JSW Chairman Sajjan Jindal Promises To Gift Indian Olympic Medal Winners This Car

JSW, also known as Jindal Steel Works, is not a major steel producing company in India but is also one of the biggest sponsors of Indian athletes competing in Olympics and other competitive events. The Chairman of JSW, Sajjan Jindal, has just announced that he would gift every Indian athlete winning a medal for the country. The gift will be a brand new MG Windsor electric crossover, which incidentally is all set to be launched here next month. Notably, Sajjan Jindal also owns 35 % of MG Motor India, and a consortium led by the JSW Chairman owns 51 % of MG Motor India. Essentially, MG Motor India is owned by the JSW led consortium.

The Windsor EV will be a big volume offering from MG Motor, which is now known for selling two other electric cars in India ranging from the Comet EV, which starts from under Rs. 10 lakh to the MG eZS, priced at well over Rs. 20 lakh.

The Windsor EV is the rebadged version of a Chinese electric crossover called the Wuling Cloud. In the Indian market, MG is using the Windsor name to signify the fact that although Chinese automaker SAIC owns MG Motor, the brand itself is British.

This strategy of MG has worked beautifully in India. In fact, its first product for the Indian market – the Hector SUV – is actually a rebadged Wuling Almaz while the flagship Gloster is the Maxus D90. By opting to use the MG brand for the Indian market, the automaker has now carved out a niche for itself.

In terms of features, the MG Windsor electric crossover will get a 15.6-inch free-floating infotainment system, an 8.8-inch digital driver’s display, multi-color ambient lighting, a sofa-mode where the middle row reclines by 135 degrees, 6-way power-adjustable driver seat and a 4-way powered front co-passenger sea, wireless phone charger and rear AC vents.

Cars from MG Motor are typically built quite well, and also have excellent interiors. These traits are likely to be carried over to the MG Windsor as well.

The MG Windsor electric crossover will be available with 2 battery pack options, similar to its international counterpart – the Wuling Cloud EV. There will be a 37.9 kWh battery pack that offers a range of 360 Km. The bigger 50.6 kWh battery pack extends the range to 460 km.

While the battery packs are different, the electric motor and peripherals will be common across both models, which will feature a front-axle-mounted permanent magnet synchronous motor producing 134 Bhp of peak power, and 200 Nm of peak torque right off idle. The lower torque rating means that the MG Windsor EV will be positioned well below the ZS EV.

A price tag between Rs. 15-20 lakh is anticipated, and these levels, the MG Windsor EV will be a compelling alternative to the likes of the Tata Nexon.EV and Mahindra XUV400. We’ll have to wait for a few weeks before the actual price announcement happens though. Watch this space.