The Jeep CJ Is Back: Meet the Mahindra ROXOR

The Jeep CJ is Back! Sort of.

If you’re looking for classic Jeep CJ opentop, doorless, off-road fun, then Mahindra has the answer! Sadly, you can’t drive it down the road, in most states at least, but you can conquer the terrain you might face once off the pavement. This ‘new’ vehicle is called the ROXOR.

What is a Roxor?

A ROXOR is basically a classic Jeep CJ that is being offered new to the U.S. market by mega company Mahindra from India. The vehicle will be offered as a UTV, an off-highway vehicle only, as there is no way it could meet modern emissions or crash test standards.

The ROXOR will have a familiar classic CJ-looking steel body, boxed steel frame, solid axels, leaf spring suspension, rear drum brakes and proper 4WD. Besides its classic architecture, it will also offer modern touches like hydraulic power steering, front disk brakes, quality high/low beam headlights, a roll cage and proven BFG KO2 tires. It is a rugged, basic, utilitarian off-road vehicle.

Maybe most surprising is that it will be offered in a manual 5-speed transmission only, and powered by a 2.5L inline four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine. You’ll have fun rowing the gears to keep this little 62hp, 144 lb-ft of torque engine at peak power. That power is plenty to move the Roxor’s 3,035 pounds effortlessly. It also should have a solid 325-plus mile range with its 12-gallon diesel fuel tank, as it gets about 25-30 mpg.

Where does it come from?

Mahindra started producing Willy CJ3 in 1947, under license for the Asian market, and has continually produced a version ever since. The current street legal version found in India is called the Thar, which looks more like a Wrangler from the ‘90s than an old CJ.

MANA, Mahindra Automotive North America, is building the Roxor in its new headquarters and manufacturing facilities in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The Roxor will be built from knockdown vehicle kits manufactured in India and assembled in Michigan. The vehicle currently contains about 20-percent U.S. content, but MANA is aiming to achieve 50-percent U.S. content over the next few years.

The Roxor is just the start for MANA, as it has undisclosed plans for more vehicles, probably on-road vehicles, to offer the North American market. The U.S. currently has 50 percent of global off-road vehicle (ORV) sales, so Mahindra thinks it’s a good place to start with their North American vehicle offerings.

How can I get a Roxor?

Yes, you can now buy a modern interpretation of the old Willy CJ crossed with a modern side-by-side in North America. MANA is selling the Roxor through more than 200 powersports dealers across the continent. At launch the Roxor comes in two models, the Base model for $15,400 and the Limited Edition (LE) model for $18,400, which offers a ton of useful bolton accessories.

Accessorize

The Roxor LE comes with lots of high quality accessories as standard; a windscreen, side view mirrors, roll bar grab handles, 40-inch KC HiLights LED Light Bar, Bestop Bikini Soft Top, Warn M8000 Winch, HD front bumper and winch mounting plate, HD battery and an MTX AM/FM Bluetooth Sound Bar. All that comes on top of the passenger grab handle, roll cage, BFG tires, alloy wheels, Linex coated lower body and interior, integrated cup holders and under seat locking storage that comes standard on the Base model.

There are a lot of accessories in the pipeline for the Roxor, both by MANA and the aftermarket. Very soon you’ll be able to dial in your Roxor with: e-lockers, bead lock wheels, AC and heat, a second row of seats, hardtop, full soft cabin enclosure and so much more. If those capability and comfort upgrades aren’t enough there are even rumors of MANA offering heated/cooled seats and a heated steering wheel as available options very soon.

Driving Impressions

With leaf springs and mono-tube shocks all around you’d expect the Roxor to drive like a 71-year-old Jeep, and that’s exactly what you’ll get. I’ll say that it’s super fun and off-road capable, but not exactly smooth. The shocks, in particular, are ripe for an upgrade, which I’m sure will be on offer soon.

The small turbo-diesel is actually pretty quiet and delivers smooth reliable power. While it is computer speed limited to 45 miles per hour, it should be capable of much more. Rumor is that it would just take a little re-lash of the Bosh engine controller to open up the speed.

You will need to know how to drive a stick shift to drive the Roxor. It is an extremely easy to drive manual transmission however, as the clutch is light and the torquey diesel engine makes it incredibly hard to stall. A classic style off-road vehicle like this should be driven, and in my opinion, that requires a proper stick shift and clutch pedal. With that said, I’m sure at some point MANA will offer an automatic option.

Improvements Can Be Made

The Roxor checks most of the right boxes: solid axels, diesel engine, manual transmission, proper 4WD and a plethora of available options. Besides the elephant in the room, not being able to legally drive it on the street, the Roxor also has a few other areas it can be improved.

My biggest issue with the Roxor is the extremely poor turning radius, at 20 feet. For a small lightweight off-road vehicle, it should be able to maneuver easily on tight trails, and it just can’t. While it offers 2WD in the gearbox, it is really hard to get it into 2WD from 4WD. The 4-Hi and 4-Lo are super easy to engage and disengage, but getting it into 2WD was near impossible. Luckily, you’re unlikely to ever really need 2WD with this vehicle.

I’m a picky consumer who reviews vehicles and gear for a living, so the following thoughts are probably asking too much of a sub $20,000 classic Jeep-like UTV, but I thought I should point them out anyway. There is no dead pedal for the driver’s left foot, something that would come in quite handy in order to better brace yourself into the seat when you’re bouncing around off road. The horn on the Roxor has a rather weak sound, something I’d for sure swap out for a quality small motorcycle-style air horn. The last little thing is the headlight rocker switch, which requires an up click for low beams and a down click for high beams. The issue is that in order for the headlights to be off, the switch needs to be in the center Neutral position; it is very easy to leave the lights on and drain the battery, as there is also no warning alarm.