Mahindra eyes US market

LOS ANGELES/MUMBAI: Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, India's largest maker of sport-utility vehicles, is betting its diesel pickup trucks can beat the Chinese to the US market.

Early next year, Mumbai-based Mahindra plans to start selling small two- and four-door pickups with a diesel engine that meets California's strict exhaust rules. US plans for Chinese brands such as Chery Automobile Co and Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd have yet to materialize, five years into their announcements.

"Once you establish the brand, volumes will come," Pawan Goenka, Mahindra's president in charge of the automotive business, said in a June 16 interview. "There is a hole available to us which is not populated."