Hi-res image gallery with captions on the last page
We reported the launch of the new Mahindra Thar LIVE to you yesterday. Mahindra had arranged for an off-road trail right after the launch event, for the interested motoring journos. And interested, as you would imagine, we always are for such stuff. So we hitched a ride on one of the Scorpios and went all the way to Vasai on the extreme outskirts of Mumbai to get a first-hand experience of this promising new off-roader from Mahindra. Here’s a detailed report on all you want to know about this new off-roader along with our first driving experience
Mahindra Thar – the origin
Mahindra Thar, as announced by Vivek Nayyar, company’s VP marketing, is another step in the company’s efforts to be present in every segment of the Indian car market. With the Thar, Mahindra wants to address the needs of those who relish off-roading and have a liking for retro styled vehicles. The DNA of the Thar dates back to the World War II where the iconic Jeep brand proved instrumental in helping America emerge victorious in several battlefields. On October 2nd 1945, Mahindra started assembling jeeps in India under license from Willys, USA – and the rest, as they say, is history.
And this is where the rugged DNA of the Thar originated from. The Willys jeeps were designed and developed to endure the unrelenting rigors of a war. They were built to tread untrodden territories, take rough terrains in their stride without a whimper and tolerate persistent abuse. The Thar CRDe is an evolved version of the Mahindra CJ340, the MM 540, the Classic and the Legend.
With that strong a heritage, it was obvious that Mahindra & Mahindra didn’t want to change the looks of the car. So they persisted with the time-tested classic design of the jeep and added some goodies to it to make it more contemporary and driver friendly.
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