With Maharashtra headed towards a full lockdown, the Thar’s waiting period could increase even further very soon
Mahindra & Mahindra launched the second-generation Thar in India in October last year. The manufacturer has received over 50,000 bookings for the SUV till date, but the demand vastly overshadows the supply. Even though the manufacturer has increased production of the new Thar a few times now, the cumulative dispatch figure stood at 12,744 units till March 2021.
Due to the vast difference in demand and supply, the waiting period for the Thar has been steadily increasing in India. Now, our dealer sources have revealed that the waiting period has crossed the 1-year mark in select cities across the country! Also, with Maharashtra preparing for a lockdown, the production at the manufacturer’s Nashik plant will be affected, which could further increase the waiting period for the Thar.
The global shortage of semiconductor chips is also responsible for the high waiting period of the new Thar. Due to the shortage, a lot of Thar SUVs are sitting at dealerships without the 7.0-inch infotainment system, waiting for the systems to arrive before they can be delivered. According to a few media reports, the semiconductor shortage might continue into 2022, and the global auto industry will be acutely affected.
Mahindra Thar is offered with two engine options – a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol and a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel. The former generates a peak power and torque of 150 PS and 320Nm (300 Nm on MT), respectively, while the latter is good for 130 PS and 300 Nm. Both engines can be had with either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic gearbox.
The Thar comes standard with a part-time 4×4 system, with a shift-on-fly transfer case. The SUV also gets plenty of features, like a rear locking differential, brake locking differentials on all wheels, hill hold assist, hill descent control, removable doors, roof-mounted speakers, IP54 dust/water resistant interior, etc. There are currently two roof options available – a hard-top roof and a convertible soft-top roof.
The price of Mahindra Thar starts at Rs. 12.10 lakh and goes up to Rs. 14.15 lakh (ex-showroom prices, New Delhi). It currently doesn’t have any direct competitors in the Indian market, but will soon have some, after that launch of the Force Gurkha BS6 and Maruti Suzuki Jimny (5-door).