Mahindra has announced that they have gathered 75,000 bookings of the Thar since it was launched on 2nd October last year. Despite, the pandemic, Mahindra has sold 30,000 units of Thar till now. However, because of the shortage of semiconductors, the waiting period for petrol Thar has extended up to 16 weeks and for the diesel Thar, it is 50 weeks. So, what is it that makes the new generation of Thar such a big success?
There is NO alternative
As of now, there is no direct competitor to Thar. Yes, there is the new Force Gurkha but it is a bare-bone vehicle and people will buy it as a second vehicle in the garage which will be used for off-roading only. Whereas, Thar is a much better daily driver and is offered multiple engines and transmission options.
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Wide variety of variants
The previous generation of Thar was only offered with a diesel engine and a manual gearbox only. Now, the new generation of Thar is offered with a petrol as well as a diesel engine. You can get a manual or an automatic gearbox with both engines. The petrol engine makes a lot more sense for residents living in Delhi NCR because of the 10 year limit on diesel vehicles. Mahindra still offers the 4×4 system as standard with all the variants of the Thar. So, you can opt for any variant, you can get petrol or a diesel engine mated to a manual or the automatic gearbox.
A lot more comfortable than the old Thar
The previous Thar was known to have a harsh ride quality, noisy cabin and cramped cabin space. So, people used to buy it as a weekend vehicle only. Fortunately, that is not the case with the new generation. Mahindra increased the dimensions of the SUV significantly. This solved the cramped cabin issue and provided space for front-facing rear seats. So, the rear occupants can now sit more comfortably. Then they reworked the suspension and the ladder frame chassis. Due to this, the ride quality of the SUV increased significantly and now it handles quite well too. Also, the new engines are more refined and a lot more powerful than the previous Thar.
Factory fitted hardtop makes it very practical
Earlier, Thar was offered only with a soft top so people had to get them converted into a hardtop from after-market shops. Now, you can get a Thar with a hardtop from the factory itself. The hardtops are more durable and they last much longer than the soft tops. Also, maintaining a hardtop is much easier, it provides better protection from the weather and you can mount a roof rack on it. Hardtops are also much safer than soft tops.
Great driving position and top-notch safety
Being a proper SUV, Thar has a high driving position. So, you get a great view of the surroundings which makes the SUV easy to drive. Then there is the safety rating of the Thar. The SUV scored a four-star rating in the Global NCAP crash test. Moreover, it comes with ESP, ABS with EBD, Brake Assist, ISOFIX child seat mounts, roll cage and High-Speed Alert as standard.
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