ALL-NEW MAHINDRA THAR SUV New Body, New Soul

EXTERIORS

With a massive ground clearance of 226mm in unladen condition, the new Thar has a Body-on-Frame Construction. The new Thar continues with its 2-door shell, but overall there have been several design changes. With a wider, better-balanced stance, the new Thar now comes with a choice of hard top and convertible roof top options. The convertible soft-top can be lowered manually in a matter of minutes. Also available is an optional fixed soft top with removable side facing seats.

Coming to the front, you get to see a smart fascia, with LED Daytime Running Lamps and Dual Tone Bumpers. You also get front fog lamps. Surprisingly, the headlamps and fog lamps have halogen bulbs, there is no LED here. The rear, however, gets LED tail lamps. The wheels are R 18  Deep Silver Alloys.  Wheels. The standard tyre size is 245/75 R16, the optional one being 255/65 R18 with 789 mm tyre diameter. The new Thar has the largest tyre size in production amongst Indian SUV’s. R18 variants offer white tyre lettering for just the right amount of visual flair while the R16 variants feature painted steel rims that celebrate Thar’s lineage. Variants with R16 wheels are also compatible with snow chains for harsh winter conditions.

The two doors of the Thar are removable.  These doors are engineered for easy removal just by undoing three fasteners. With the Center console mounted Controls for the power windows and instrument panel mounted speakers, you can get rid of the doors with no compromise on entertainment or convenience. A quick release electrical coupler for the door wiring harness that can be stowed away makes the door removal process easy. The new Thar comes with extra large Outside Rear View Mirrors with electric adjustment.

INTERIORS

The interiors get an all-black theme with silver accents. There is faux carbon-fibre detailing around the AC vents and centre bezel. The body-hugging first row seats feature aggressive bolstering to hold the occupant in place during off road use. The seats also feature adjustable lumbar support for first row occupants and height adjust for driver. The co-driver seat can tip and slide with a single touch to allow easy access to and from the second row. With adjustable head rests available in all the seats, the front-facing rear seats come with 50:50 split. Optional removable side facing seats are available for enhanced versatility.

The new Thar gets an all-new 7 inches touch screen infotainment that features Apple Car Play with integrated voice command. The system also features on-board navigation in case the vehicle moves out of mobile network coverage. Also available are dual USB ports and hands-free Bluetooth connectivity. The system uses six speakers with four located on the roof and two located on the instrument panel ensuring that the speakers are functioning even with the doors removed.

ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION

The new Thar is powered by two all-new engines. A first for Thar and Mahindra, the all-new Thar is powered by the 2.0 litre mStallion TGDi petrol engine, and by the 2.2L mHawk diesel engine. These engines are offered with a choice of 6-speed manual transmission or 6-speed torque converter automatic transmission, with  4x4 manual shift transfer case with a low ratio.

This India’s first indigenously developed BS-6 compliant 2.0L turbo charged direct injection petrol engine, the– mStallion 150 is the country’s first 350 bar direct injection petrol engine with a compression ratio of 9.5:1 that delivers 150 hp @ 5000 rpm and 320 Nm @ 1500 to 3000 rpm when mated to the automatic transmission.

On the other hand the India’s first all-aluminum 2.2L Turbo Diesel Four-Cylinder new generation mHawk 130 engine which is BS VI is a 1600 bar common rail direct injection diesel engine with a compression ratio of 16:1 delivering 130 hp @3750 rpm and 300 Nm of torque @1600 to 2800 rpm.  

OFF-ROAD FEATURES

The all new Thar is designed to approach things even more aggressively than its predecessor.  The ‘Four-Wheel Drive’ system in the new Thar with the dedicated torque split transfer case provides 50:50 power split. With the mechanical ‘Shift-on-fly’ feature and ergonomically placed 4WD knob design, a smooth and convenient shifting from 2-High to 4-High is possible. Further, shifting from 4-High to 4-low mode can multiply the torque by 2.48 times to provide excellent low-speed crawling and rock-climbing capabilities. The crawl ratio is 42:1 on both the petrol and diesel manual transmission variants, which in essence means the vehicle can take on any off-roading obstacle.

Other capabilities of the vehicle include Electromechanical Driveline Disconnect for the Front Axle, Mechanical Locking Rear Differential and Brake Locking Differential (BLD) On Front and Rear Axle. The Thar has Independent double wishbone front suspension with stabilizer bar and multilink coil spring rear suspension.

The new Thar has a Superior 41.8° Approach Angle, 36.8° Departure Angle And 27° Break Over Angles with R18 Wheel And Tyre Combination. It also has 650 mm water wading ability. Crucial components like electronic control units have been placed at a level above the wading plane

SAFETY

Coming to safety, with a completely new 3rd Generation chassis and new body design, the all-new Thar complies to all applicable safety regulations including frontal offset crash at 56 kmph, Pedestrian safety (Head and upper leg form impact). An internal roll cage is available along with three-point seat belts with load limiters and dual locking tongues on hard top and convertible top variants.

Driver and co-driver airbags are available as standard on all variants. The Thar features Electronic Stability Program with Vehicle Dynamics Control too.

The vehicle is equipped with hill hold control to prevent roll back when moving off from standstill on steep inclines. Similarly, hill descent control can be activated to maintain steady progress while traversing downhill. The new Thar is available with dual ISOFIX child seat mounting points on the second-row front facing seat.  It also has Rear Parking Sensors. 

The all-new Thar now showcases vital information on what the vehicle is currently doing. This includes but is not limited to Gear Position, Engine speed, 4WD Mode, Roll and Pitch Angles, Power, Torque, Compass Heading and a G-meter. This data can be conveniently pushed to social media handles to showcase one’s latest conquest.

The MID displays vehicle parameters such as 4x4 Power Flow Display, Tyre Direction Monitor, Gear Shift Recommendation, Instantaneous Fuel Consumption, Distance To Empty; to name a few. The 3.5 inches TFT multi information display is flanked by a tachometer and speedometer.

The cabin of the all-new Thar is equipped with IP 54 dust and water ingress protected switches, for the audio and cruise control switches on the steering wheel, the infotainment system and the power windows. The steering wheel is tilt adjustable. And something which is very important for SUVs, the all-weather floor mats are easily washable. The floor features drain plugs that can be removed to wash the floor after an adventure.

The on-board tyre pressure monitoring system monitors the air pressure and tyre temperatures continuously, that can be seen on the infotainment or the Bluesense app on smart devices. The vehicle comes with  central locking with remote flip key.