2020 Mahindra Thar hard-top & TUV300 Plus spied testing together

Mahindra is currently working on new models of several of its SUVs including the Scorpio, Thar, TUV300 Plus and XUV500. Talking about the Mahindra Thar, the popular off-roader will get a generation update next year. It has already been spotted testing a number of times in past and the spy shots have revealed many details about the vehicle. Now, a fresh round of spy shots have surfaced, courtesy Indian Autos Blog, which show the 2020 Thar hard-top variant being tested on roads along with the 2020 TUV300 Plus facelift.

As evident in these spy shots, the all-new Mahindra Thar will be much bigger in size than the current version. To let you know, the new Mahindra Thar will be built on the Mahindra Scorpio platform. However, the platform will be heavily modified so as to ensure the off-road prowess of the Thar remains intact. The new Thar looks much wider and will be offered with both soft top and hardtop options. Mahindra has also focused to make the new Thar a much easier vehicle to live with, which means that the ride quality, as well as the interiors, will be much better than the outgoing model.

Speaking of which, the all-new Thar is expected to get modern features like cruise control, airbags, touchscreen infotainment system, and driver MID among others. A few spy shots earlier revealed how the interiors would look like. The Thar will get a redesigned dashboard, new instrument cluster, new steering wheel, and new door panels. As the vehicle is now much wider, the space between the front two seats will also increase resulting in a more comfortable cabin. Also, the new Thar will come with new bucket seats which seemed to be quite premium in the spy shots. The rear seats will now be front-facing which will further enhance the passenger comfort on the Thar.

The new-gen Thar will be powered by an all-new 2.0-litre BS6 compliant diesel engine. The same engine will be used to power many next-generation Mahindra models including the Mahindra Scorpio, Mahindra XUV500 and all-new Ford SUV that is currently under development. This engine is likely to develop around 140 Bhp of power on the Thar, though the power output on bigger vehicles like the XUV500 is expected to be bumped up to 170 Bhp.

Talking about the TUV300 Plus facelift, the SUV will get a slightly redesigned front end including new bumpers and headlight. The grille is also said to be altered and will carry a design inspired by the Alturas G4. Powering the TUV300 Plus facelift will be a BS-VI version of the 2.2-litre mHawk that produces 120 PS at 4,000 rpm and 280 Nm of torque at 1,800-2,800 rpm in the old model. A 6-speed manual transmission is likely to be offered with this engine and the car is expected to be available by the end of this year.