New Force Gurkha test drive: Initial impression & Observation

My impressions are relative to my Fiat Urban Cross Abarth.

BHPian jagan88 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Test drove the Gurkha today in Hyderabad. It was a pleasant experience overall. The green colour looked good in the flesh. Now I'm thinking even the other colours (say, red) also might appear equally well in real.

My initial impressions are relative to the current car I drive (Fiat Urban Cross Abarth). I also got to be a passenger (in the rear seat) of another prospect who test drove after I finished mine. Pleasantly surprised there are footfalls enquiring for the Gurkha. Staff (from services I guess) cleaned up the vehicle by evening, they had to take some pics to be sent to FM and after the initial greetings, I was handed over the keys.

• The car is HUGE. My 4Yo called it the truck as soon as we got out of our car at the dealership.
• When the keys were handed over to me, it scared me a little. Never I drove an SUV of any size, heck I never drove cars other than hatchbacks and here I'm with keys in my hand. It's over 7 feet tall.
• I had very minimal expectations for the interiors and I'm delighted with what I saw. Have no expectations on the interior and you will feel good with what you see. The plastics are hard, the dark black colour looked good. The only Q I asked was if the audio head unit support Apple car play, I was answered in affirmative.
• I started the engine, there's little noise in the cabin. Realized what's it like to start a diesel engine. The sales rep was quick to understand this, rolled up windows and turned on the AC. By now I got accustomed and the NVH are very acceptable.
• The footwell seemed very small. For a moment I didn't find the accelerator and was shocked, then saw it at a little far too right. There's no dead pedal.
• I adjusted the seat and IRVM, slotted the gear to 1st. It took me less than 5 seconds to get adjusted to the size of this truck.
• This is an attention magnet and people on the road are quick to give you the way, do not abruptly cross the road with their 2wheelers or jaywalk.
• For the first time as I drive I'm able to see the roof of cars around. The visibility is great all around and I felt confident driving this. Even the Boleros and XUVs appeared like toys on the road from the driving position. The bonet is visible and acted as a guideline for me to know margins. I gained confidence as soon as I figured this out.
• The first and second gears are harsh to drive. There were jolts during shifts and clutch release. I think it takes a little while to adjust to driving this. In the 3rd gear, the drive is super smooth around in city traffic. I drove through narrow lanes too and the size was never a thing to worry about. It was easy to drive. The cultch felt lite,
• Couldn't slot of 4th or above or get to drive at good speeds. I will go back and request for a long/highway drive if & when I go shopping for cars in the future.
• Didn't slot into 4x4 mode or try any of those features. Just knowing that it is capable if need be is enough for me.
• The clutch pedal felt too low and sometimes when shifting gears I had to adjust my foot on it so my sandal is not blocking it from completely releasing. I do not know how better to put it, but during the drive and changing gears, I felt a little unease with releasing the clutch pedal.

• During the 2nd test drive (row 2 passenger) when the driver complained of heavy steering it occurred to me that this is not electrical power steering, but an HPS one. Both my current car and the previous one (Ford Figo) had HPS steerings and I took it for granted. I felt the steering feedback was as good as my current drive. Personally, I like these
• The A/c cooled the cabin at no time. I felt it's already cool when I sat in the rear seats.
• The rear seat comfort is good. All the 4 seats are the same. The hand rest is a boon. The huge glass window portion gave ample view. For a moment I felt I was in a Volvo bus being chauffeured.
• Getting in and out of the rear seats is a feat in itself.

After the test drive ended, I chatted up a little with the SA. I conveyed my satisfaction and truly appreciated the efforts the company has put into getting this out and wished the best. Filled up the feedback form, took the price list and exited.

Overall, I'm delighted with the overall experience. This is a no-nonsense, go-anywhere vehicle. This can well be the only primary car and can be commuted to the office too.

All during my return journey to home (about an hr drive in traffic), I kept appreciating how much I liked driving Gurkha. I do not know if the initial enthusiasm of driving this will soon fade away if one has to drive this regularly, but for whatever little time I drove this, I truly enjoyed it.

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