Compact SUVs With a Turbo Engine and a Torque-Converter Automatic

Four compact SUVs (under 4 metres) pair a turbo petrol engine with a torque-converter automatic: the Mahindra XUV 3XO, Maruti Fronx, Toyota Urban Cruiser Taisor and Skoda Kylaq. The cheapest is the XUV 3XO REVX M (O) AT at Rs 9,99,000 ex-showroom, with Mahindra's 1.2 TCMPFi turbo (82 kW, 200 Nm); its stronger 1.2 TGDi (96 kW, 230 Nm) automatic starts at Rs 13,27,500. The Fronx Zeta Turbo AT costs Rs 11,03,900 and is the only one of the four with a certified mileage figure, 20.01 km/l, and the Taisor G Turbo AT is Rs 11,86,000. The Kylaq 1.0 TSI automatic has the best Bharat NCAP adult score of the group, 30.88 of 32, but Skoda does not publish its price. Every other turbo-petrol compact SUV pairs its turbo with a DCT, CVT, AMT or manual.

The engine and gearbox rarely line up the way buyers expect in this class. The Brezza has a turbo and a torque converter, just not together. The Venue, Sonet and Nexon have turbos and automatics, but not torque converters. So this page lists only the exact variants where both arrive in one car. For every turbo compact SUV regardless of gearbox, see compact SUVs with a turbo engine.

The four, compared

SUV	Turbo engine	Power and torque	Turbo + torque converter variants	Price (ex-showroom)	Certified mileage
Mahindra XUV 3XO (TCMPFi)	1.2 mStallion TCMPFi	82 kW (about 111 PS), 200 Nm	REVX M (O), REVX Edge, REVX Edge (O), AX5, REVX A	Rs 9,99,000 to Rs 12,39,500	Not published by Mahindra
Mahindra XUV 3XO (TGDi)	1.2 mStallion TGDi	96 kW (about 130.5 PS), 230 Nm	AX5 L, AX7, AX7 L	Rs 13,27,500 to Rs 15,03,500	Not published by Mahindra
Maruti Fronx	1.0 Turbo Boosterjet	100.06 PS, 147.6 Nm	Zeta Turbo AT, Alpha Turbo AT	Rs 11,03,900 to Rs 11,88,900	20.01 km/l
Toyota Taisor	1.0 K-Series Turbo	100.06 PS, 147.6 Nm	G Turbo AT, V Turbo AT	Rs 11,86,000 to Rs 12,78,000	19.86 km/l
Skoda Kylaq	1.0 TSI	85 kW (115 PS), 178 Nm	Classic+, Signature, Signature+, Sportline, Prestige, Prestige+	Not published (model from Rs 7,59,000)	Not verified

Prices checked October 2026 on Mahindra's XUV 3XO variant cards, NEXA's compare tool (single-tone paint), Toyota's Taisor page and Skoda's Kylaq page. Mahindra prints kW only; the PS figures in brackets are our conversion. Gearbox and engine details are from each maker's brochure or specification page.

1. Mahindra XUV 3XO: cheapest, and the most powerful

Mahindra is the most explicit maker here. Its brochure describes a "New 6 Speed Torque Converter Automatic Transmission" and lists it as "6 MT / 6 AT" for both petrol engines, so every petrol XUV 3XO automatic is a turbo with a torque converter.

On the 1.2 TCMPFi (port-injected, 82 kW and 200 Nm), the automatics on Mahindra's price list are the REVX M (O) at Rs 9,99,000, REVX Edge at Rs 10,59,000, REVX Edge (O) at Rs 11,09,000, AX5 at Rs 11,88,000 and REVX A at Rs 12,39,500. That REVX M (O) is the only turbo torque-converter compact SUV under Rs 10 lakh.

The 1.2 TGDi (direct-injected, 96 kW at 5,000 rpm and 230 Nm from 1,500 to 3,750 rpm) is the strongest engine in the group and comes on the AX5 L automatic at Rs 13,27,500, the AX7 at Rs 13,34,000 and the AX7 L at Rs 15,03,500. That is roughly Rs 3.3 lakh above the cheapest TCMPFi automatic for 14 kW and 30 Nm more.

Watch the diesel. The 1.5 diesel automatic is listed as "6 AutoSHIFT+", which the brochure's own variant grid labels as an AMT, so it is not a torque converter. Bharat NCAP gave the XUV 3XO 5 stars, 29.36 of 32 for adults and 43 of 49 for children, after testing the AX7L and MX2. Mahindra publishes no certified fuel-efficiency figure for the petrols in the brochure, which is the biggest gap in its case. Boot space is 364 litres.

2. Maruti Fronx: the efficient one

Maruti's Fronx has two petrol engines and two different automatics. The 1.2 (89.73 PS) gets a 5-speed AGS, which is an AMT. The 1.0 Turbo Boosterjet (73.6 kW or 100.06 PS at 5,500 rpm, 147.6 Nm from 2,000 to 4,500 rpm) gets a 6-speed automatic with paddle shifters, listed in the brochure as "5MT/ 6AT". On NEXA's price ladder that means the Zeta Turbo AT at Rs 11,03,900 or the Alpha Turbo AT at Rs 11,88,900.

The Fronx is the only car here with a certified efficiency figure for the turbo automatic: 20.01 km/l, against 21.5 km/l for the turbo manual. Six airbags are standard.

The honest weaknesses: at 100.06 PS and 147.6 Nm it is the least powerful turbo in this group, with 52.4 Nm less than even the cheaper XUV 3XO TCMPFi. And the Fronx has no Bharat NCAP result.

3. Toyota Urban Cruiser Taisor: the Fronx with a Toyota badge

Toyota's brochure prints the same 1.0 turbo figures as the Fronx, 73.6 kW (100.06 PS) and 147.6 Nm, with a 6AT. Toyota's own Taisor page prices the G 1.0L Turbo AT at Rs 11,86,000 and the V 1.0L Turbo AT at Rs 12,78,000, so the cheapest Taisor turbo automatic costs Rs 82,100 more than the cheapest Fronx one. Toyota certifies it at 19.86 km/l, a little under the Fronx's 20.01.

If you pay the extra, you are paying for the Toyota badge and dealer, not a different car: the hardware is the Fronx's.

4. Skoda Kylaq: strongest crash score, no published price

Skoda's Kylaq page lists the 1.0 TSI (85 kW, 115 PS, 178 Nm) with either a 6-speed manual or an "Automatic 6-Speed Torque Converter", the automatic offered on the Classic+, Signature, Signature+, Sportline, Prestige and Prestige+. Every Kylaq is a turbo, so any Kylaq automatic qualifies.

Bharat NCAP rated the Kylaq 5 stars with 30.88 of 32 for adults and 45 of 49 for children, the best scores in this group. Read the applicability table, though: it covers the automatic on the Signature, Signature+ and Prestige, not the Classic+, Sportline or Prestige+.

The gap is price. Skoda shows only "From Rs 7,59,000" for the model, which is a manual, so we can't say where the automatic sits against the Fronx or XUV 3XO. Get a quote. On power it sits between the two XUV 3XO engines, though its 178 Nm is below either.

Turbo compact SUVs that don't qualify

SUV	Turbo engine	Automatic it gets	Per
Maruti Brezza	1.0 K10C DiTC, 110.12 PS, 170 Nm	None: turbo is 6MT only; the 6AT is on the non-turbo 1.5	Maruti brochure
Hyundai Venue	1.0 Turbo GDi	7-speed DCT	Hyundai brochure
Kia Sonet	1.0 T-GDi	7-speed DCT (and iMT)	Kia brochure
Tata Nexon	1.2 turbo petrol	AMT and 7-speed DCA	Tata brochure
Renault Kiger	1.0 turbo	X-Tronic CVT	Renault brochure
Nissan Magnite	1.0 HRA0 turbo	X-Tronic CVT	Nissan brochure

The Citroen C3 also pairs a 1.2 turbo (110 PS, 205 Nm) with what Citroen calls an "advanced 6-speed torque converter automatic transmission", but Citroen sells it as a hatchback, so it is not in our table.

What about turbo diesels?

Strictly, every diesel here is turbocharged, and two compact SUVs pair a diesel with a conventional automatic: the Hyundai Venue's 1.5 diesel gets a "6-speed AT" on the HX 5, HX 8 and HX 10, and the Kia Sonet's 1.5 CRDi VGT (85 kW, 250 Nm) gets what Kia calls a "6 Speed Advance AT". Neither maker publishes the price of those variants on its site. If you read the question as turbo diesel too, add them to your shortlist and ask for quotes. The XUV 3XO diesel doesn't count, since its automatic is an AMT.

Which to pick

On a budget near Rs 10 lakh, the XUV 3XO REVX M (O) AT is the only option. Between Rs 11 lakh and Rs 12 lakh, it is the Fronx Zeta Turbo AT against the XUV 3XO REVX Edge (O) or AX5 automatics: the Fronx has the certified 20.01 km/l, the Mahindra has 200 Nm against 147.6 and a 5-star rating. For the most performance, the XUV 3XO TGDi automatic at Rs 13,27,500 is the strongest compact turbo automatic on sale. The Kylaq is the wild card until Skoda publishes its automatic price. If you are flexible on gearbox type, our compact SUV automatics under Rs 10 lakh covers the AMT and CVT options too.

How this list was built

We took every SUV under 4 metres on sale in India in October 2026 with a turbocharged petrol engine, read its gearbox options from the maker's brochure or specification page, and kept the ones where the turbo engine comes with a conventional automatic. Mahindra and Skoda use the words "torque converter"; Maruti and Toyota list a "6AT" separately from the AGS (AMT) on the non-turbo engine. Prices are from each maker's own site.

Not verified: the Kylaq's automatic price and mileage, any XUV 3XO mileage, and how the gearboxes behave on the road. Bharat NCAP results are from bncap.in; we confirmed that the Kylaq's applicability table includes the automatic on the trims we name, but could not read the XUV 3XO's variant coverage in the format bncap.in uses for it.

Frequently asked questions

Which compact SUV has a turbo engine with a torque-converter automatic?

Four do: the Mahindra XUV 3XO (both 1.2 turbo petrols), Maruti Fronx 1.0 turbo, Toyota Taisor 1.0 turbo and Skoda Kylaq 1.0 TSI. The cheapest is the XUV 3XO REVX M (O) AT at Rs 9,99,000.

Does the Brezza turbo come with an automatic?

No. Maruti's brochure lists the Brezza 1.0 turbo with a 6-speed manual only. The Brezza automatic uses the non-turbo 1.5 petrol.

Is the Hyundai Venue turbo automatic a torque converter?

No. The Venue 1.0 turbo petrol automatic is a 7-speed DCT. Only the Venue diesel automatic is a 6-speed AT.

Which is the cheapest Fronx with a torque-converter automatic?

The Zeta Turbo AT at Rs 11,03,900 ex-showroom. The cheaper Fronx automatics, the Delta and Delta Plus AGS, are AMTs on the 1.2 petrol.

Which turbo automatic compact SUV is the most fuel efficient?

The Fronx turbo AT, at a certified 20.01 km/l, then the Taisor at 19.86 km/l. Mahindra and Skoda do not publish a certified figure for these automatics in the material we checked.