Spy Shots: Mahindra’s U.S. Postal Service Mail Truck Prototype Spotted
Another prototype mail delivery truck in the running for a lucrative U.S. Postal Service contract has been spotted while awaiting testing.
Spy photographers captured images of the truck, built by the Indian auto manufacturer Mahindra, recently on a USPS lot in Flint, Mich.
The Mahindra truck is one of five entries under review by the
USPS Next Generation Delivery Vehicle Program that is expected to select a new mail truck in the first half of 2018. The USPS contract is for up to 180,000 trucks.
Mahindra signals plans for 400,000-square-foot auto plant in Detroit area
DETROIT -- India's Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. on Thursday said it plans to build a 400,000-square-foot auto assembly plant near Detroit, which would be the first new auto plant in the region in more than 25 years.
The global manufacturer has scheduled a press conference for Nov. 20 in the Detroit suburb of Auburn Hills, Mich., with local political leaders, according to an advisory sent by Mahindra North America.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson hinted at Mahindra’s plans on Oct. 25 in New Delhi, Bloomberg reported. Mahindra plans to build off-road utility vehicles in the plant,
The Times of India reported at the time. Mahindra's advisory didn't indicate when production would begin.
Mahindra has been attempting to enter the U.S. automotive market for more than 10 years, which included plans for a pickup truck and a possible retail network of more than 300 dealers. But those plans
derailed in 2010 and
ended up in litigation.
Dealers sued Mahindra in 2012, claiming the automaker "pocketed more than $9.5 million, more than a $100 million worth of dealer trade secrets to utilize for their future entrance into the U.S. market, and a strong market foundation gained at the expense of the dealers' 'free' promotion of Mahindra's brand name around the U.S."
Mahindra denied the dealers' claims, placing blame for the failure of plans to sell its pickups here on its former U.S. distributor, Global Vehicles U.S.A. Inc. of Atlanta. The current status of that litigation was not immediately clear. An amended complaint was filed
by six dealerships in 2016.
In 2013, Mahindra established its North American automotive headquarters in Troy, Mich., which includes design, engineering and vehicle development. Then in 2014, Mahinda announced plans to expand its technical center,
adding about 110 engineering jobs.