The new Mahindra Thar revealed
After ten years, Mahindra has decided that their Jimny Rival, the Thar, deserves a second-generation. Mahindra says their new Thar will appeal to both the off-road enthusiast and those just looking for an SUV. Let’s take a look at the details that were revealed and find out if they did just that.
How much did the Mahindra Thar change on the outside?
Still having a Willys-Jeep inspired shape, there are a handful of updates to the exterior design. For starters, this Thar is slightly longer and wider than before. Fixed with daytime running LEDs and new fog lamps, Mahindra has given this Thar a bulkier two-tone bumper and a grid-style grille. The rest of the bodywork is bulkier than before too, all being supported by new 18-inch alloy wheels that make use of 255/65 all-terrain tyres.
There will be six colour options – Red Rage, Mystic Copper, Napoli Black, Aquamarine, Galaxy Grey and Rocky Beige. All of which look great matched with the features.
The interior is updated with new tech and “drizzle resistance.”
Inside follows an almost all-black theme with silver and fake carbon-fibre trim. While we personally aren’t a fan of faking quality material, it doesn’t appear to be very off-putting. Mahindra has also gone as far as to say that the dashboard is drizzle resistant. This is a rather cryptic feature for what is probably just a flowery way of saying that the cabin is filled with hard scratchy plastic.
The cabin now has a seven-inch touchscreen infotainment system that comes with Andriod Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality. From here you can configure the tyre-pressure monitoring system and the cruise control.
Buyers of the new Mahindra Thar will now have options for the rear seats. They either come as two front-facing seats or four side-facing ones.
Impressive in class off-road figures.
With two different engine options, the new Mahindra Thar will pack quite a punch. The first one is a 2.0-litre turbopetrol engine that makes 112 kW and 320 Nm. The second option is a 2.2-litre turbodiesel with 97 kW and 320 Nm. Both of these engines come with the option of a six-speed manual or torque converter automatic transmission. A 4×4 manual shift transfer case with a low ratio comes standard.
For those who would want to take this Thar to the extremes, Mahindra has added a new suspension setup with independent front and multi-link rear configuration. This will give some impressive figures for difficult terrain:
- Ground clearance: 226 mm
- Approach angle: 41,8 degrees
- Departure angle: 36,8 degrees
- Ramp-over angle: 27 degrees
- Wading depth: 650 mm
Several safety features also come as standard on the new Thar. These include electronic stability programme, built-in roll-cage, three-point seatbelts, dual airbags, ABS, a hill-hold function, hill descent control, Isofix child-seat anchors and rear parking sensors.
We can expect to see the new Mahindra Thar launch in the Indian market during early October. Right now there are no revealed plans for other markets but it is likely that this model will make its way to local dealers.
Source & images: Cars | Car Magazine | Mahindra
