[maddy42]

Amazing 1 hour. Woh kehte hain na...Mehnat ke phal meeta hota hai. Bang on for the Thar review.

I was always looking at this vehile as a potential replacement for my 540. Now lets see what goes on as the review has cleared some potential doubts and a couple of months of sales figures will confirm the same for me.

Hard top is totally essential and the interiors of M&M have always been at flaw. Have a bolero to claim the same. Minor things are not adhered to and this can kill a vehicle as the zen or 800 comes with amazing interior quality.

Khan Bhai and Tejas Bhai. Take a bow. Awesome job done.

PS: That squeaky noise is ever present in my jeeps after some rain drives and mud touchups. Usually reduces after one neat wash and greasing being done.

[BlackRaven]

Oh what a great read. So much attention to detail and easily the best detailed auto review I have ever read. Love you team-bhp.

I was waiting for this review to make my decision and yes, I went ahead and booked my thar today. Requested for a 2011 model and have been told it could take up to 3 weeks.

Hoping to fix a/c and hard top before Bangalore summer kicks in.

And again, You guys rock!!

[dtox]

Nice review. Well-detailed and quite informative.

Mahindra Thar can well satisfy the enthusiast's cravings, but as an overall lifestyle 4x4, it's highly disappointing. The interior pics are shocking to say the least. Still, for vehicles like the Thar, the heart can rule over the head for that very important buying decision. More a case of a silent rush of blood to the head brought about by those 247 Newton metres of torque under the hood.

[fast_elegance]

One of the most awaited review and what a way to do it

I am sure the M&M showroom guys who loaned the Thar never expected this level of testing.

Truly Awesome review with all the off-road capability tested.

[BlackRaven]

Khan Saab, does stock THAR come with the alloys shown your review vehicle? I thought the showroom vehicles only had plastic hub caps that looked like alloys.

[ramkya1]

Khan and Thejas, great job of reviewing, a class act. Congrats and Salutes.

The interior is a wet sponge, was seriously considering a buy, will have to wait now and see what improvements M&M is planning, at this price I expected good fit and finish not the Jugad edges. Without a hard top and A/C this is not even an option, at least for me.

--Ramky

--------

[Dry Ice]

Have to say, I was pretty sure it will be Khan saab reviewing the Thar. Expected Samurai to be a part too!

Nonetheless, Awesome job Khan saab and Tejas!, rated 5 stars. Any ideas if any kinds of discounts are being offered yet?

OT: 2-3 years down the line, a used THAR, primarily used in the city @ 20-30k would make for a mouth watering deal!!

[airfoil]

This has got to be one of the best reviews I've ever read. Something I've come to expect of Team-BHP. Awesome stuff, Shahnawaz & Tejas.

It would do the reader a power of good to know how the India model differs from the export model(s).

Whats the price of the Adventure model assuming its also in production?
Also, how much does the regular rural sort of Mahindra Jeep (Commander, Marshall etc.) cost? It helps to be able to compare if the price point is justified.

I'm one of those wannabe Thar owners who has been sitting in the sidelines waiting for Mahindra to get to it. I'm however beyond appalled at the end product.

Fit and finish, to me, are an integral part of any well made automobile in this era. The production version of the Thar is pathetic, with the ridiculous 'fabrication' that even my local welder's helper would easily better.

Sure, its a 'Jeep'. That doesn't imply that shoddy workmanship is acceptable, especially not from an established player like Mahindra.

The panel gaps are ridiculous. The plastic work is horrendous. The jugaad work is reminiscent of the days when my RX100 throttle wire broke on a highway and we made do by buying a Bajaj clutch wire lock bolt/nut and attaching the wire to the front brake lever, which then acted as a throttle.

The improvised bracket on the roll bar with that screw (lol) attaching the roll bar to the B-pillar, the crude welding on those brackets directly above the radiator area (afterthought?), the unexplained holes within the interior of the wheel well (x-ray curtain pic) and the miserable dash/plastics etc. are a nightmare. Why cannot the wipers return to base when switched off? Is that a luxury? Or does that make the Thar wimpy? Why no sump-guard? And so on.

To say nothing of its off-road shortcomings. I know nothing here so I'd best not comment further.

Why no AC? Why is it that an AC is still considered a luxury here? A hard top would have been a definite plus and is inexplicably not even on offer.

Mahindra, you've been exporting the Thar for a while now - is this exactly how you're packaging it for sale in S.A. (genuine question, with some sarcasm thrown in)?

Again, why no AC??? At 7+ lacs on-road that is a serious omission. We've come a long way since the Premier Padmini/Ambassador days, Mahindra. In my mind, you've given us pretty much the same product as you used to sell in the seventies, except for the engine.

Perhaps the Thar in five years' time will be evolved enough to be deserving enough of my money. I've waited for ages for this launch and am left with a sense of despair. There are simply too many shortcomings with the current Thar.

Sure, the Thar is unlikely to ever set the sales charts afire. However, being positioned in the enthusiast bracket of the spectrum, a well rounded product will hugely promote core brand value. Why dont you realize this? Why do I feel like nothing (except the engine) has changed since the seventies/eighties? Why has the experience in building Scorpios/Xylos/Logans etc. not been leveraged to put together a reasonably mature product?

At this price, an air conditioner (did I mention I cannot believe it is not standard?) is simply a must. This a is obviously not a hardcore offroader. Mahindra must endeavour to iron out the rough edges and offer a vehicle that can replace the family car. Oh, the rear bench seats are another absurdity. Why force most buyers to replace seats on a brand new vehicle?

[sreejeshmp]

Thank you for this wonderful review.


The toolbox is welded on the body ?

[DHABHAR.BEHRAM]

Dear Tejas and Shahnawaz - thank you very much for your perfectly executed and absolutely correct report. I just read through these 5 pages, waiting to board my flight from Cochin to Mumbai (we launched in Cochin yesterday). With the absolutely hectic schedule that I go through, I need to find some time to type out my comments, which I will try and do either by today or tomorrow.

Dear all - I ONCE AGAIN COMMIT TO ALL OF YOU AND ALSO TO MYSELF ON THIS OPEN FORUM THAT WE SHALL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO ENSURE THAT THAR SHALL SUCCEED IN THE MARKETPLACE.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

[discoverwild]

Kudos to Khan and Tejas for an excellent review. Kudos to DB Sir and team for making the Thar a reality. Unfortunately, this Thar is not what I need.

Mahindra's mindset seems to scream 70s or 80s for this kind of appalling work. I was dejected when I saw the initial pictures, but having had a gypsy (I sold it during a brief period of mental instability, what else can I say ) for 9 glorious years, I was okay with the seating at the back and even the rear door not closing properly. I was also not keen on a hard top, so that didn't matter either (Customized removable soft top was on the mind).

The team who worked on the interiors and the overall fit and finish, should be booted out, for the trash that they have served.

Sorry, DB Sir, for this kind of money, I am sure Allan can work wonders.

[puneetnay]

What a detailed review!! great work guys!
I am a die hard fan of jeeps and SUVs and was thinking of pampering myself with this new entry level stud.
But you guys have forced me to think a little more.

Once again well deserved applause.

Best regards,
Puneet

[Xinger]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

WE SHALL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO ENSURE THAT THAR SHALL SUCCEED IN THE MARKETPLACE.

Sir,

All you need to do is take the interior fit and finish quality to small hatchback standards, provide an option of factory-fitted AC and hard top (which will be availed by at least 75% of CRDe buyers), and you have an absolute winner on your hands!

[pjbiju]

Dear DB Sir,

It is your willingness to listen to Team-Bhp that makes people point out the things that should improve. No other manufacturer is doing that and we appreciate this. This also may be the forum (apart from Jeepthrills) that have people so passionate and knowledgeable about Jeeps and off-roading. We all want this product to succeed. That will give us hope for more.

Let me give another perspective to this. A lot of Team-Bhpians here have been or are living with their Jeeps. They know the quirks and shortcomings.

But look at other "lifestyle wannabes". They may not have seen a Jeep from close quarters for many years. Yet they may aspire to own one. They may have never even seen the insides of a Bolero. What they are familiar with are the modern day cars (scorpio included) and their expectations will be inline with that. So when they go to the showroom to look at a brand new lifestyle vehicle called the Thar, they will be disappointed. The first impression is created by the looks. It may even make them decide against a proper test drive. So at this price and for a new vehicle, the interiors should be as good as the exteriors even if it is spartan. They should look and feel "designed". Even if they think of buying one, they may not feel comfortable asking their family or friends to ride with them. I feel the classic dashboard or the old jeep dashboard (if you can call it that) will generate a better feel than this dashboard. Dashboard is just one example. Look at all the other things that have been pointed out.

Btw, my son and wife have fallen in love with it (without seeing it in person), especially in this color of the test drive vehicle.

[roy_libran]

Originally Posted by DHABHAR.BEHRAM

Dear Tejas and Shahnawaz - thank you very much for your perfectly executed and absolutely correct report. I just read through these 5 pages, waiting to board my flight from Cochin to Mumbai (we launched in Cochin yesterday). With the absolutely hectic schedule that I go through, I need to find some time to type out my comments, which I will try and do either by today or tomorrow.

Dear all - I ONCE AGAIN COMMIT TO ALL OF YOU AND ALSO TO MYSELF ON THIS OPEN FORUM THAT WE SHALL DO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO ENSURE THAT THAR SHALL SUCCEED IN THE MARKETPLACE.

Best regards,

Behram Dhabhar

Dear DB Sir,

A lot of us are looking up to you, to give us a PRACTICAL THAR. AC, HT, better Rear Seat Design, a slightly better Fit & Finish, and Ergonomics, are all that would take, to make this vehicle a Commercial Success.

Across this and other threads, the THAR CRDe has been slammed by hard-core offroad enthusiasts, for not being able to handle probably 5% of extreme situations. But, that 5% is not what the market wants in general. The large proportion of the market would be happy with the 95% Capability, with increased Usability.

Like a lot of other people here, I went with my chequebook to book a Thar, and returned without doing the same. Can you please fix this ASAP?