Launched on 2nd Oct, which is also when bookings opened, New Mahindra Thar has received a tremendous response in India
The much awaited 2020 Thar was launched by Mahindra earlier this month on 2nd October’20. Mahindra had mentioned that the customer deliveries shall commence from 1st of November’20.
Till date, response which most Mahindra dealerships have been receiving is pretty amazing. Mahindra had reported that more than 9,000 units of the second generation Thar were booked within 4 days of commencement of bookings. Today, they have revealed that the bookings have increased to 15,000.
In addition, Mahindra also said, “All-New Thar has received over 65,000 enquiries and more than 8 lakh website visitors.” These numbers are strong for a lifestyle vehicle like the Thar.
While official deliveries shall start next month, some VIPs or celebs claim that they have already received deliveries of their Thar SUVs. For the masses, Mahindra’s dealerships have started to provide a tentative waiting period of up to 5 months, depending upon the version selected by the customer.
Variant-wise Waiting Period
We can confirm that the official waiting period for the Soft Top version of the 2020 Thar is around 6-8 weeks, while the waiting period extends to 8-11 weeks if the model is a Convertible Top variant. In case you are looking out to buy the Hard Top variant, you might need to wait for almost 20-22 weeks, which roughly translates into around 5 months or so.
This means, that if you plan to book a Mahindra Thar Hard Top today, you will effectively get delivery of your Thar SUV only in April 2021. Customers in various forums have reported these delays in expected dates of deliveries even if they had booked their Thars early-on.
Customers have complained that there has been considerable difference in the verbal confirmations from dealerships and the official waiting period provided by Mahindra. Delays in vehicle deliveries in the past had impacted customer’s perception about Mahindra Group’s Jawa motorcycles too. We sincerely hope that things will be smoother for Thar customers.
New Mahindra Thar
Talking about the 2020 Thar, it was first unveiled on 15th August, 2020, followed by a price reveal on 2nd October, 2020. It happens to be an all-new generation model which comes with a new power-train as well. The engine options now include a 2 litre turbo petrol motor which can dish out 150 bhp and 320 Nm of peak torque and a 2.2 litre diesel engine which can produce 130 bhp and 320 Nm of max torque. Both the motors are available with 2 transmission options, a 6-speed MT & a 6-speed AT. 4WD setup is offered as standard across the range.
Competition to the 2020 Thar is relatively limited as of now. The closest competitor to the Thar will be the 2020 Gurkha from Force Motors. However, delays in the launch of Gurkha will work in favor of Mahindra.
The other interesting competitor could be the Maruti Suzuki Jimny, whose test mule was recently spotted testing in India. While there is no official confirmation from Maruti’s end that they intend to bring in the Jimny to India, the recent developments suggest that they might plan to bring in the Jimny sometime next year, which could become a serious potent rival to the 2020 Mahindra Thar.
