As the demand for the Thar continues to be high, Mahindra & Mahindra is planning to increase its production further
The second-generation Mahindra Thar was launched in India in October last year, and the SUV was an instant hit. Within just 17 days of its launch, the new-gen Thar had garnered over 15,000 bookings, and the booking figures crossed the 20,000 mark in October 2020 alone. With such high demand, the waiting period for the SUV reached up to 10 months for select colours and variants.
To meet such overwhelming demand, the production of the Thar was increased by over 50 per cent, from almost 2,000 units to around 3,000 units a month by January. However, the demand for the vehicle is still growing, and last month, the manufacturer received over 6,000 fresh bookings for the Thar. Among these, nearly 25 per cent orders were for the petrol-powered models, and around 45 per cent were for the automatic variants.
On 1st February 2021, Mahindra Thar’s total booking figures were over 38,500. The company has officially stated that it has witnessed a healthy growth in demand for its UVs recently, and it is planning to increase production as per the demand. Apart from that, production will be increased for XUV300, Bolero, and Scorpio as well.
Although the demand for passenger cars is on the rise post lockdown, there is a wide gap in supply. The primary reason for that is the lack of critical components, like semiconductor chips. In fact, the shortage of semiconductor chips has become a major problem for the global automobile industry.
The rising price of raw materials is also a big concern, not just for Mahindra & Mahindra, but the entire domestic automobile sector. M&M had recently announced a price hike across its range to compensate for the increased input costs, and the manufacturer has stated that another price hike is likely in the first quarter of FY2022.
The Mahindra Thar is currently priced from Rs. 12.10 lakh to Rs. 14.15 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi), and is available with two engine options. The first is a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol motor, which generates 150 PS and 320 Nm (300 Nm on MT), while the second one is a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel mill with 130 PS and 300 Nm on tap. There are two gearbox options on both the engines – 6-speed manual and 6-speed automatic – with a 4×4 system and transfer case available as standard.