Chery Tiggo 4 vs Mahindra XUV 3XO: Battle of the small SUV budget warriors 

If you’re of the opinion that all new cars are wildly overpriced, then the Chery Tiggo 4 and Mahindra XUV 3XO are about to drive straight through your beliefs.  

The Chery’s value-packed proposition is proving popular with buyers, its 7996 sales so far in 2025 (to the end of June) putting it fourth in the small SUV segment, though its price and size put it closer to the light SUV segment where it would be snapping at the heels of the leading Mazda CX-3. 

Mahindra is hoping to capture a significant slice of this action with its new baby, so how does it stack up against Wheels’ current Best Value Small SUV? 

Pricing 

Razor-sharp pricing is key to the appeal of the Chery Tiggo 4 and Mahindra XUV 3XO and there’s nothing splitting them, the entry-level variants costing $23,990 with the up-spec ones $26,990 and both prices are drive away. 

For a limited time, the Mahindra has a slight upper hand with an introductory offer until August 31 of $23,490 driveaway for the XUV 3XO AX5L and $26,490 for the XUV 3XO AX7L. Either way, your new car’s name will double as a very handy secure password.  

For the purposes of this article, we’ll concentrate on the higher-spec variants, so be aware some features may disappear if you go down a rung. 

Chery offers red as standard with other colours an extra $500, whereas it’s white for the Mahindra with other options $495. 

There are slight differences in aftersales coverage, Chery offering a seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty with seven years of roadside assistance, which Mahindra matches bar capping the warranty at 150,000km. 

Servicing for the XUV 3XO is required every 12 months or 15,000km (bar the first at 10,000km) with a capped figure of $1994 for the first six years or 85,000km, whichever comes first. 

Over the same period the Chery costs $1838.79, with the first five visits capped at $289 apiece, required every 12 months or 15,000km. 

Dimensions 

While we wouldn’t recommend either of the Chery Tiggo 4 or Mahindra XUV 3XO for transporting the local rugby club, given their relatively diminutive size both offer reasonable space for four adults. 

The Mahindra is a sizeable 361mm shorter than the Chery, its sub-4m length gaining it a tax concession in its native India, but otherwise the two are virtually identical in terms of size. The XUV’s truncated overhangs will also make it king of the parallel park. 

One thing worth noting in the fine print. On a cursory glance the Mahindra’s 364-litre boot is remarkably similar to the Chery’s 380 litres, which seems incredible given its smaller length, but that figure is measured to the roof rather than the top of the rear seats. Measured in the same fashion, the Chery claims 500 litres. 

*measured to roof

Equipment 

Given their respective price tags, the feature lists of the Chery Tiggo 4 and Mahindra XUV 3XO are incredible: faux-leather trim, alloy wheels, LED lighting, glass roofs, cooled gloveboxes and more. 

It’s not just trinketry, either, with basics like rear air vents often overlooked even in much more expensive cars. 

Powertrains 

Your need for speed won’t be sated here but thanks to the turbochargers attached to their small, four-cylinder petrol engines, the Chery Tiggo 4 and Mahindra XUV 3XO have enough low-end grunt to keep up with traffic. 

The downside of such small engines is they need to be worked a bit harder and fuel consumption is possibly higher than you might expect in day-to-day use, but both are happy on 91 RON fuel. 

*combined claim

Safety 

It’s remarkable that these sharply-priced offerings pack safety equipment that was the preserve of high-end premium machinery not too long ago. 

The Chery Tiggo 4 wears a five-star ANCAP rating with scores of 88 per cent for adult occupant protection, 87 per cent for child occupant protection, 79 per cent for vulnerable road user protection (ie pedestrians) and 85 per cent for safety assist. 

Seven airbags, including a front-centre airbag, are backed by forward collision warning, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane-keep assist and departure warning, adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist, blind-spot detection, lane-change assist, rear cross-traffic alert with braking, speed assist and driver monitoring. 

Parking is assisted by rear sensors, a reversing camera and 360-degree monitor, while ISOFIX points on the outboard rear seats and a trio of top tethers are available for securing the kids. 

The Mahindra is currently unrated by ANCAP and while its safety offering is comprehensive, it does lack a few features compared to the Chery, notably the front-centre airbag (for six in total), rear cross-traffic alert and blind-spot monitoring, though there is an indicator-activated display. 

Otherwise, it still boasts plenty of features, including AEB with pedestrian and cyclist detection, adaptive cruise with stop & go function, lane departure warning, traffic sign recognition and more. Both cars also offer tyre pressure monitoring, which is handy for early identification of leaks. 

Technology 

Once again, the technology offerings of the Chery Tiggo 4 and Mahindra XUV 3XO defy their price and positioning. Both offer a pair of 10.25-inch screens for infotainment and driver instrumentation, wireless smartphone mirroring (Apple CarPlay and Android Auto) and charging and digital radio. 

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It’s worth noting that neither offers native satellite navigation, but we suspect few buyers will even know, instead using the maps functionality through their phone. In the higher variants there are branded premium stereos, and the Mahindra has a 65W USB-C port capable of charging larger electronic devices like laptops. 

Conclusion 

There is an element of “can’t go wrong” here. The Chery Tiggo 4 and Mahindra XUV 3XO will leave you with plenty of change from $30,000 parked on your driveway, have long warranties, bulging equipment lists, plenty of safety equipment and they even look pretty good, too. 

While the Chery has a few more features and greater grunt (albeit with a greater thirst), picking between these two may simply be down to your space requirements.  

The Mahindra’s compact dimensions come at the expense of luggage space, but then it might be the perfect size to sneak into the spot right outside your house in the tightly packed inner-city street. 

The Hyundai Venue is the most obvious rival, but if you’re not wedded to the idea of an SUV, the Suzuki Swift is similar in size and price and much more frugal. The Chery and Mahindra also offer an interest brand-new alternative to used examples of the Mazda CX-3, Toyota Yaris Cross and Skoda Kamiq.