From army vehicles to farm tractors to major automobile manufacturing, Mahindra's relationship with American industry goes back quite a few years. American GI's who served in India during World War II recognize our parent company, Mahindra & Mahindra, which in 1945 was selected to assemble the famous Willys jeep.
Following Indian independence in 1947, the founders of Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) were determined to chart a course of product expansion and globalization. The philosphy led to the company's eventual entrance into the worldwide tractor market.
In 1963, M&M formed a joint venture with International Harvester to manufacture tractors carrying the Mahindra nameplate for the Indian market. Armed with engineering, tooling and manufacturing know-how gained from this relationship, M&M developed its first tractor, the B-275. This successor to International Harvester's incredibly popular IH B-414 is still the basis for some current
Mahindra models.
More recently, a joint venture between M&M and Ford Motor Company in 1995 created new opportunities for growth in the world vehicle market. A short time later, the European model of the Ford Escort began rolling off the Mahindra assembly lines.
Today M&M ranks among the largest tractor companies in the world with sales of nearly 85,000 units annually in 10 countries. In India, the largest tractor market in the world, MAHINDRA, has been the number one selling brand since 1983.
In 1994, the company entered the American market as Mahindra USA, and in the few years since, its tough, dependable tractors are being sold and serviced by hundreds of leading tractor dealers througout the country. Here in the United States, we perform final assembly and conduct a 51-point pre-delivery inspection, including dynamometer and road testing to ensure high standards of quality. Our focus is to deliver high levels of customer satisfaction and dealer support.
In 2002, Mahindra USA opened a second assembly and distribution center in Calhoun, GA, 68 miles north of Atlanta. This will more than double production capacity to meet growing demands for our tractors.