With waiting periods extending up to seven months now, some customers are upset and even contemplating on cancelling their bookings for the new Thar
New Mahindra Thar has created a storm of sorts ever since it was launched earlier last month. Within the first four days of the launch itself, Mahindra & Mahindra had received 9000 bookings for the off-roader which is a testament to its immense popularity.
As per the latest update from Mahindra, bookings of Thar has crossed the 20,000 mark today – which has extended waiting period even further. Mahindra claims that the waiting period is now between 5 to 7 months for the new 2020 Thar.
Current Waiting Period
Customers booking their vehicles in the first half of October had been receiving an expected delivery date three months later in January 2021. Now, the current wave of bookings has forced Mahindra to extend tentative delivery dates to May 2021 which means a waiting period of seven months. This has definitely miffed some of the consumers who are apprehensive about waiting so long for their Thar.
Veejay Nakra, Chief Executive Officer, Automotive Division, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. said, “We are overwhelmed with this unprecedented response that the All-New Thar has garnered. I must admit the response has surpassed all our expectations and production capacities.
Hence the wait for the All-New Thar will be longer than expected. We sincerely appreciate our customers’ patience and unwavering confidence in us. We had planned for a capacity of about 2,000 vehicles per month and are now getting ready to ramp it up to 3,000 by January (2021). This would help us bring down the waiting period to a reasonable timeline.”
Customers Not Happy
Gauging by the conversation in a post uploaded on a Facebook page called ‘New Mahindra Thar 2020’, some people who have booked the new Thar are unwilling to wait so long.
What has further encouraged consumers to cancel their bookings and sway away from Thar is the prospective launch of its prime rival Force Gurkha facelift in a few months. There is also a Maruti Suzuki Jimny in foray but it is still some time away from getting officially launched.
2020 Mahindra Thar Details
New-gen Mahindra Thar is offered in three trim levels namely AX, AX(O) and LX which are spread across two engine and as many transmission options. It is powered either by a 2.2-litre mHawk diesel engine or a 2.0-litre mStallion turbo petrol engine. The former produces 130 bhp and 300 Nm of torque whereas the latter cranks out 150 bhp and 300 Nm (320 Nm in AT) of peak torque. Both units are offered with the option of either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic gearbox options. A 4×4 drivetrain with a low-range transfer case is offered as standard across the range.
