent mileage
Cons
Heavy as compared to rivals.